Guarabe cal tjader biography

He remains active in both genres to this day, leading a popular Latin jazz ensemble and writing arrangements for none other than bossa guru Joao Gilberto. Sanchez, whose seven-year tenure with Cal more than prepared him for a career as a leader, has been propelled in recent years to the very front ranks of Latin jazz stardom. A devoted Tjaderite, Poncho's current album, Soul Sauceis a tribute to his mentor, the latest in a recent spate of recordings by such artists as vibraphonist Victor Mendoza and the Estrada Brothers that have effectively evoked the Tjader guarabe cal tjader biography.

Representing all but one cut from two mid-Seventies albums, Guarabe and Here, the collection captures the Tjader sound at the peak of its small-group-format evolution. Sans the horn section and soloists that shaped his earliest forays into the Latin jazz, these sessions, with long-form arrangements, focused more attention on the improvisational talents of Cal and Fischer and less on the typical structure common in many more routine Latin jazz dates.

The album also reminds us of Cal's legendary good taste and love of songs with strong melodic interest. Bob Redfield delivers some of Benson's Wes Montgomery-derived flair and offers another insight into Tjader's genius. His ear was quick to recognize worthy material when he heard it, whether it sprang from the pop music realm or the most obscure Latin American sources.

Also, his use of a guitarist provided an element all but unused in Latin jazz but highly effective in this small-group setting. Always respectful of tradition, Cal never hesitated to break the mold if it resulted in more compelling performances. Highlights abound on Here and There. If Cal were alive today — he passed away in — he would undoubtedly be overjoyed at the growth and current popularity of Latin jazz, the recognition of the style by the Grammy Awards, and the continued success of such former colleagues as Clare Fischer, Poncho Sanchez, and a host of others.

All About Jazz musician pages are maintained by musicians, publicists and trusted members like you. Tell us why you would like to improve the Guarabe musician page. All About Jazz Essentials. Sign In Up Donate. Cal Tjader vibraphone. Recording Caligola Guarabe Cal Tjader. Catch The Groove Jazz Detective buy. Stretchin' Out Nagel Heyer Records buy.

Huracan Liberation Hall buy. Verve Records buy. Jazz Vibes With A It was with Brubeck in San Francisco that he was first exposed to Cuban music and with George Shearing in New York that he fully perceived how the rhythms could alter the course of his career. He came back to the West Coast in and the jazz universe expanded. As Tjader's life unfolds through the extensive research of this author, which features more than 60 interviews with colleagues, family and friends, the reader will learn about the melding of European and African music via the United States, Cuba and Brazil.

Moreover, a tender, troubled and complex human being will be revealed. The second edition gives an even larger view of his saga. Along with Philip Smith, who not only contributes anecdotes about Tjader's childhood but also his career—on stage and off—there are candid interviews with drummer Carl Burnett, bassist Stanley Gilbert, record producer Frank Dorritie, deejay Alan Schultz and further conversations with Al and Terry-Ann Torre, Eddie Coleman and the late Bob Redfield.

Additional research from print sources has corrected some errors of commission and omission, brought Tjader's first known interview to light, and uncovered more on why influential critic Ralph J. Gleason went from being a proponent of Tjader to ignoring him. The Mambo craze reached its pitch in the late s, a boon to Tjader's career.

Unlike the exotica of Martin Denny and Les Baxtermusic billed as "impressions of" Oceania and other localesTjader's bands featured seasoned Cuban players and top-notch jazz talent conversant in both idioms. He cut several notable straight-ahead jazz albums for Fantasy using various group names, most notably the Cal Tjader Quartet composed of bassist Gene Wrightdrummer Al Torre, and pianist Vince Guaraldi.

Tjader is sometimes lumped in as part of the West Coast or " cool " jazz sound, although his rhythms and tempos both Latin and bebop had little in common with the work of Los Angeles jazzmen Gerry MulliganChet Bakeror Art Pepper. Tjader and his band opened the second Monterey Jazz Festival in with an acclaimed "preview" concert. The first festival had suffered financially.

Tjader is credited with bringing in big ticket sales for the second and saving the landmark festival before it had even really started. The Modern Mambo Quintet disbanded within a couple of years. Tjader formed several more small-combo bands, playing regularly at such San Francisco jazz clubs as the Blackhawk. With the luxury of larger budgets and seasoned recording producer Creed Taylor in the control booth, Tjader cut a varied string of albums.

Tjader recorded with big band orchestras for the first time, and even made an album based on Asian scales and rhythms. His biggest success was the album Soul Sauce Its title track, a Dizzy Gillespie cover Tjader had been toying with for over a decade, was a guarabe cal tjader biography hit hitting the top 20 on New York's influential pop music station WMCA in Mayand landed the album on Billboard 's Top 50 Albums of The name "Soul Sauce" came from Taylor's suggestion for a catchier title and Willie Bobo 's observation that Tjader's version was spicier than the original.

The song's identifiable sound is a combination of the call-outs made by Bobo "Salsa ahi na ma The album sold overcopies and popularized the word salsa in describing Latin dance music. The s were Tjader's most prolific period. With the backing of a major record label, Verve, he could afford to stretch out and expand his repertoire. Both albums attempted to combine jazz and Asian music, much as Tjader and others had done with Afro-Cuban.

The result was dismissed by the critics, chided as little more than the dated exotica that had come and gone in the prior decade. Other experiments were not so easily dismissed. While Tjader's prior work was often dismissed as "Latin lounge ", here the duo created a darker, more sinister sound. Cal Tjader Plays The Contemporary Music Of Mexico And Brazilreleased during the bossa nova craze, actually bucked the trend, instead using more traditional arrangements from the two countries' past.

Tjader's work of this period is characterized by Solar Heat and Tjader Plugs Inprecursors to acid jazz. During the s Tjader returned to Fantasy Records, the label he began with in Embracing the jazz fusion sound that was becoming its own subgenre at the time, he added electronic instruments to his lineup and began to employ rock beats behind his arrangements.

Guarabe cal tjader biography

His most notable album during this period is Amazonas produced by Brazilian percussionist Airto Moreira. He played on the soundtrack to the animated film Fritz the Catmost notably on the track entitled "Mamblues". Like the Monterey Jazz Festival show, he played a mix of jazz standards and Latin arrangements. Later he toured Japan with saxophonist Art Pepper, the latter recovering from alcohol and drug dependencies.