This was an absolutely wonderful year for output from Latin Jazz artists globally, and for a time, when it appeared that Latin Jazz would no longer be recognized as a distinct category in the regular Grammy awards, recognition of a Latin Jazz recording in the Latin Grammys was about to assume even greater significance than it already has.   Even with the restoration of a distinct category in the regular Grammy awards, the Jazz community is looking at the Latin Grammys with a reinvigorated awareness of their importance.    Since we are, at our core, a Cuban music website, we aren't going to go into detail about the wonderful recordings that came out by Brasilian, Argentine or other artists this past year, but we will mention that there were several that are worthy of attention by any serious Jazz aficionado. 

The following are recordings released in this award cycle that we feel deserve serious consideration in the Latin Grammy process and were either made by Cubans based in Cuba or led by important Cuban-American artists:

I.  Cuban artists based in Cuba

ALUCINACIONES - Rolando Luna
EL PAÍS DE LAS MARAVILLAS - Harold Lopez-Nussa Trio
REENCUENTROS, LIVE AT THE GRAND THEATER OF HAVANA - Maraca & His Latin Jazz All Stars
SAX Y PIMIENTA - Habana Sax

All four of these are wonderful, and so far we have reviewed two of them here:

Click here for our review of El País de las Maravillas

Click here for our review of Reencuentros

II. Cuban-American artists as leaders

DEAR DIZ (EVERY DAY I THINK OF YOU) - Arturo Sandoval
LIVE IN CHICAGO - Chuchito Valdes
THE OTHER SIDE OF ME - Chuchito Valdes
NESAMAH - Hilario Bell
NEW CUBAN EXPRESS- Manuel Valera

Again, all wonderful recordings, so far we have reviewed New Cuban Express:

Click here for our review of New Cuban Express

There is so much great music here that we aren't going to attempt to anoint an individual favorite, but we will state that if technical virtuosity, personal composition by the artist AND breaking new ground were all considered equally important, New Cuban Express deserves an especially close look.   El Pais de las Maravillas and Reencuentros also stand out on both the performance and songwriting fronts.  All of the recordings mentioned above are beautiful.  

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We're mentioning this separately because the buzz is that it may be under consideration in multiple categories, but Angel d'Cuba, who performed with several groups including Mezcla in Cuba and now leads a group in Chicago under his own name, released his debut album Heritage during this cycle, and this recording deserves consideration as well. In the interests of full disclosure, we need to mention that Bill Tilford liked this eclectic world music project (which does include some Cuban tracks among its other offerings)  well enough to write liner notes for it.    
Read more about the recording here. 

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continue reading Sin Clave No Hay Na

The first round of the 2012 Latin Grammys offers a variety of Cuban music for your consideration. These entries are posted for informational and consideration purposes only, as we believe it's important to highlight the steady inroads Cuban music is making into the industry amid plenty of market resistance. The one very key point to understand about the Grammys is that it is not driven by sales, only by the votes of its private, professional members. So no matter how many copies a record sold, if it gathers enough artistic accolades and merits, it is likely to be nominated. Here are the following first round entries to consider:

Best Salsa / Mejor Salsa
TIENE QUE SER MANOLÍN - Manolín "Él Médico dela Salsa"
TODO ES POSIBLE - Will Campa y su Orquesta
MALA - Haila María Monpié
RETRO - Marlow Rosado y la Riqueña (feat. Marlón Fernández)

Best Contemporary Tropical / Mejor Álbum Contemporaneo Tropical
LA MAQUINARIA - Juan Formell y los Van Van
ACABAÍTO DE NACER - David Calzado y Su Charanga Habanera 
MIS 22 AÑOS - José Luis Cortés y NG la Banda
SIEMPRE PUPY - Pupy y los que Son Son

Best Tradicional / Mejor Álbum Tradicional Tropical
UN BOLERO PARA TÍ - Eliades Ochoa
CUBANO SOY - Raúl Lara
DAYSI CELIA Y SU NOTA - Daysi Celia

Best Tropical Fusión / Mejor älbum de Fusión Trpical
TIMBA PA' TO EL MUNDO - Timbalive

**Full disclosure...
I personally mastered a few entries in consideration = http://latinmusicmastering.com
CUBANO SOY - Raúl Lara  
- Best Traditional (Mejor Álbum Tradicional) / Best Engineered (Mejor Ingeniería)
A TODO RITMO - Sergio Bonafonte
- Best Tropical Fusion  (Mejor Fusión Tropical) / Best Engineered (Mejor Ingeniería) 
THE PROJECT (DELUXE) - M.D. Machito Diferente
- Best Urban (Mejor Disco Urbano) / Best New Artist / Best Engineered (Mejor Ingeniería) 
RETRO - Marlow Rosado y la Riqueña
- Album of the Year / Best New Artist / Best Salsa / Best Engineered / Best Short Form Video

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Click here for two galleries on Bay Area favorites, Avance, and the Lula Washington Dance Theatre

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continue reading La Última

Click here for the full gallery. Next up Seattle on the 24th. Click here for details.

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