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Bobby Carcassés
by Leonardo Acosta
Whereas in the past he has been popularly known as the perfect "Showman"
and Entertainer, Bobby is now considered the ultimate Guru of Afrocuban
Jazz, offering inspiration to the up and coming generation of new
Cuban Jazz musicians as many of the Best new talents have started
their careers playing with Bobby's band.
He was born on August 29th 1938 in
Kingston Jamaica, where his Cuban grandfather worked as a Diplomat.
Upon moving to Villa Clara in Cuba at the age of four, Bobby grew
up surrounded by Cuban rhytms, listening to Benny Moré, Conjunto
Casino & Roberto Faz.
He also acquired a Love for an eclectic
spectrum of music from the Opera Star Enrico Carusso and Mexico's
enigmatic Jorge Negrete to the Jazz Supremos Sarah Vaugahn, Buddy
Rich and Stan Getz. By the 1950's he was envolved with some of the
best vocals quartets in Cuba and whilst playing for many years at
The Tropicana the very center of Cuban Jazz at the time, he began
to experiment with Bebop and Scat vocals.
In the 60's he traveled to Europe,
spending a year in Paris where he played with the Legendary Kenny
Clarke and Bud Powell. When he returned to Cuba he worked in the
Teatro Musical where he met three of the Futurs founders of the
Legendary "Irakere" : Chucho Valdes, Carlos Emilio Morales and Paquito
D' Rivera.
Over the next ten years he played in
the best night clubs in Havana as well as acting in Cuban cinema,
Tv and essentially starting to form his own Jazz group. In 1980
he organized the first Jazz Plaza Festival in Havana, envolving
the Great Stars of Jazz such as Dizzy Gillespie, Ronnie Scott, Charlie
Haden, Airto Moreira, Tania Maria, Steve Coleman and many others.
Year after his own group was the focal point in these Festivals.
He traveled to Canada, England, France
and the USA where he performed with Tito Puente, Eddie Palmieri,
Patato Valdés and many other Greats from the Latin Jazz scene. If
Jazz Timbero (1998 Tumi Music UK) was both a projection of Bobby's
musical personality and a complex historical record of the different
elements of Cuban music combined along the way with Jazz, Blues
and World music.
The power of Bobby's dynamic personality
shows in his versatility. Beginning as a Rumbero he had to master
the three elements of Guaguancó: Song, Dance & Percussion, whilst
his involvement in Jazz taught him to play countless instruments
- Piano, Bass, percussion Fliscorno or Flugel horn, as well as writing
his own pieces.
The result of a lifetime's involvement
in sport and Yoga are shown in the bizarre combination of raw Energy
and Spiritual Equilibrium; his Greatest Sporting achievement is
that of National high jump Champion in 1960.
He's also a Lover of Painting, Drawing
and Literature and has exhibited his own work on many occasions
around the world.
The word Timba has numerous meanings
in Cuba; from a fiesta to a way of saying if something is right
or not: "la timba esta Buena or esta mala". It was originally used
to refer to a meeting dedicated to al juego ilicito ( an illegal
game). Cuban salsa has been christened as Timba by both the musicians
themselves and the listening public.
This new music renews Cuban rhythms
and when mixed with Jazz produces something quite unique. The degree
of respect Bobby has attained by his contemporaries is shown by
the list of Great musicians that took part in his recordings.
But without a doubt, the connecting
thread is Bobby's voice with his electrifying use of Guaguancó,
Rumbero Improvisations and Scat Vocals. Bobby is part of a tradition
of singers who, within a Son, Guaracha or Bolero format integrate
other influences such as Mambo or Guanguancó.
The most famous example is Beny Moré,
but Bobby also remembers Francisco Fellové who towards the end of
the forties created a style of singing known as Scat which Bobby
has developed to an outstanding degree.
Jazz Timbero is a declaration of principles:
a tribute to Cuban rhythms and music and above all to the people
of New York who have kept these elements alive and thriving throughout
the world. Jazz Timbero offers us music to renew our vitality, our
smile and brings us a deeply emotive and sweet Caribbean flavor
under the direction of the Great Bobby Carcassés, it maintains an
equilibrium of diverse tensions thanks to the concentration and
relaxation offered by the artist's practice of Yoga, and exciting
fusion of music through his extensive knowledge of music and a distinct
sound formed by many years of performing, touring and producing
live and recorded works.
Bobby is an ancestral musician whose
roots could be Nigeria, Dahomey or Andalusia, but who in fact comes
from a long line starting from Havana to New York, possibly passing
through Tibet along the way.
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