Adios, Compay
 Today's
obituaries
mark the passing of a great musician, Cuban icon
Compay Segundo. Who? you may be asking. If
you've heard—or even heard of—the
Buena Vista Social Club, Compay was the patriarch
of the Cuban musical ensemble. Earning fame back in
the 1940s and '50s by giving life to the Cuban
son style of music, he fell into obscurity
with many other great Cuban musicians until being
rediscovered in the 1990s—by then in his 90s
himself. A Grammy-winning compact
disc produced by Ry Cooder and a documentary
directed by Wim Wenders shone the spotlight back on
Compay and his compadres, Ruben Gonzales, Ibrahim
Ferrer, Omara Portuondo and others.
I first became acquainted with Compay and his
music when I watched the DVD of "Buena Vista Social
Club." The film received critical acclaim when it
was released, so I checked it out when it came out
on video. Compay dominated the first few scenes,
his joie de vivre belying his advanced age.
Chomping on a cigar and strumming a guitar in the
back of a convertible Caddy, he filled the screen
with his personality. From the moment I heard the
first few chords of "Chan Chan"
(play clip: Windows
Media | Real
Player), the first song on the DVD/CD, I
was hooked. I immediately went out and bought the
compact disc soundtrack, and have since nearly worn
it out. I was hooked on Cuban music.
I'm an expert in neither Cuban musical history
or music in general. As the saying goes, however,
"I may not know much about music, but I know what I
like." You can hear the passion in the thrumming
minor chords, wailing brass themes, plaintive piano
fingering and pulsing bass beats. The music has
more life than any other I've heard. And though
dancing falls pretty low on the list of things I
enjoy doing, I can't think of any other music
that's more perfectly suited to grabbing your woman
and burning up the dance floor.
¡Adios Compay, y gracias por la
música!
©2003 Michael
Strickland ALL RIGHTS
RESERVED
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July Columns:
7/21: Hiatus
7/17: Death Ship
7/16: The Da Vinci Code
7/15: Bad Moon Rising
7/14: Adios, Compay
7/13: Ty Odeh
7/10: Muse
7/6: Memories
7/4: On the Road Again
7/3: Onion Valley
7/2: Happy Independence Day
Previous months in The Archive
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