Arturo Sandoval & The Latin Train CD

On 1995's Arturo Sandoval & the Latin Train, the Cuban-born multi-instrumentalist and his enormous band continue the trend toward reducing the Latin part of their Latin jazz. Guest stars of the caliber of the immortal Celia Cruz show up for Sandoval's 11th album, despite the orientation toward crossover jazz-pop with minimal Latin content. Sandoval and crew do perfectly acceptable versions of standards like "I Can't Get Started" and Dizzy Gillespie's "Bebop," and Sandoval's originals are generally pleasantly tuneful. ~ Stewart Mason

On 1995's Arturo Sandoval & the Latin Train, the Cuban-born multi-instrumentalist and his enormous band continue the unfortunate trend toward reducing the Latin part of their Latin jazz. Although guest stars on the caliber of the immortal Celia Cruz show up for Sandoval's 11th album, they're largely wasted on a slate of too-polite, overly slick slabs of crossover-oriented jazz-pop with only the most minimal Latin content. Sandoval and crew do perfectly acceptable versions of standards like "I Can't Get Started" and Dizzy Gillespie's "Bebop," and Sandoval's originals are generally pleasantly tuneful, but they're roughly equivalent to Pérez Prado's lightweight exotica of the '50s. The nadir is a terrible version of "Colors of the Wind," the treacly theme from the animated film Pocahontas given an utterly unswinging, sluggish reading that makes the song sound even worse than it already did. This album is to Afro-Cuban jazz as Taco Bell is to Mexican food. ~ Stewart Mason

Personnel includes: Arturo Sandoval (trumpet, flugelhorn, piano, percussion); Celia Cruz, Oscar D'Leon, Luis Enrique, Joe Williams (vocals); Kenny Anderson, Ed Calle (saxophone, flute); Dana Teboe (trombone); Otmaro Ruiz (piano); Rene Toledo (guitar); David Enos (bass); Aaron Serfaty (drums); Manuel "Egui" Castrillo, Luis Henrique, Edwin Bonilla (percussion); Vicente Rojas, Laura Pifferver, Cheito Quinones (background vocals).

Personnel includes: Arturo Sandoval (trumpet, flugelhorn, piano); Joe Williams, Oscar D'Leon, Luis Enrique, Celia Cruz (vocals); Kenny Anderson, Ed Calle (saxophone, flute); Dana Teboe (trombone); Otmaro Ruiz (piano); Rene Toledo (guitar); David Enos (bass); Aaron Serfaty (drums); Manuel "Egui" Castrillo, Luis Henrique, Edwin Bonilla (percussion); Vicente Rojas, Laura Pifferver, Cheito Quinones (background vocals).

Down Beat (6/95, p.42) - 3 Stars - Good - "...astonishing musicianship....the precision and gleam in the brass section work is something any jazz ensemble could learn from..."
Down Beat (6/95, p.42) - 3 Stars - Good - "...astonishing musicianship....the precision and gleam in the brass section work is something any jazz ensemble could learn from..."
JazzTimes (10/95, p.89) - "...Well balanced and beautifully orchestrated, this is Sandoval at his best."
JazzTimes (10/95, p.89) - "...Well balanced and beautifully orchestrated, this is Sandoval at his best."