Bele Bele en la Habana is an album by the Cuban pianist Chucho Valdés, released in 1998.[2][3] Valdés supported the album with a North American tour.[4]
The album peaked at No. 22 on Billboard's Jazz Albums chart.[5] It was nominated for a Grammy Award for "Best Latin Jazz Performance".[6]
Production
The album was produced by Réne López.[7] It was recorded in Toronto, with Valdés leading a trio.[8][9] "Con Poco Coco" was written by Bebo Valdés, Chucho's father.[10] "Los Caminos" was written by Pablo Milanés.[7] "Lorraine" is dedicated to the owner of the Village Vanguard.[11] "But Not For Me" is a cover of the Gershwin song.[12] "Son Montuno" was written by Valdés in the 1960s.[13]
The Philadelphia Inquirer noted that several pieces "contain references to the suitelike Cuban danzon and the agitated high-speed-chase lines associated with Dizzy Gillespie's bebop-era Afro-Cuban hybrid."[16] The Los Angeles Times stated that "the music ranges from a son to a mambo, from a danzon to a guaguanco."[8]
The Hartford Courant thought that Valdés's piano "sounds like a giant modern orchestra powered by a dynamo percussion section."[17]The Globe and Mail opined that Valdés's "playing is impressive enough in its power and technical facility, but his showy improvisations have an off-handed glibness that leaves them less than compelling and sometimes even less than fully coherent."[18]
AllMusic wrote that "Valdés more often than not is all over the keyboard, comfortable with everything from Ravel-ian classical complexity to Bill Evans' introspection to Cecil Taylor-like crunches."[14]
