Marc Ribot Y Los Cubanos Postizos CD

Live Recording

Personnel: Marc Ribot (vocals, trumpet, guitar); Gregory Ribot (baritone saxophone); John Medeski (organ, Mellotron); Anthony Coleman (organ); Brad Jones (bass); Robert J. Rodriguez (drums, claves, chekere, percussion, background vocals); EJ Rodriguez (percussion, background vocals); Madeline Hunt-Erlich, Mattan Ingram, Miles Ingram (background vocals).
Recorded at Water Music, Hoboken, New Jersey; Quad Recording, Platinum Island, New York, New York.
All tracks have been digitally mastered using HDCD technology.
The mastery and vision of the enduring Marc Ribot shine through on this release. Although there have been many attempts to produce authentic indigenous music of various cultures, most have fallen short; this album succeeds in the wake of failure. Ribot delves deep into Cuban rhythms, and indeed the album is a tribute to the Cuban master Arsenio Rodriguez. Here Ribot finds an authentic Cuban sound employing traditional instrumentation: upright bass, wood blocks, cherke, and other percussion sounds. The performance is inspired, and the band consistently tears through Rodriguez's material, as well as some of their own. Ribot's guitar work nears perfection, and he proves himself to be the most soulful white alive. Songs like "Aqui Como Alla" and "Postizo" confirm these assertions. Although this album does not present the iconoclastic Ribot of The Book of Heads fame, it is an excellent album. ~ Marc Gilman
Guitarist Marc Ribot is well-known and respected for his session work with the likes of Tom Waits and Elvis Costello, as well as his association with John Zorn and other downtown New York experimental musicians. Like several others in that scene, Ribot has formed a group to create an outlet for an interest in ethnic music, in this case, the music of the late Cuban composer, instrumentalist, and bandleader Arsenio Rodriguez, who wrote most of the tunes on this CD. The result is a well-crafted album that should bring Cuban music to a whole new audience.
The album's overall feel is understated--on many cuts it's just Ribot, a bassist, a drummer, and a percussionist. Ribot's guitar solos are always highly articulate and he has a great command over a variety of tones. A few cuts also feature organ (either frequent Zorn collaborator Anthony Coleman or John Medeski), and Ribot even takes a couple of spoken vocals on "No Me Llores Mas" and "La Vida Es Un Sueno." The production is spare and uncluttered, giving it a live band sound. Anyone who enjoyed the Latin Playboys' album or Ry Cooder's Buena Vista Social Club is sure to respond to Ribot and company's quirky take on Cuban music.