Cuba and Its Music

Cuba and Its Music
Cuba and Its Music

Cuba and Its Music

From the First Drums to the Mambo
By Ned Sublette

MUSIC

688 Pages, 6 x 9

Formats: Trade Paper, Mobipocket, EPUB, PDF

Trade Paper, $29.99 (CA $39.99) (US $29.99)

ISBN 9781556526329

Rights: WOR

Chicago Review Press (Feb 2007)

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Overview

A groundbreaking account of the history, influence, and importance of Cuban music
This entertaining history of Cuba and its music begins with the collision of Spain and Africa and continues through the era of Miguelito Valdés, Arsenio Rodríguez, Benny Moré, and Pérez Prado. It offers a behind-the-scenes examination of music from a Cuban point of view, unearthing surprising, provocative connections and making a case for Cuba as fundamental to the evolution of music in the New World. Revealed are how the music of black slaves transformed 16th-century Europe, how the claves appeared, and how Cuban music influenced ragtime, jazz, and rhythm and blues. Music lovers will follow this journey from Andalucía, the Congo, the Calabar, Dahomey, and Yorubaland via Cuba to Mexico, Puerto Rico, Saint-Domingue, New Orleans, New York, and Miami. The music is placed in a historical context that considers the complexities of the slave trade; Cuba's relationship to the United States; its revolutionary political traditions; the music of Santería, Palo, Abakuá, Vodú, and much more.

Reviews

“Ned Sublette is widely regarded as one of Cuban music's most knowledgeable and passionate experts. As enthralling as it is comprehensive, his book breathes life and fire into the whole history of Cuban music.” —Bonnie Raitt

Author Biography

Ned Sublette is the cofounder of the Qbadisc record label. He has coproduced the public radio program Afropop Worldwide for seven years and traveled frequently to Cuba since 1990. He lives in New York City.