Mundo

Ruben Blades | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 17, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony U.S. Latin
• ASIN: B00006JIC1
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #61,621 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Ruben Blades has long been a Latin music superstar, though this album confirms suspicions he may be feeling constrained by the expectations of the genre. While others have tried their hand at the transcultural "world music" soufflé Blades masterfully whips up here, few have achieved the inviting, warm results the Panamanian vet delivers on Mundo. But Blades wisely never loses sight that however far his musical curiosity takes him, he can still only filter the results through the prism of his own experience and traditions. Thus, there's an elegantly deceptive sense of the organic here, whether covering the Pat Metheny/Lyle Mays anthem "First Circle" (which showcases Brazil's Boca Livre and Costa Rica's Editus) or the traditional "Danny Boy" (which seamlessly fuses Celtic and Afro-Cuban influences with help from Lupa Mason and her soaring soprano). Blades also pays tribute to Brazilian songwriter Gilberto Gil with the glorious harmonies of "Consideración" (a passionate reworking of Gil's "Oriente") and infuses the Malian traditional "Jiri Son Bali" with mambo rhythms. But the album's most subtle cocktails issue from Blades' originals, from the gypsy homages "Parao" and "Bochinches" (the latter fueled by savory, Havana-meets-Tangier flourishes) to the reflective, jazzy "Ella" and "La Ruta," and the joyous Uilleann pipe-tinged "Sebastian" and the romping "A San Patricio." These are tracks illuminated by Blades' passionate humanism, a compelling musical argument that our cultural differences should only be the seasoning for our common dreams. –-Jerry McCulley

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Defying Classification, October 22, 2002

By 

Dannielle R. Kukar (Miramar, FL United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mundo (Audio CD)

Salsa CD? World music CD? Yes, yes, and more. Mr. Blades continues to break out of his previously occupied space of creativity. On "Mundo", he travels beyond the universe of "Tiempos", his last musical effort.
Here, he is accompanied by the Editus Ensemble, an amazingly talented group of musicians that include not only Latin percussion, sax, horns and violin, but also bagpipe and Irish flute.
As always, Mr. Blades' lyrics are witty and engaging. You can grasp this, once you go beyond his infectious beats and imaginative musical undulations. Yes, you will want to dance to this. You will want to salsa, shimmy, zapatear and then do an Irish jig to his rendition of "Danny Boy". Here, Luba Mason's throat resonates like a songbird and makes you long for cool green Ireland. Ruben then brings you back with a blend of Irish and Latin beats. You'll want to kick up your heels and shake your bom-bom all at the same time. His voice is assertive and sensitive. And he takes the time to articulate his lyrics. There is no slurring here. Tracks are musically more diverse than ever, as in "Primogenio", where blending bagpipes with accordion and bongos transcends from an illusive concept to a coherent musical reality. Flamenco flavors tinged with jazz and salsa form a sound to swoon and dance to in "Bochinches" and "Ella". The lyrics are the type you'll want to quote when you want to sound witty: "Lower your voice while admiring beauty: screams do not impress Eternity." This passage, as most, sounds far more eloquent in Spanish, but the time has been taken to translate every song into English. Most songs are in Spanish with the only singing done in English is in "Danny Boy". His "Parao!" (On My Feet), is a tribute to the persecution of European gypsies. This song was inspired after his reading "Bury Me Standing" by Isabel Fonseca. The subject matter makes it far less arrogant than "My Way", the initial comparison that comes to mind. As usual, Ruben also sings about friends, family and his childhood and his storytelling is as comforting and imaginative as ever. And whether it's a slow simmer, "Como Nosotros" or a frenzied hot boil, "El Capitan y la Sirena", you can DANCE to it all! Most words and music are his original creations but as always, he gives credit where it is due, especially to the one with whom the recording would have been impossible and his major source of inspiration, the Earth, el MUNDO.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars No es un clasico Ruben, pero esta buenisimo!, February 24, 2006

By 

M P A "M P A" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mundo (Audio CD)

No es un tipico disco de salsa del Nueva York de los 70 y ello parece incomodar a algunos puristas, ya que al parecer el senor Blades cometio el pecado de romper las etiquetas y se ha atrevido a explorar mas alla de un solo genero. El disco se llama MUNDO, y de entrada la cosa no podria estar mas clara. Con este disco, Blades ha demostrado que no solo es un excelente salsero, sino un gran musico y compositor.

Si les gusta la salsa dura, pero de la misma manera disfrutan de un buen tango de Susana Rinaldi, del flamenco del Camaron, del samba de Beth Carvalho o Martinho da Vila y de otros generos que la mal etiquetada "world music" nos ofrece, entonces este disco les encantara. Pero si la salsa dura, el reggaeton y la salsa de formula que se baila en Miami es mas lo suyo, entonces mantenganse alejados de este disco, ya que no lo van a disfrutar.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A masterpiece, September 26, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Mundo (Audio CD)

Once upon a time, a musician from a little Republic in Central America sang the most beautifully accomplished lyrics about imperialism, love, crime, poverty, sex, racism, continental brotherhood, native rights, discrimination, political assassinations, and all those topics most of us mortals feel passionate about. After more than two decades of continued success, he is releasing a masterpiece for the world to enjoy. And it is precisely the world and its unity he sings this time about. A world without boundaries and races as exemplified by the wonderful blend of its musical roots. El mundo que Ruben describe en este trabajo es aquel utopico lugar en el que todos somos iguales y en el horizonte "en vez de un Dollar, amance el sol cada manana."