The year was 1965. A few months earlier, Nuyorican keyboardist Eddie Palmieri had changed the history of Latin music with "Azúcar" - the seminal salsa anthem that exemplified his fusion of intellectual musicality and dancefloor power. Together with his orchestra La Perfecta, Palmieri had established himself as the kind of bandleader that the world of Afro-Caribbean music had been waiting for: restless and experimental, thoughtful and visionary, a man of limitless imagination.

Matching the quality of the classic Azúcar Pa'Ti LP was a tough call, but Palmieri managed the seemingly impossible with a strong statement: "mambo con conga is mozambique."

The title's mozambique refers to a specific rhythmic style, heavy on the congas, that became successful during the late '60s. The mozambique had been developed in Cuba by percussionist Pello El Afrokán, then brought into the world of salsa by Palmieri, with the contribution of timbalero Manny Oquendo. Through this album, Palmieri acknowledged the tremendous influence that Cuba's folklore had on his musical palette.

Many of the tracks included in Mozambique are rightfully considered as Eddie Palmieri classics to this day: the electrifying opening track "Mi Mambo Conga," the velvety detour into Brazilian territory with "Manha De Carnaval" and the closing comparsa-styled "Camagüeyanos y Habaneros," which Palmieri chose to include in a 1999 concert recording.

In 1968, the keyboardist would disband La Perfecta following a deep personal crisis. During the '70s, he would take his experimental tendencies to new heights on the albums The Sun Of Latin Music and Unfinished Masterpiece. Mozambique, on the other hand, finds La Perfecta at its absolute apex, with a rock solid Oquendo on timbales (many percussionists refer to this specific LP as one of the records that changed their lives), the dream trombone lineup of Barry Rogers and José Rodrigues and a fiery Ismael Quintana on vocals.

Palmieri's piano lines demonstrate his impeccable taste and ferocious approach to generating Afro-Caribbean swing. But his solos are not as dissonant here as they would become in later years. La Perfecta was much more than just a showcase for Palmieri's vision. It was also a perfectly balanced salsa orchestra.

Compared to the first couple of Perfecta LPs, Mozambique sounds like a mature album. Remarkably, Palmieri hadn't even turned 30 when he recorded it. Born in 1936, the younger brother of Charlie Palmieri began his career as a timbalero, which explains his highly percussive take on the piano. Inspired by his brother, and tired of carrying his timbales around, he switched to the keyboards at age 15. Like many tropical bandleaders, he was equally infatuated by the joyful danceability of Latin American music and the sheer beauty of mainstream jazz. Both formats have informed his creations ever since.

An album like Mozambique allows for multiple readings: music students will continue studying its structures with academic zeal. Salsa fans will marvel at the richness of La Perfecta's wall of sound. And dancers will be inevitably swept up by the desire to shake their hips to gems such as "Sujétate La Lengua."

"That urge to dance is not a coincidence," Eddie Palmieri told me once when I asked him about the addictive swing to be found in his music. "Throughout my career, I have studied the scientific principles that make people react to the crescendo generated by the brass and the rhythm section." He paused, then added with a laugh: "If this stuff doesn't make you get up and dance, nothing else will."

Credits:

Eddie Palmieri – Piano
Barry Rogers – Trombone
José Rodrigues – Trombone
George Castro – Flute
Manny Oquendo – Timbales, Bongo
Tommy López – Conga
Dave Pérez – Bass

Lead Vocal – Ismael Quintana

Producer – Teddy Reig
Engineer – Roy Ramirez




Written by Ernesto Lechner



LESS >