Ray Barretto - 1999 "Portraits In Jazz And Clave"

In this program of mainly Afro-Cubanized jazz standards, conga man Barretto assembled an all-star group of friends to complement his regular working New World Spirit band. The icons include longtime friend Kenny Burrell, whose guitar playing is a key component in the makeup of every selection. Bassist Eddie Gomez, tenor saxophonist Joe Lovano and trombonist Steve Turre join such up-and-coming younger musicians as trumpeter John Bailey, saxophonist Adam Kolker and pianist John DiMartino. Second percussionist Bobby Sanabria is alongside, as is the oustanding trap drummer and longtime Barretto bandmate Vince Cherico.

The recording is bookended by Duke Ellington's music. It's front-loaded with "The Mooche," ignited by a simmering bass and left-hand piano ostinato plucked from Horace Silver's "Senor Blues." Conch-shell moans from Turre and punchy congas intro this classic, with Burrell's second melody lead and horns on the first and third. "Cotton Tail" is a good swinger with Latin underpinnings and loads of Burrell (refer to Burrell and Barretto on Burrell's classic Blue Note date Midnight Blue). At the end of the CD is the lesser-known "Oclupaca," taken as a steamy cha-cha. Also included is Billy Strayhorn's Johnny Come Lately," which has clave/mambo rhythms buoying echoed trumpet and tenor lines talking back and forth. The interplay of this counterpoint is stunning, again kicked off by the fuse of Burrell's guitar.

There's the fluttery horn intro and dueling tenors on John Coltrane's "Like Sonny," the slight tango-ish "Lamento Borincano" and its heavy dose of Latin Burrell, and the laid-back horns setting up demure-to-forceful piano by DiMartino on Wayne Shorter's "Go." Then there's Thelonious Monk's brisk and brusque "I Mean You," cooked by the unison horns to golden brown perfection with claves, montuno piano and a patented deft bass solo from the brilliant Gomez. A most Afro-Cuban "Cancion del Fuego Fatuo" is quite subtle, Burrell again the focal point with much to say beneath and above the surface. Of the many fine recordings Barretto has produced in the past 30 years as a leader, this ranks right up in the top three, due to the undeniable musicianship of his select guests, the innate ability of his own band, and the meticulous selection of jazz pieces whipped into tangy salsa. It's a winning, highly recommended combination.

Back in the day when Mario Bauz, Chico O’Farrill and Dizzy were striving to link up Afro Cuban son ‘n’ clave with Afro American swing and bop, they built their bridges on the backs of ex-Havana conguero masters like Chano Pozo and Mongo Santamaria. As the ’50s waned, the Latin jazz vanguard was led by Nuyorican timbalero Tito Puente and his conguero homeboy Ray Barretto. Well-schooled in Cuban guaguanco, Puerto Rican bomba/plena, veteran of bop jam sessions at Mintons, Barretto was the right cat at the right time.

First kicking off the Latin boogaloo craze with the 1963 R&B crossover smash “El Watusi,” by the end of the ’80s Barretto’s groundbreaking solo (Acid), Fania All-Stars and pop (Rolling Stones) recordings made him the most ubiquitous conguero of all. Since the early ’90s, the various editions of his New World Spirit ensemble have consistently dropped some of the deepest Latin jazz music on the planet.

 At a time when Latin jazz legends and newer jacks alike are content to place-and-show (see Tito and Arturo Sandoval), Mr. Hard Hands’ latest New World Spirit + 4 recording, Portraits in Jazz and Clave, finds him still in the lead, maxing mph. Cold chilling behind the wheel of a low-riding machine tweaked, torqued and souped by Steve Turre, Joe Lovano, Kenny Burrell, Eddie Gomez, John Bailey, Adam Kolker, John Di Martino and Bobby Sanabria (trombone/shells, tenor sax, guitar, bass, trumpet, tenor/soprano, piano, percussion, respectively), Barretto deftly up/downshifts his way through Turre’s sneaky/snaky jazz ‘n’ clave variations on Duke (“The Mooche”), Monk (“I Mean You”), Shorter (“Go”) and Hernandez (“Lamento Borincano”).

After some 50-odd years of fervid cross-cultural exchange, Portraits in Jazz and Clave is as much testimony to the continuing relevance of Latin jazz as it is to the artistic resilience of Ray Barretto.

This recording is dedicated to the memory of Ben Joubert, <>... He touched many with his love for life...

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Track listing:

1     The Mooche     6:55
2     Cotton Tail     5:31
3     Johnny Come Lately     5:27
4     Cancion Del Fuego Fatuo (From El Amor Brujo)     7:16
5     I Mean You     6:41
6     Go     7:58
7     Like Sonny     4:35
8     Lamento Borincano     7:17
9     Oclupaca (From Latin American Suite)     6:07

Personnel:

    Congas, Mixed By, Mastered By, Edited By, Producer, Liner Notes – Ray Barretto
    Drums – Vince Cherico
    Featuring [Bass] – Eddie Gomez
    Featuring [Guitar] – Kenny Burrell
    Featuring [Tenor Saxophone] – Joe Lovano
    Featuring [Trombone, Shells] – Steve Turre
    Piano – John Di Martino
    Producer – Jean-Jacques Pussiau
    Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone – Adam Kolker
    Trumpet – John Bailey (2)