Buena Vista Social Club (25th Anniversary Edition Remaster) Buena Vista Social Club

• 1 Chan Chan (2021 - Remaster) 04:18
• 2 De Camino a la Vereda (2021 - Remaster) 05:03
• 3 El Cuarto de Tula (2021 - Remaster) 07:25
• 4 Pueblo Nuevo (2021 - Remaster) 06:06
• 5 Dos Gardenias (2021 - Remaster) 03:03
• 6 Y Tú Qué Has Hecho? (2021 - Remaster) 03:15
• 7 Veinte Años (2021 - Remaster) 03:31
• 8 El Carretero (2021 - Remaster) 03:29
• 9 Candela (2021 - Remaster) 05:29
• 10 Amor de Loca Juventud (2021 - Remaster) 03:22
• 11 Orgullecida (2021 - Remaster) 03:19
• 12 Murmullo (2021 - Remaster) 03:51
• 13 Buena Vista Social Club (2021 - Remaster) 04:52
• 14 La Bayamesa (2021 - Remaster) 03:02
• 15 Chan Chan (Monitor Mix) 04:39
• 16 Vicenta 03:42
• 17 La Pluma 02:51
• 18 Dos Gardenias (Alternate Take) 03:20
• 19 Mandinga 02:26
• 20 Siboney 02:08
• 21 A Tus Pies 05:25
• 22 El Carretero (Alternate Take) 03:21
• 23 Ensayo 01:21
• 24 El Diablo Suelto 02:14
• 25 Saludo Compay 04:16
• 26 Descripción de un Sueño 02:44
• 27 Pueblo Nuevo (Alternate Take) 04:27
• 28 La Cleptómana 03:25
• 29 Y Tú Qué Has Hecho? (Alternate Take) 04:12
• 30 Orgullecida (Alternate Take) 04:15
• 31 Descarga Rubén 03:01
• 32 Candela (Alternate Take) 06:02
• 33 Orgullecida (Alternate Trio Take) 04:32
• Total Runtime 02:08:26

Info for Buena Vista Social Club (25th Anniversary Edition Remaster)

A masterpiece turns 25: This edition is timed to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the album’s recording and contain the original album as remastered by Grammy-winning engineer Bernie Grundman as well as previously unheard tracks from the original 1996 session tapes.

The history, authenticity and mystique of Buena Vista Social Club burns as brightly today as ever for fans both new and old. On March 26, 1996, the trio of Cuban bandleader Juan de Marcos González, American producer and guitarist Ry Cooder and British producer and label owner Nick Gold assembled an impromptu group of Cuban musicians at Centro Havana’s historic 1950s EGREM/Areito studios. The majority of those gathered were celebrated veterans of the golden age of the Cuban music scene of the 1940s and ’50s. None of them had any idea that the recordings they were about to produce would change the lives of many people, themselves included, and would forever change the standing of Cuban music in the world. Buena Vista Social Club was the name given to both this extraordinary group of musicians and the album, recorded in just seven days. The studio, owned by Cuba’s national label EGREM, was originally installed in the 1940s and is celebrated as a great jewel in recording history. The large single wood-paneled room enabled recording to take place with the full ensemble recorded playing live, which puts the listener right in the room amongst the musicians. There is no doubt that this played a major part in the magical sound of the final recordings.

It was clear from the atmosphere of the recording sessions that something very special was taking place, but no one could have predicted that Buena Vista Social Club would become a worldwide phenomenon, awarded a Grammy in 1997 and, at eight million copies, outselling any other record in the same genre. The impact of those sessions is still felt 25 years later, and the vibrance and seductive allure of Cuba’s rich history and culture shines as brightly as ever in these definitive recordings. The acclaim of the original album has elevated the artists (including Ibrahim Ferrer, Eliades Ochoa, Compay Segundo, Rubén González & Omara Portuondo) to superstar status, inspired an award-winning film by Wim Wenders and has contributed to popularizing Cuba’s rich musical heritage. Produced by Ry Cooder for World Circuit, the timeless quality of the music and the sheer verve of the veteran performers have ensured that this will go down as one of the landmark recordings of the 20th century.

This new edition includes tracks that were recorded during that famous week in 1996 but never released; some intended as repertoire suggestions, some off-the-cuff improvisations and some fully formed gems that are the equal of anything on the original album. There are also alternate takes of some of the now famous and most well-loved songs from the album.

Producer and guitarist Ry Cooder says, “The Buena Vista boys fly high and never lose a feather. If you miss the boat this time, you’ll have the blues forever.”

