Customer Reviews

Cuba and Its Music: From the First Drums to the Mambo

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If all Ned Sublette had ever done in his life was release the catalogue of Los Muñequitos de Matanzas in the US, he would have made a great contribution. Now this. "Bendiciones, Ned!"

He says right from the beginning (and several times throughout) that he has not set out to write an encyclopedia of Cuban Music, so don't blame him for not mentioning everybody you can think of.

And that turns out to be a good thing, because it avoids the kind of laundry list, dash off a few names in a sentence and quickly move on to the next thing, superficial treatment Cuban music normally gets.

The book is called "Cuba and its Music" and it is just that. Rather than a complete history of Cuban music, it's really more like a history of Cuba for the Cuban music buff: A general history of Cuba from the perspective of someone who considers its greatest export to be music. A history which for example talks about the Platt Amendment but goes into more detail about the creation of mambo and the life of Miguelito Valdes than about average crop yields from 1765-1873.

As a Cuban music fan who is interested in the history of Cuba but was never quite able to wade through Hugh Thomas' book, this is great reading. (Though, damn, how could he leave out Carlos Embales???!!!) ; )

The best popular work on Cuban Music I have ever read. Background aspects of the music and history of the island that are unknown even to musicians that specialize in latin music are clearly presented. The author is definitely "en clave." Having spent eighteen years of my life dedicated to playing Cuban music, this book was equivalent to a gourmet feast.

This is the finest book on the sociological basis of music I have ever read. Many good books will provide a new fact on each page or two, but I seem to learn three new bits of history on every single page of this extensive analysis of the origins of musical styles in Cuba. But this is more than about Cuba; it is about Al-Andalus/Sefarad and Renaissance Spain and the eary history of the United States, and about northwest and central African peoples, and about Renaissance Europe, and about the early history of Islam and Arabia. It is about differing social policy and its effect on the slave trade. It is about what gave New Orleans jazz the Latin tinge and makes that city a treasure. It is about the distinct origins of the polyrhythmic, polytonal structures of Afro-Cuban and Afro-Brazilian music and the recitative, glissando-embellished, monorhythmic music of the blues and later jazz. We learn about Louis Gottchalk's first use of the African drum in classical music [performed in Europe] and why such instruments were banned in England's continental colonies and the early United States since 1739. We learn how Moorish, that is, black, line dance style was once the rage of western Europeans, and led to England's Morris dances. These are among the smallest of factoids that you will encounter reading this highly readable yet scholarly book.

Because I admire and particularly enjoy multidisciplinary cultural histories, Sublette's book is a feast. His explorations are ours. You will be fascinated, and you will be delighted. The book is an education. Buy it.

There is nothing written in English that compares to the scope and depth of this book on Cuban music. (Leymarie's Cuban Fire comes close in volume of information, but it lacks the cogent overview and insight that Sublette masterfully weaves into the details.) This is a history of Cuban music written by a musician (!) who understands the importance of credible research when defining context and cultural antecedents. Furthermore, he uses his perspective as an outsider--he is a North American--to our advantage. Coupled with his examinations of the complexity of a Cuban identity and aesthetic, our North American culture also becomes more transparent.

This is particularly true when it comes to dissecting the story that most conventional Western Hemisphere histories neglect-the profound cultural influence of West Africa. As Sublette notes, "the drum...what an African would call a drum-is conspicuously missing from European music before the sixteenth century." Was it the creolized cultures of the New World that finally gave Europeans license to return to the dance floor after centuries of Church proscription? Sublette presents a convincing case for this, while simultaneously providing an explanation for those among us who are rhythmically challenged...

Readers also benefit from the full spectrum Sublette's perspective--that of a musician who migrates comfortably between the music of the concert hall and the dance hall. "Dancing," he writes, "is an intense listening state. Dancing can be complex and it can be spiritual. African music is almost always music for dancing; and so is Cuban music, which is African music's grown-up child." No armchair scholar talks like that.

Furthermore, his writing is not of that academic ilk that is afraid to offer opinions, or reveal passions. (For starters, he states that he likes Cuban music because he "has good taste.") Nor does he shy away from connecting the dots or hazarding wide-reaching theories. He is the first author I have come across to point out that the geographical origins of the African slaves-those coming to North America from the Senegambia, those to the Caribbean from the coastal areas-largely explains the differences in the musical styles (melismatic vs. polyrhythmic) between these two regions of the Western Hemisphere. Shouldn't this information be part of our cultural literacy?

The subject of this book is huge and Sublette is certainly up to the task. (Did I mention the extensive index?) I have also found, thanks to this text, that I am listening to Cuban musicians (eg. Chano Pozo, Miguelito Valdes, Arsenio Rodriguez) with new ears. That's quite a gift. Chevere que chevere!

I spent time in Cuba in the fifties and find the first five
chapters of this book a must read , Understanding not only music
but the corellation between Religious History and music have
opened my mind into two worlds! Once you leave the bridge the
rest of the book is a great solo, tasty and exciting !Puede Ser
Marshal Sandler Farmington Hills Mi!

This is probably the best book ever written in English on Cuban music -- and one of the most well-written and accessible, too.

Any history of Cuba that begins with the founding of Cadiz by the Phoenicians is one helluva ride!

Ned Sublette, a scholar of music and the history of music has written a new book about Cuban history and culture. Cuban music originated with the slaves during colonial times. It is Sublette's contention that in order to understand Cuba, you must understand colonialism and its impact on Cuba.

In Sublette's book, the chapter on the Spanish-American War that freed Cuba from Spanish colonialism is only 10 pages long. Sublette shows how Cuban music has influenced American music. He also shows how slave music influenced Spanish music during the colonial period. Sublette also discusses the making of Yoruba drums and their influence on Cuban music.

As the above indicates, Sublette's book looks at a wide variety of topics concerning Cuban culture and history. It makes for a most interesting read.

Ned Sublette really knows his stuff. Although he quotes extensively from other authors, his own research and experience combine to make this a wonderfully solid piece of work, and one that is long overdue. Sublette takes us back to the very beginning, unravelling the potent mix of cultures and influences that have gone into what we call Cuban music today. His attention to detail will be appreciated by Cuban music afficionados, for whom many questions will be answered and mysteries revealed. Read this book, and look forward to the second volume!

I was lucky enough to tour Cuba with Ned Sublette and learn about Cuban music. He's a racounteur of the first order and his
book is a pleasure to read.

From the dawn of human speech to the contemporary era, Sublette covers every force in history converging to create the modern latin sound. Here are some things I learned reading this book;
1)Cuban music is as much a story of the fusion of Congolese and Nigerian elements as it is a story of African and Spanish fusion.
2) Why African culture forces remained predominant in Cuba while dissipating in other colonies.
3) All about the Abakua, Palo, Ekue, and all that.

No dry history text, this is a fascinating read, well researched and crafted as a labor of love.