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HAVANA ’58, the decadent jet-set heaven when Cuba was a tropical playground. A pleasure dome of sensual overload and rum-fuelled abandon, where shows and showgirls were dazzling, the gambling was high-stakes, and the revellers included Marlon Brando, Ernest Hemingway, Frank Sinatra and J.F.K., to name a few. Mojitos, Mobsters, Mambos & Muchachas. A forbidden, hedonistic world of Rum, Rumba and Roulette. The full range of Sexual freedom, official corruption, and Mafia control that fuelled the rampant party – until Sylvester 1958 when Fidel Castro’s revolutionaries took the floor. On this 4th album The Bahama Soul Club presents a very personal soundtrack, a musical homage, inspired by a vibrant verve that never came back. We encounter a heady blend of glittering nightclubs, outrageous cabarets, fashionable hotels and looking deep into backstreet brothels, empty wallets and bemusing decolletes. The Rumba is everywhere. With the first albums The BSC established an elegant and percussive cocktail of Latin Jazz, Soul, Bossa and Boogaloo and now mixing the dark, sensual, alluring mystic of Tiki and Exotica into it. What we get is a new caribic long-drink named: HAVANA ’58 Genre: Afro-Cuban Jazz Style: 60s/cinematic Sound: Hi-Fidelity-Plus Featuring: Cuba’s leading vocal quartet SEXTO SENTIDO, the vivacious OLVIDO RUIZ, singer in the Bahama Soul Club Live band, and again the lovely AREMA AREGA. These ladies were selected by Gilles Peterson for the well-respected Havana-Cultura-Project and reveal their traditional Cuban roots as they combine fun and intellect while smartly ignoring passing fashion. Also there’s a very special guest: The American Jazz and Soul singer BRENDA BOYKIN from the mighty Club Des Belugas with the hypnotic “No Words” and the shuffling “Dizzy’s Bounce”.

Track listing:
00:00 – The Bahama Soul Club – Something Unique
03:39 – The Bahama Soul Club – No Words (feat. Brenda Boykin)
09:46 – The Bahama Soul Club – Meyer-Lansky (feat. Sexto Sentido)
14:39 – The Bahama Soul Club – Casino De Capri
19:09 – The Bahama Soul Club – Muévelo Papi (feat. Olvido Ruiz)
22:34 – The Bahama Soul Club – Rumba Fugaz (feat. Arema Arega)
26:46 – The Bahama Soul Club – Let God (feat. Olvido Ruiz)
30:14 – The Bahama Soul Club – Dizzy’s Bounce (feat. Brenda Boykin)
33:51 – The Bahama Soul Club – Eleggua (feat. Sexto Sentido)
37:37 – The Bahama Soul Club – That’s Why I Said
39:34 – The Bahama Soul Club – Tropicana Flight (feat. Sexto Sentido)
43:50 – The Bahama Soul Club – Night Breeze (feat. Olvido Ruiz)
47:41 – The Bahama Soul Club – Under The Mojito Moon

Personnel:

Bass – Lars Lehmann (tracks: 6)
Bass, Guitar – Helge Preuss* (tracks: 7, 11)
Guitar – Ralli King (tracks: 1, 4, 5, 8)
Lap Steel Guitar – Ralli King (tracks: 1, 4, 5, 8, 12, 13)
Lyrics By – Arema Arega (tracks: 6), Arlety Valdés (tracks: 3, 11), Olvido Ruiz (tracks: 5, 7, 12), Yudelkis Lafuente (tracks: 3, 11)
Orchestra – Thomas Wolter (tracks: 3, 4, 7, 13)
Saxophone – York (2) (tracks: 2, 5)
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Label: Buyú Records – BU014CD
Format: CD, Album
Released: Nov 2016