Product Details

• Actors: Tito Puente, Celia Cruz
• Format: Color, HiFi Sound, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Shanachie
• VHS Release Date: April 16, 1995
• Run Time: 60 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 630131171X
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #431,463 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

This 1979 documentary profiles the hot Afro-Latin dance music called salsa, a zesty marriage of North American jazz, Puerto Rican bomba/plena, and Cuban mambo, rumba, danzon, and cha-cha-cha rhythms. The music was born in New York in the '60s and since then, it has served as the musical lingua franca of the Hispanic world. The footage in this film is incredible. You have Tito Puente, the late "King of the Timbales," playing outdoors in the Bronx with keyboardist Charlie Palmieri (the brother of legendary piano whiz Eddie Palmieri), who, in another segment, conducts a Latin music class for school kids who proceed to jam on his hit "Mambo Joe." Panamanian singer Rubén Blades of the historic Fania label is also showcased, along with his on-point discussion on Latin American music and politics, which are matched by the ex-Young Lord member Felipe Luciano, who puts the music at the center of the urbane Latino experience in New York.

The highpoint of this documentary is the rare rehearsal footage of señora Celia Cruz, "the Queen of Salsa," whose elegant choreography, elliptical phrasing, and piercing vocals set the standard for all salsa singers. Along with the poignant footage from Puerto Rico and along with the folkloric beauty of the African-derived Santeria religious ceremonies, Salsa: Latin Pop Music in the Cities shows that salsa is the sonic sauce of the Americas, delivered from the Big Apple. --Eugene Holley Jr.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not enough music!, June 17, 2002

By 

Thomas H. Lerner "tom lerner" (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Beats of the Heart - Salsa: Latin Pop Music in the Cities (DVD)

If you're interested in the sociology and politics of life in Pueto Rico or the Nuyorican community, you may find this program interesting. If you're looking for alot of concert footage or alot of musical information about Salsa, skip this DVD. There is minimal music and no MUSICAL discussion of Salsa in this 1-hour program.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A brilliant snapshop of salsa., December 24, 2002

By 

delbahia "Carlos" (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beats of the Heart - Salsa: Latin Pop Music in the Cities (DVD)

What a wonderful discovery to find on a clear screen young and youthful Salsa legends Ruben Blades, Willie Colon, Charlie Palmieri, "El Rey" Tito Puentes and "La Raina de la Salsa" Celiz Cruz. Made and released in 1979, this documentary has a bit too much narration but is nonetheless a magnificent snapshot of the evolution of the music. Anyone interested in Salsa must see this film. Complete songs are rare, as is music uninterrupted by the narration, but the magic is still there. Que viva la salsa.

21 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best video about salsa music in the city, September 1, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Salsa: Latin Pop Music in Cities [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This video has everything. It shows history from Felipe Luciano, the former leaders of the young lords to the best salsa artists when they were in their prime, Tito Puente, Celia Cruz, Ruben Blades, Willie Colon and many more music. This video is my favorite video in my collection of salsa videos