2007 - Live, Desde La Casa De La Música (Envidia 7187)

Recorded sometime in November/December 2006, this CD came about by chance. Maykel told us in an interview that the recording was not originally intended for sale, but when they heard it they thought, "Hey, this sounds pretty good, maybe we should do something with it". So it was sold to Envidia who have now released it with their Cuban Roots collection.

Lucky for us they did, because this CD successfully captures the performance. It is an opportunity for those who can't visit Cuba and didn't have the chance to catch a concert during their recent European Tour, to experience the energy of Salsa Mayor live.

From Recoge y vete , the CD contains the two monster-hits Esto está and Recoge y vete as well as Cambia tu faceta, Quitándome lo malo and Lo bello por dentro. Each of the songs contain great new coros not found on the studio CD. There is also some interaction with the audience, but fortunately it is just enough to allow you to imagine that you are there but not so much that you feel like "you had to be there", i.e. it doesn't get in the way of enjoying the CD.

Live also includes a potpurri of songs from Maykel's first CD with Suprema Ley . The potpurri includes El veterano, La discordia de las frutas and Ya llegaron los cubanos. It's a nice introduction to Maykel's earlier work for those who haven't heard the Suprema Ley CD, but more than that, the arrangements are more "timbafied" live than on the original CD and the potpurri stands well on it's own in relation to the newer songs.

Finally, Live also includes two of the new songs that will be recorded on the upcoming second Salsa Mayor CD, which Maykel hopes to find time for later this year. La masa is about a 20-year old man (boy?) who has a 40-something girlfriend. The song is an instant dance hit. At about 111 BPM it gets your pulse going and won't let you sit still. The band performed it in concert during their first European tour and the audience took to it immediately. Click here for an excerpt from La masa.

Control is the second estreno on the CD. It's about the ever-popular topic of male/female relationships and jealousy. Among a number of great coros there is my favorite: "Mami deja la duda, esa cosita es tuya". I know this must sound repetitive, but it is yet another great song for dancing. Just click here to see what I mean.

In Cuba the measure of a band is it's ability to make the people dance. A great studio CD can only take you so far in a country where concerts are the mainstay of the musician. Live, Desde La Casa De la Música demonstrates that Maykel Blanco y su Salsa Mayor can deliver both good music and an electrifying show. If you like to dance, buy it!

Track listing:
Opening
La masa
Quitándome lo malo
Esto está
Potpurri
Cambia tu faceta
Lo bello por dentro
Control
Recoge y vete