“Nosotros, como decimos en el campo, los que tenemos poco pero tenemos tanto, por eso tenemos adelanto y fe espiritual al caminar.”

— TEGO CALDERÓN

Puerto Rico-born drummer Cole leads his 14-piece jazz-rock-roots juggernaut Villa Locura in a sprawling ode to Puerto Rico’s Afro culture

SAN JUAN, PR (11/08/19) – Drummer Henry Cole, known globally for his outstanding work with jazz musicians like David Sánchez, Gary Burton, and Miguel Zenón as well as with artists like Residente of the GRAMMY-winning duo Calle 13, releases “Caninando”, the second single from his forthcoming album “Simple” with his group Villa Locura. Cole’s special guest and lyricist on the track is the legendary hip-hop and reggaeton artist Tego Calderón. Recorded in New York and Puerto Rico, “Caminando” quite literally unites the two worlds that Cole resides in.

Villa Locura is the Mayagüez, Puerto Rico-born Cole’s project that brings together a traditional Puerto Rican rhythm section deeply versed in the island’s African- rooted bomba and plena with a global who’s who of New York City-based jazz musicians, all united under Cole’s vision of what he calls “raw, spiritual, interstellar Puerto Rican funk.”

Cole has a keen appreciation for the history, tradition and artists that he builds his new vision on. The first single from the album, “El Diablo”, was inspired by a 1973 Ray Barretto version of a song written by the great Puerto Rican songwriter Rafael Hernandez back in the 1930’s, and it featured a collaboration with Tito Allen, the singer on Barretto’s recording. Tego Calderón’s presence on “Caminando” continues this practice of honoring the past to create the future.

“I’ve always been a big fan of Tego Calderón and wanted to figure out a way to work with him,” says Cole. “So, the story of ‘Caminando’ actually has two parts. The first was a live, one take track that the entire band laid down at Electric Lady Studios in New York. I arranged it with a lot of space to leave room for a vocal,” says Cole. “That was a magic moment. At the end of it we knew we had something special. The spiritual energy was off the charts.”

“Then I went down to meet Tego at El Sitio, his home studio in Santurce, to show him the track.” Cole is referring to the San Juan neighborhood that is the historic

home of the city’s Afro-Puerto Rican population and the birthplace of beloved Puerto Rico musical icons like the sonero Ismael Rivera and his childhood friend, bandleader Rafael Cortijo.

“Tego and I talked about Mayagüez, music and ideas for a while. Then he laid down the vocal, just like that, no script, no writing verses ahead of time, totally improvised.”

What Calderón came up with was part Afro-Puerto Rican cultural history lesson and part instructions on what to do with the legacy and responsibility that those lessons confer. Giants of Puerto Rican music are invoked in the lyrics as well as Calderón’s own father, who was a fan of jazz and funk as well as traditional Puerto Rican music.

The sprawling, 8-minute track begins with a cymbal crash and the rhythms of thealfaia, a large drum from the Afro-Brazilian state of Bahia and its capital Salvador. It’s soon joined by Cole’s powerful drumming for an extended polyrhythmic workout before settling into a deep funk groove carried by the barril, the traditional drum that is the pulse of bomba. Massed horns inspired by Fela Kuti’s Afrobeat are followed by spirited soloing on tenor & baritone sax, trumpet and guitar from Cole’s all-star band, culminating in a near free jazz blowout. At 4:45 the groove is driven home by the inclusion of a deep maracatu rhythm harmoniously blended with the bomba rhythm. “You can really feel the African ancestry when the Puerto Rican and Brazilian rhythms mesh,” says Cole.

“I’ve lived in New York for nearly two decades and it’s provided me many opportunities,” says Cole. “But Puerto Rico is where I feel at home and most inspired. This project is my expression of that.”

Credits:

Music composed by Henry Cole

Lyrics by Tego Calderon

Henry Cole – Drums, Percussion,

Adam Rogers – Electric Guitars

Guilherme Monteiro – Electric Guitar

Pagnagiotis Andreou – Electric Bass

Sara Serpa – Voice  

Tego Calderon - Harmonica

Jason Lindner – Keyboards

Mario Castro – Tenor Sax

Chris Cheek - Baritone Sax

Jonathan Powell – Trumpet

Obanilu Allende – Barril

Alberto Torrens –Barril

Bryant Huffman – Chekere

Scott Kettner – Alfaias, Casha, Pandeiro

Phil Joly – Chief Engineer

Vira Byramji – Engineer

Mixing Engineer- Michael Brauer

Assistant Engineer- Fernando Reyes


Mastering Engineer -Joe LA Porta

Additional Recording and editing (Engineers):

Angel Rosa #AgLaMalditaVoz

Gabo Lugo


Luis Rodriguez Diaz

Tito Peña

William “Pipo” Torres

Recorded at Electric Lady Studios, NYC (The Band) & El Sitio Studios, Santurce, Puerto Rico (Tego Calderon)