The Conga Kings - Jazz Descargas

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"Chocolate Descarga"


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The first track is an old Bud Powell tune, "Un Poco Loco". The horns hit some tight punches before falling into the quirky, "loco" melody. Wood’s alto solo betrays he’s obviously having a great time.

Meanwhile, Giovanni, Patato, and Candido are more than taking care of business. Part of the mystery is that it’s hard to tell who’s who in the mix, but the groove is unstoppable. While one conguero holds down the muscle, another explores melodic ideas.

The solo trumpet defines "Tin Tin Deo", sort of "Mexican" - that is, until the strumming of the tres and staccato horn line turn up the heat. During a four-chord vamp, the conga masters have found their forum. You might want to take bets, at this point, if it’s Candido or Patato experimenting with melodic phrases before suddenly hitting a groove. Again, that dark sound they get from their drums - part choice of LP instrument, part the unique touch of the masters’ hands - makes interesting study material for aspiring percussionists.

This is not Phil Woods’ first run at "A Night in Tunisia" but it may be among his most satisfying. Too often the Gillespie song is a melange of Latin snippets as diverse as samba and mambo. Special credit goes to Guillermo Edghill on bass. Listen to the way he keeps the form true, consistently offering up rhythm, harmony, and melody.

"Oye Como Va" is so familiar it just about plays itself! Refreshingly, here it’s several steps down in tempo. The result is a thoroughly satisfying cha cha, very languid.

In another well-trodden classic, "Manteca", Jimmy Bosch’s short, stabbing lines keep up the momentum. Then the congas take short solos. Students: watch for a lovely upwards conga glissando (sliding pitch caused by exertion of pressure on drumhead). Also witness the uncanny call and response between trombone and drums.

To appreciate congas in exclusion, note the intro of "Conga Descarga". After delivering bits of melody, the three masters lock in to heavy time. If you listen closely with headphones, you can hear distinct hand sounds, and even voice utterancesin the left speaker. There’s enough technique here to fill a book but, again, there’s nary a gratuitous solo.

What’s left is the soft flute signalling "The Peanut Vendor", truly delightful, and "Chocolate Descarga", named after the trumpeter. Incidentally, "descarga" refers to the sort of jam session that goes back to Cuban son conjunto (bands), and this is a rare gem of a jam.