No lo comentes

If you listen to the congas, it sounds as if you're standing in the crowd during the introduction of this song, and walking towards the stage. As the horns come in, the congas suddenly come into sharp focus and you're hearing what sounds almost like a studio mix -- a much better studio mix than the real studio version -- and Manolín's singing is very strong on this one. No lo comentes is from Manolín's third album. I can't quite go so far as to say that "De buena fe" is the greatest Timba album, but in many ways, it's my personal emotional favorite. It also has a pretty bad mix, and the "El puente" live/studio hybrid is much better, in spite of those crazy cymbals. The producers took a very creative, George Martin-esque approach to this album. It doesn't even pretend to be a literal reproduction of the concert and has all sorts of overdubs and studio technology applied. I wish they'd gone a step further and introduced the lead vocals to the Antares Auto-Tune plug-in! But let's leave the mixing to the politicians and get back to the music.

Although the entrance of the piano tumbao isn't as good as the studio version, this is a great performance of a Timba classic, combining the fire of the live performance with the accuracy of a studio recording and adding lots of great new material to an already stunning arrangement -- just where the studio version would have ended, the guitar solo begins. Whether he's soloing or playing his unique guitar tumbaos, Hamed Barroso is by far my favorite Cuban guitarist. Only Rogelio Nápoles comes close. The guitar solo leads to the odd "Copa Cabana" coro and then another much more intesting rapped coro with inspired guías from Manolín and a rhythm section groove that would have ripped the roof off of Rancho Gaspar had it had one.

cuida'o con Chicha y con Lola
que se van con la primera bola
con la primera que le tira
[audio example 16]