A Tribute to Gonzalo Asencio, ""Tío Tom

A Tribute to Gonzalo Asencio, ""Tío Tom

Gonzalo Ascencio (1919-1991), aka “Tio Tom,” is an important but less than well-known Afro-Cuban musician. On this excellent album, Orlando “Puntilla” Rios y El Conjunto Todo Rumbero — an ensemble of percussionists and vocalists — pay homage to Ascencio, a consummate rumbero and composer who wrote hundreds of songs. Ascencio’s specialty was the guaguancó, one of three types of rumba (the others being the yambú and the columbia). The album kicks off with “Mi Tierra (My Land),” and like a lot of other traditional songs from Cuba and elsewhere, the lyrics proudly speak of homeland. Beneath the singing, layers of fierce rhythms performed on tres golpes, tumbador, quinto, catá, and güiro, work their way over a clave beat. “Solo, errante y bohemio (Alone, Errant, and Bohemian)” relates the life of a rumbero, and its portrayal of a musician’s outsider status would resonate with musicians around the globe. The album includes a tribute to Ascencio, “Tio columbia,” written by Ernesto Gatel, who sings on the album, and Rios; interestingly, the track is a columbia rather than a guaguancó. The lively groove, which makes for a strong closer, is a nice rhythmic contrast to the preceding set of guaguancós.

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