The Original Latin Dance King

Amazon.com
One of Latin music's original 20th-century superstars of stage, record, and screen, the bandleader born Francisco de Asis Javier Cugat Mingall de Cru y Deulofeo may have delivered the rumba, tango, and mambo with a slick mainstream veneer, but it was precisely those shrewd commercial instincts that undoubtedly brought a rich, rhythm-charged world of music to audiences who might never otherwise have been exposed to it. The 23 gloriously remastered tracks here span the '40s and '50s, an era when "Cugie" was a household name due to his myriad radio and film appearances. The material ranges from an energetic 1941 Miguelito Valdes performance of the Afro-Cuban staple (and later Desi Arnaz signature tune) "Babalu" and a Cugie-ized take on Tito Puente's evergreen "Suavecito" to more jazz-kitschy renditions of "The Brand New Cha-Cha" and "The Anything Can Happen Mambo" by third wife Abbe Lane (Cugat would later marry pop culture icon Charro). The mambo and merengue fads of the '40s and '50s are also given their due via Pérez Prado's "Mambo Jambo" and "A Bailar Merengue" respectively. Machito may have been more "authentic," but few could quibble with the effervescence and missionary zeal Cugat brought to Latin music for eight remarkable decades. Let this be your appetizer. --Jerry McCulley

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Average customer rating: The perfect Cugat collection Some good, Some excellent, Half of them BAD. I am biased... after all Pepito Arvelo was my uncle

Original Latin Dance King Xavier Cugat Manufacturer: Sony ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | International | Styles | Music General | Latin Music | Styles | Music General | Jazz | Styles | Music Latin Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music Lounge | Easy Listening | Pop | Styles | Music Similar Items: South America, Take It Away: 24 Latin Hits Cugat's Favorite Rumbas / Mambo at the Waldorf Golden Classics Bread, Love and Cha-Cha-Cha/Cugat Calvalcade Best of Xavier Cugat ASIN: B00006B1SN Release Date: 2002-07-23

Tracks:

1. Babalu
2. Jamay
3. Anana Boroco Tinde
4. The Brand New Cha Cha
5. Cuca
6. Bim Bam Bum
7. A Bailar Merengue
8. Coco Seco
9. Suavecito
10. Miami Beach Rhumba
11. Yo Quiero Un Mambo
12. Son Los Dandis
13. Mambo Jambo
14. Ritmo Tropical
15. (The Chi Chi) Cha Cha Cha
16. Yo Ta Namora
17. The Anything Can Happen Mambo
18. Mambo Gordo
19. Besame Mucho
20. Tumbao
21. Bread, Love, And Cha Cha Cha
22. La Mucura
23. Cuban Mambo
24. Mondonguero
25. Mondongo
26. Who Me?

Amazon.com

One of Latin music's original 20th-century superstars of stage, record, and screen, the bandleader born Francisco de Asis Javier Cugat Mingall de Cru y Deulofeo may have delivered the rumba, tango, and mambo with a slick mainstream veneer, but it was precisely those shrewd commercial instincts that undoubtedly brought a rich, rhythm-charged world of music to audiences who might never otherwise have been exposed to it. The 23 gloriously remastered tracks here span the '40s and '50s, an era when "Cugie" was a household name due to his myriad radio and film appearances. The material ranges from an energetic 1941 Miguelito Valdes performance of the Afro-Cuban staple (and later Desi Arnaz signature tune) "Babalu" and a Cugie-ized take on Tito Puente's evergreen "Suavecito" to more jazz-kitschy renditions of "The Brand New Cha-Cha" and "The Anything Can Happen Mambo" by third wife Abbe Lane (Cugat would later marry pop culture icon Charro). The mambo and merengue fads of the '40s and '50s are also given their due via Pérez Prado's "Mambo Jambo" and "A Bailar Merengue" respectively. Machito may have been more "authentic," but few could quibble with the effervescence and missionary zeal Cugat brought to Latin music for eight remarkable decades. Let this be your appetizer. --Jerry McCulley

Customer Reviews:

The perfect Cugat collection.......2003-03-03

Bandleader Xavier Cugat is frequently looked down on by some Latin music purists, but I guess that's their loss. This is a fab collection with a generous cross-section of Cugat's work on the Columbia label, from 1941-57, featuring swinging hits like "Babalu" and "Bim Bam Bum," and tons of talent including singers such as Tito Rodriguez, Miguelito Valdes and Abbe Lane (fresh from her work with Tito Puente) as well as Cugat's top-flight band, which never quite gets the credit it deserves. Yeah, sure, this stuff is kitschy and contrived, but these guys also really rocked(!) There's some seriously hot percussion going on in the background, and even the songs, taken on their own cornball terms, are a lot of fun. This is probably one of the best-programmed Cugat collections you're ever likely to come across. Check it out!

Some good, Some excellent, Half of them BAD........2003-01-12

I give this CD 4 stars because 9 selections to me are fantastic. [Coco Seco, Suavecito, Miami Beach Rumba [A+] , Yo quiero un Mambo, Mambo Jambo [an A+], Mambo Gordo, Besame Mucho, Bread Love and Cha Cha Cha, Cuban Mambo[A++]. I don't care for the selections of Miguelito Valdes [probably from the early fortys. Abbe Lane is a beautiful woman and had great style and voice but these selections on here are certainly not her best. A great recording of Abbe Lane's is "ANNA" {El Negro Zumbon] recorded with Tito Puente. However Xavier Cugat is the absolute BEST ever.

I am biased... after all Pepito Arvelo was my uncle.......2002-11-22

This album has great timeless music. Before the latin craze of Ricky Martin, Shakira and Enrique Iglesias, these guys were setting the stage for La Vida Loca...

Jazz Music:

1. Tiempos
2. Toda Una Aventura
3. Todos Sus Exitos [Import]
4. Voltage Ac [Import]
5. Willie Colon - The Best [Import]
6. Wow Flash
7. Yeah Baby!!
8. 11 Episodios Sinfonicos [Live]
9. 17 Shots
10. Aida Cuevas Canta a Juan Gabriel Con El Mariachi Los Alfareros

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