SPANGLISH FLY
New York City, New York, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2015 | INDIE
Music
Press
This is what Spanish Harlem was rocking to forty years ago. What Sharon Jones did for oldschool soul, what Antibalas did for Afrobeat and what Chicha Libre is doing for chicha, Spanglish Fly is doing for bugalu. It’s what happened when Cuban son melodies collided with Stax/Volt and Motown, with fiery horns and a fat midtempo groove over a latin beat. It was a Nuyorican phenomenon and very popular back in the day. If you know Bang Bang by Joe Cuba, this is the same kind of thing. It’s about time somebody brought this stuff back and it’s a good thing it’s this band because they have authentic sabor with a 5-piece horn section, three percussionists, piano and a rhythm section plus Erica Ramos’ casually alluring, soulful voice soaring over it when there’s room. As dance music, it’s irresistible (at a live show, the group will often offer a free dance lesson for anglos or newschoolers who didn’t have the good fortune to grow up with this).
The cd’s opening track, Think (Pensamiento) is typical of what the old bugalú bands would do, a brand-new latin version of the old James Brown hit with fat low end, tight horns and a suspenseful intensity where the band theatens to completely rip it apart at the end but just manage to keep it together. An original, Latin Soul Stew was obviously made to be played live, with soaring trumpet over an ominous piano groove, the horns coming back in full force after a little vocal break. Another original, by one of the band’s trumpeters Jonny Semi-Colón a/k/a Jonathan Goldman sounds like ska but with a slinkier groove. Like a lot of bugalu hits, it’s a series of trick endings where the intensity builds every time the song comes back, with a gospel-inspired break toward the end. There’s also a joyously rattling cover of the big Ray Barretto crossover hit New York Soul.
The band is an inspired collection of veteran New York jazzcats: besides Ramos and Goldman, they have Martin Wallace on piano, Mick Santurio on congas, Charly Rodriguez on timbales, Gabo Tomasini on bongos, Atsushi Tsumura on trumpet, Dimitri Moderbacher on bass, Rose Imperato on tenor sax, Jonathan Flothow on bari sax and Sebastian Isler on trombone.
http://lucidculture.wordpress.com/2010/03/18/cd-review-spanglish-fly-latin-soul-y-bugalu/ - Lucidculture.com
Discography
EP: "Latin Soul y Bugalú"
7" single: "Think" b/w "Let My People Bugalú"
Selected Radio stations:
WKCR New York City
WNYU New York City
WFMU New Jersey
WBAI New York City
WUSB Long Island
WWOZ New Orleans
WMUA Massachusets
WESU Connecticut
WTJU Virginia
WRTI Philadelphia, PA
KFAI Minneapolis
KOOP Austin
KRUU Fairfield, Iowa
102.7 Melbourne, Australia
PBS 106.7 Melbourne, Australia
BBC 6 The Craig CXharles Funk and Soul Show," U.K.
Hard Salsa Radio (internet)
Break Thru Radio (internet)
Blue Raccoon Radio (internet)
Photos
Bio
SPANGLISH FLY is part band, part celebration: 10 musicians igniting a party that quickly spreads to the audience, a fever of musical joy that infects everyone in reach.
SPANGLISH FLY is "single-handedly reviving sixties bugalú in NYC" (NBC New York), the mix of Latin and soul/R&B music that emerged from the clubs, the street corners, the transistor radios and the pool halls of 1960s Spanish Harlem, a/k/a “El Barrio”–an irresistible hybrid that blends traditional Afro-Caribbean rhythms with the fervor, the feeling, and the harmonics of 60s-era soul. Spanglish Fly "roars through covers, originals, and transformations of previously untouched soul hits" (Village Voice), paying homage to the boogaloo genre while refreshing it for a new generation, adding a contemporary perspective to the music while maintaining its timeless groove.
SPANGLISH FLY's multicultural cast has origins in Puerto Rico, Cuba, Ecuador, Venezuela, Canada, “Loisaida” and Upper Manhattan, coming together in New York City to play quintessential music of the urban USA. With vocals in both English and Spanish, appropriately enough, the band features four brash horns, swinging bass and piano, group choruses, and a sizzling 3-piece percussion section.
SPANGLISH FLY FANS, whether they've been listening to boogaloo since back in the day or just since yesterday, shake their thing to the band's stirring melodies, danceable grooves and instant crowd engagement. From Boston to New York to DC to North Carolina, "Todos bailan y cantan, el ambiente es pura fiesta" (El Diario); they go wild dancing the boogaloo or simply freestlying it at Spanglish Fly's one-of-a-kind Latin Soul parties.
“What Sharon Jones did for oldschool soul, what Antibalas did for Afrobeat and what Chicha Libre is doing for chicha, Spanglish Fly is doing for bugalu. . . It's about time somebody brought this stuff back and it's a good thing it's this band because they have authentic sabor.” – Lucid Culture
“One part Latin rhythm and one part soul, the musical movement known as boogaloo first emerged right here in New York City back in the '60s. Spanglish Fly is reigniting the boogaloo sound decades later.” – WPRI's "The World"
“Spanglish Fly are single-handedly reviving sixties bugalú in NYC.” – NBC New York
“Todos bailan y cantan, el ambiente es pura fiesta. 'Está tocando la banda Spanglish Fly y es Bugalú. . .'” – El Diario
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