This is flat-out one of the hottest things I've ever seen. It's probably February 1997 but I'm not sure. Pututi II looks a bit older than he does here. Apparently Pututi I, who was playing drumset on the Marianao video, was out sick with la gripa, so his brother, who normally played timbales, had to play both drums and timbales on short notice. This is itself is not such a feat - many bands, like Van Van and el Trabuco, require their drummers to do this every night, but to do it on the fly - and to do it like THIS is just mind-boggling. Pututi II, and the güiro player, and the whole band, are just out of their minds. I saw Manolín at this same Quinta Avenida outdoor nightclub the very first night I ever spent in Cuba (Feb. 1999) - a concert that led to the creation of timba.com (and the loss of my sanity). There was something truly magical about that outdoor venue that seemed to set every band on fire. The camera stays on the percussion but if you listen carefully you can hear that Issac Delgado is sitting in on two songs.

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This video captures the rapture of the Havana public during the Manolin-mania period better than any other I've found. It took place at the massive, outdoor Anfeteatro de Marianao in 1996 as el Médico and his crack surgical team were in the process of pouring an ocean of kerosene on Havana's already raging live music scene. It's also priceless for its documentation of the wicked hot rhythm section of Mipa, Nápoles and the Pututi brothers.

This reconstruction uses film from the cameras of two participants in Caribbean Music & Dance Programs' yearly February pilgrimages to Havana. The main camera is by Michael Croy, who, among other things, filmed the legendary Issac Delgado Valentine's Day concert the following February. I forgot who sent me the other angle (please send me an email if you're reading this!), but I've spliced them together, in some cases repeating sections. 

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As I mentioned in a previous post, April is International Timba Month because of the number of significant timba anniversaries. Kevin's ITM post for today is a great concert by NG La Banda at the Montreaux Jazz Festival from 1994. Issac Delgado was part of NG for the first couple of years, but left NG to form his own band around 1990. He recorded his first CD "Dando la hora" in 1991, winning the 1992 EGREM award. Today is Issac's 53rd birthday, which he is celebrating with a red-carpet anniversary concert at La Cecilia.

April 2nd, Kevin posted the full Issac Delgado Valentine's Day 1997 concert - "The Croy Concert", which is one of the most exciting and inspiring concert videos from this great era of timba. If you haven't seen it yet, check it out here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rm8HJ8QWY8I

Last month Havana Culture posted an interview with Issac. I think Issac's fans will enjoy it. It's in Spanish with subtitles. Happy birthday Issac!

Interview with Issac Delgado by Havana Culture

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There have been some lower resolution individual songs from this concert, but now we have the full 90 minute show in very high resolution. This is NG La Banda at the absolute peak of their second great style period - with Calixto Oviedo, Feliciano Arango, Los Metales del Terror, Pan con Salsa, Peruchín, Tony Calá et al.

Click here and here for documentaries on NG and Calixto.

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