Cumbia Thriller! (Los Mirlos otra vez)

I finally am able to listen to all the records I got down in Peru! Oh man, what a wait- it's been two months since I've been back and I haven't been in the same place/time as my records and player. What a tease, but I finally dove into them today and it's pure bliss.

I found this little medley off the Cumbia Thriller album by Los Mirlos. They start off with a cumbia version of MJ's "Thriller" (this version recorded in 1984), then go into a blend of their exitos starting with La Danza de Los Mirlos, La Danza de Petrolero, and Eres Mentirosa.

Off to a good start! More comin'!

p.s. don't really know what's up with the font two posts below. Tried fixing it about 5 times and can't get it right.

Los Mirlos - Cumbia Thriller Medley

Blog jams goin live! - Nov. 23rd at Trophy Bar

Got a bag of records for grazing on, plus some West African loves on mine on display this Monday! I'm making a few batches of some sorrel to keep drinks cheap for ya!
$3 sorrel and rum after midnight, $5 otherwise.

Facebook event
Fusicology Listing

Los Shapis - La Novia y mas!

Funny song here by big-time chicha act Los Shapis - La Novia (the Girlfriend)

A story of a poor fellow who goes to church to atone for his sins and there happens to be a wedding going on. But say, who is that bride? She looks very familiar...is that my sis...wait a sec- that's my girlfriend with some other guy!

Los Shapis - La Novia

Los Shapis played a truer style of Huayño, an already fused mixture of Andean folk and city-dance music, than other chicha groups like Los Mirlos, Los Diablos Rojos and Los Destellos. While the other groups embraced more guitar elements in their work, Los Shapis embraced their country roots a bit more.

Their songs, like the one above, talked about emotional hardships, drinking, and the failures of love. The following "Juguetito" ("Little Toy") features some great synths and female vocals:

Los Shapis - Juguetito

Of course, since the genre of chicha is named after a low-strength corn beer drank by the Incas, a good bit of drinking is involved in the genre. This song laments the curse of being a drunk as a way to deal with one's problems:

Los Shapis - Borrachito Borrachon

El Sonido de Los Mirlos!

Originally hailing from the San Martin district, a region of northestern Peru that is about half-way between capital city Lima and capital city of Quito, Ecuador, the group who came to be Los Mirlos (The Blackbirds) brought the chicha sound to Lima in 1971. Chicha, as mentioned a few times on here, came about from the Andean mountain music fused with the fiery Colombian cumbia that was gaining popularity in Lima.

Forming in 1968 under the name Los Saetas (The Bolts), brothers Jorge and Carlos Rodriguez Grández incorporated the jungle sound popularized by groups like Juaneco and Sus Combo with a unique use of guitars and accordians. The accordian was mostly dropped en route to Lima and the band is remembered for their reverb-heavy surf guitar rock over a steady cumbia beat and regionally proud lyrics.

The influential guitar work on "La Danza de Los Mirlos" ("The Dance of Los Mirlos") is the unofficial cumbia guitar anthem until today.

Download "La Danza de Los Mirlos" - Los Mirlos



The distinctive melody can be found in many fan versions all over Youtube. Here's a little punk clip by an unknown Peruvian band:



And some bedroom rock!



Taking on a more pointed political and joking approach, "La Danza Del Petrolero" ("The Dance of the Petrol/Oilman") portray oil hungry folks as buffoons.

Grab that "La Danza Del Petrolero" - Los Mirlos

RIP Arturo Zambo Cavero - an Afro-Peruvian King

Killer article from the Listen Recovery Crew:

Arturo Cavero Velásquez

(b. Peru-Lima, 29 November 1940 – † Peru-Lima, 9 October 2009),

Better known by his fans by the pseudonym of “Zambo Cavero”. He was a virtuoso Afro Peruvian singer, who enjoys international fame. He was considered by many Peruvians a symbol of the Afro Peruvian identity or Peruanidad because of his particular manner of singing that captivates his listeners, many of whom coincide that Cavero’s intensity makes then feel the melodies with a truly Peruvian taste, as a result in his long artistic trajectory, he was very popular, admired and loved, not only in Perú, but by many people from different parts of the world in which he sold his musical reproductions. “Zambo Cavero” specialized in interpreting, with a unique talent and inimitable voice, traditional songs from authentic and original rhythms of Perú, some of his best interpretations are songs that were composed by the notable Peruvian composer Augusto Polo Campos, other comes from a profound Afro-Peruvian traditional Música criolla which is actually Afro Peruvian music.

Give them some hits over there: Arturo Zambo Cavero at Listen Recovery Crew

Little love for papas

Greetings from scenic Roanoke, VA! I was en route from Brooklyn to New Orleans when we had to stop in Roanoke because my dad was feeling some sharp stomach pains. He had appendicitis and had the appendectomy on Thursday, still in convalescence today.

Here's a little folkloric jam by youngster Wendy Sulca showing love for the Papito (little father)-

RIP Mercedes Sosa - La Negra de Argentina

It's been a grim year for music losses. Of course, we had a King of Pop, the Princess of Andean Folk, and, although she's without a royal title, Argentinian folk icon Mercedes Sosa as well. Lovingly called La Negra for her dark hair, the singer passed away this past Sunday of kidney failure at the age of 74.

Back in the 70s, she recorded a version of Violetta Parra's "Gracias a la Vida" - "Thanks to Life," which became a prized song for South American leftists in those tumultuous times. Coming from the working-class sugar town of Tucuman, she became a member of the Communist Party in 1976, the start of the military dictatorship of General Jorge Rafael Videla during Argentina's "Dirty War." Her music was banned from airplay and was exiled to France and Spain in 1979, spending three years there before returning.



She came back this year with a big collaboration project "Cantora," which was ranked #1 in literally every Argentinian music store I went into this past August and also nominated for three awards at the upcoming Latin Grammy awards.

Thank you, the Black One, for your song and your struggle.