Juan de Marcos González adds, “Buena Vista Social Club has probably been the most important album of Cuban music in the late 20th century, and definitely the one that reopened the doors of international recognition for ‘Son Cubano.’ 25 years later I can still feel the positive vibes of the studio and, of course, the pleasure of having contributed to some extent to the album that rescued the music of my country and many of its great interpreters from the shadows.”

Nick Gold notes, “Buena Vista Social Club is a once in a lifetime recording of Cuban music at its transcendental best. The magic created in that Havana studio sounds as vital and beautiful today as it did 25 years ago.”

And Eliades Ochoa says, “Buena Vista Social Club brought together great musicians from the golden age of Cuban music and successfully took our traditional music to the rest of the world. It allowed me to be recognized internationally by the sones, guarachas and boleros I had been doing since I was young. It also made me reconnect with musicians with great experiences whom I admired. Buena Vista brought us together through music, and we were a well-run family. On this 25th anniversary, we will remember with deserved pride those great legends who will always be present among us. We will celebrate with joy the legacy of the Buena Vista Social Club and the traditional Cuban music.”

25 years after the serendipitous days of recordings, and as legions of new fans continue to discover the album’s enduring and seductive appeal, these 25th Anniversary Editions give us the chance to get closer to the mystique and to relive the sessions from which a global phenomenon was born.

Buena Vista Social Club

Digitally remastered by Bernie Grundman

Buena Vista Social Club
There are a few times in your life when you hear a piece of music that instantly sparks something in your core; that awakens a new but somehow familiar awareness, illuminating a connection to your past that had been there all the while.

I had such an experience the first time I listened to 'Buena Vista Social Club,' a beautiful reunion of some of CubaÆs legendary musicians orchestrated by musical treasure hunter Ry Cooder. Though I am not of Cuban descent (my roots are in Colombia), listening to this album transported me to a steamy nightclub in 1950s Havana.

Cooder, himself a musical journeyman, has been performing and recording his own work since 1970, and has collaborated with such varied artists as Arlo Guthrie, the Rolling Stones, Taj Mahal, and Randy Newman. In recent years he has taken on the ambitious challenge of preserving and celebrating international musical treasures in danger of vanishing. 'Buena Vista Social Club' is one such project.

The album is a compilation by the players and singers of the æson de CubaÆ style, an eclectic musical tradition that flourished from the 1920s to the 1950s. The music is as varied and colorful as the Pan-American landscape: from the languid country sound of 'Chan Chan,' to the urban piano of 'Pueblo Nuevo,' to the American jazz-influenced 'Amor de Loca Juventud,' to the pulsating Afro-Cuban rhythms of 'El Cuarto de Tula' and 'Candela.' These latter two songs, which are impossible to listen to sitting still, capture the spirit of the day. Their extended vocal improvisations are laced with sexual innuendo and double meanings û a reminder of what romance was like in a more refined era.

They are my two favorite songs also because they feature the performer who embodies the spirit of the sonero: 72-year-old Ibrahim Ferrer. According to Cooder's extensive liner notes, Ferrer was a star during this golden age, but his soothing velvet voice later fell out of fashion. Before this album was recorded, Ferrer, a shy and unassuming man, lived in old Havana, in a rundown apartment building, and shined shoes to pay the rent. He was called into the studio from his daily walk on the day of recording, and these songs are the priceless result.

In an interview with The New York Times, Ferrer proclaimed that 'an angel came and picked me up and said, 'Chico, come and do this record.' I didn't want to do it, because I had given up on music. But now I have my own record, the first one ever, so I'm very happy. I don't have to shine shoes anymore.'

Astonishingly, this album, along with two others featuring several of the same artists, was cut during a frenetic two-week recording session. And listening to the CD, itÆs not hard to imagine the palpable energy that must have flowed through the studio.

The overwhelming public embrace of the album and the group had to surprise even Cooder. An immediate smash, the CD soon went platinum and became the best-selling Afro-Cuban album of all time. In its sole U.S. appearance last summer, the group sold out New YorkÆs Carnegie Hall and brought the house down. The elder legends also played to adoring crowds throughout a lengthy world tour. The music also has garnered critical acclaim, winning a 1998 Grammy award. One critic even compared its universal impact and appeal to the BeatlesÆ 'Sergeant PepperÆs Lonely Hearts Club Band.'

Thanks to Ry Cooder and the enduring genius and charm of the soneros, the music of CubaÆs golden age lives on, to be celebrated by new generations far beyond the Caribbean.

This album contains no booklet.