CD Review -  Hasta Que Salga El Sol by JG Juan Guillermo Almeida (Unicornio 2017) 
International distribution (Unicornio 2018) 
Review by Michelle White , All rights reserved

El Dueño Del Party—JG Juan Guillermo—is back with another party-ready album. "Hasta Que Salga El Sol" is JGs third album and really solidifies his title as "the one who owns the party". The songs all have a fun, positive vibe and are great for dancing. As in the past, the arrangements include both tropical and timba, and Juan Guillermo has continued to collaborate with other young voices of timba.

The album kicks off with "Vengo de Cuba" with a tropical intro but after just 35 seconds the timba starts. The coro venga a ver me en vivo pa' que nadie te lo cuente is an invitation to check him out in concert so you can see for yourself, and that is a good idea. During the last coro Mira como está el ambiente/Mira como vas hasta el piso/Mira como goza la gente the electric guitar comes to the fore. I said it about the last album and holds true - JGs use of electric guitar is excellent. I might even go so far as to say that of all the bands currently using electric guitar, I think Alberto Torres does it best.

"Hasta que sal el sol" has a tropical feel with Miami pop harmonies but when the timba kicks in it is hot and again great use of electric guitar. This type of tropical timba mix should appeal to a wide audience and be perfect for mixed parties of timberos, salseros, merengueros, cumbieros and – heaven forbid – even people who don't dance Latin dances can move to this groove.

"Ella siempre se va sola" is a collaboration with Adalberto Álvarez and Michel Gonzalez Poli, with an arrangement by Alexander Abreu and Dhayane Rivera (Adalberto Álvarez y Su Son). This is one of my favorites from the album - timba from start to finish. JG and Michel take turns on lead vocals, while Adalberto sings harmony and makes a few comments before the second mambo. This track should be on all the DJ playlists for 2018. Check out the video below from the recording session at Abdala Studios.

"La Habana la enganchó" is a composition and arrangement by bassist and vocalist Maikel Dinza. The story is that a girl from Miami went to Havana and loved it but wanted to bring JG back with her to Miami, but of course he had no intention of leaving Havana. There is a Miami pop atmosphere but also balanced by some chords that Pupy and Juan Formell used a lot. After 3 minuets we hit some hardcore bomba – again a song that doesn't start as timba but ends up there.

Unless you have been asleep for two years, you have heard "Belleza latina". This collaboration with Alexander Abreu & Havana D'Primera was released as a single in 2016 and has already proven itself a hit among timberos worldwide. If you don't know it you need to check out the video below.

"El cariñoso" is a cumbia fusion composed by Degnis Bofil and another Maikel Dinza arrangement that also has hints of vallenato and slow merengue. They didn't forget the timberos and around the 4 minute mark a bomba section lets timberos get their despelote on.

JG worked with Emilio Frias "El Niño " on the previous album, and their collaboration "La cosa" is another highlight of the album, an uptempo song about the use of the term "la cosa" in Cuba – pila cerra', de la cosa no se habla mal. I expect to hear this at clubs and congresos around Europe this summer.

Juan Guillermo gives a nod to salsa romantica with "Voy a mentirle", in this case he is going to lie to his heart and tell it that his girlfriend hasn't left him. The traditional salsa arrangement is by Andy Rubal, Joseph Carret and Alexander Abreu and brings out details such as the nice bongo work by José Julián Morejón.

The album closes with two sizzling timba tracks: "Tú misma lo dijiste" and "La fama pa' la cabeza", the latter featuring El Mola. Two more for the 2018 DJ playlists that will get dancers on the floor. 

"Hasta que salga el sol" is a feel-good dance album with a broad appeal, which really sums up Juan Guillermo's sello. The musicianship is exemplary throughout the album and the production is excellent without being overproduced.  Half of the songs are straight-up timba while the other half successfully combine tropical with timba gears. I highly recommend this for DJs, dancers and for anyone who is looking for something fresh coming out of Havana. The album is avaialble for digital download at CubaMusic.

You can also subscribe to JG's YouTube channel where he has uploaded six audio tracks from "Hasta que salga el sol". 

Personnel on Hasta Que Salga El Sol