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Bebo Valdes

Valdés played piano from an early age and was very active as a performer, composer, arranger, and musical director at various Havana nightclubs, throughout the 40s and on into the 50s. During these years, he was also playing and arranging for numerous recording dates. Very highly regarded within the Cuban musical world, Valdés worked with many artists, including Mario Bauza and Ernesto Lecuona. With the growth of Afro-Cuban music worldwide, Valdés toured Europe and the USA. In 1960, unhappy with the new political power in Cuba, Valdés left his homeland, taking up residence in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1963. He continued to compose and play but, despite the fact that his son, Chucho Valdés had become an internationally known jazz musician, it was not until the late 90s that he was brought back into a recording studio. Encouraged by Paquito D'Rivera, whose father was a friend of Valdés and who was also an associate of Chucho Valdés from their time together in Irakere, a session was arranged and took place in Germany. Valdés composed most of the music played on the session, much of it written in haste the day before, and his playing was in remarkably good shape considering the decades-long lay-off from full-time performing. Also on the session, with Valdés and D'Rivera, were Juan-Pablo Torres (trombone), Diego Urcola (trumpet), Amadito Valdés (percussion), and Carlos Emilio Morales (guitar; ex-Irakere). This was the start of a resurgence for Valdés. His follow-up album was a trio set with Israel "Cachao" Lopez and Carlos "Patato" Valdés, although D'Rivera guested on some tracks. Then came other recordings through to the end of the century and beyond. Valdés can be seen in the documentary film, Calle 54 (2000), in which he appears alongside numerous Latin jazz exponents, including his son, Chucho, Gato Barbieri, Eliane Elias, Chico O'Farrill, and Tito Puente. The coincidental rise of interest in traditional Cuban music, prompted in part by the Buena Vista Social Club albums, played a role in Valdés' twilight career success. Nevertheless, it is clear that as a composer he is playing an important part in the music of Latin America in general, and Afro-Cuban jazz in particular.

Bebo Valdes & Javier Colina: Live At The Village Vanguard

Read "Live At The Village Vanguard" reviewed by Mark Corroto

by Mark Corroto
September 19, 2008

The comparison between pianists Bebo Valdés and his son Chucho Valdés could be likened to the choice of the Beatles (Bebo) to the Rolling Stones (Chucho). A more likely frame of reference would be Bebo as the Cuban version of Hank Jones and Chucho that of Don Pullen.Like Jones, Bebo started as an accompanist, only to shine as a soloist in his later years. Now nearly 90, his music just seems to get better and better. This session ...

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Album Review

Bebo Valdes and Frederico Britos: We Could Make Such Beautiful Music Together

Read "We Could Make Such Beautiful Music Together" reviewed by Geoff Mirelowitz

by Geoff Mirelowitz
June 1, 2007

A more apt title would be hard to find for this intriguing piano/violin excursion into the music of the Americas. And the music could hardly be placed in more talented hands. Bebo Valdés is not only a giant of Cuban music, he is a giant of the jazz piano, period. Though perhaps not as widely known, Uruguayan violinist Frederico Britos has won Grammys for work with Charlie Haden and Israel “Cachao Lopez. His virtuoso performance on this album confirms he ...

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Album Review

Bebo Valdes & Frederico Britos: We Could Make Such Beautiful Music Together

Read "We Could Make Such Beautiful Music Together" reviewed by Jerry D'Souza

by Jerry D'Souza
February 25, 2007

Bebo Valdes and Federico Britos are an inspired pairing. Valdes, who has been living in Stockholm since 1963, is one of the prime figures of Cuban jazz. The pianist made his biggest impact in the '40s and '50s, before he left the country in 1960. He kept to himself until 1994, when he emerged from his cocoon to record again. Among his recordings was the solo piano effort Bebo (Calle 54, 2006), which won the Latin Grammy Award for Best ...

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Extended Analysis

Bebo Valdes: Bebo

by Victor Verney
January 28, 2007

Bebo Valdés Bebo Calle 54 2006

Bebo Valdés is more than the ranking patriarch of Cuban pianists: he is a living archive of the piano literature of Cuba, as this eponymously titled release amply demonstrates. More than simply a solo album--amazingly, his first ever--this release is a comprehensive survey of the grand sweep of Cuba's piano canon, a rich and storied tradition to which Valdés is heir and guardian.

Valdés (b. 1918) ...

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Album Review

Bebo Vald: Bebo de Cuba

Read "Bebo de Cuba" reviewed by Russ Musto

by Russ Musto
November 19, 2005

This landmark set superbly documents the wide ranging talents of one of Cuba's greatest artists--expatriate pianist/composer/arranger Bebo Valdés--in the company of an impressive cast of New York's finest Latin jazz instrumentalists. The first disc, Suite Cubana, features the pianist, father of the more famous Chucho Valdés, leading an all-star big band through a collection of original compositions that revisit the classic sound of the golden age of Cuban music in a variety of infectious rhythms (mambo, bembé, son, guaracha, guajira, ...

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Film Review

Bebo Valdes & Diego el Cigala: Blanco Y Negro

by Mark Corroto
March 24, 2005

Bebo Valdes & Diego el Cigala Blanco Y Negro Bluebird 2005 I may fall out of favor with my fellow Americans expressing admiration for cultures much older and well, certainly more developed then ours. You disagree? Did you catch more then five minutes of the latest addition of the Grammy Awards? What passes for 'art' or more importantly what sells millions of copies is slightly more challenging than potty training. OK, ...

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Album Review

Bebo Valdes: El Arte Del Sabor

Read "El Arte Del Sabor" reviewed by Jim Santella

by Jim Santella
November 1, 2001

Traditional Cuban music brings a festive mood to any performance. It's music for dancing and it also allows plenty of room for the artists to improvise. Three legendary Cuban artists share equally on this session to reminisce about the development of Latin jazz and its relationship to traditional music. Each is in fine form. Since it's a trio session, Bebo Valdes, Cachao and Patato Valdes are heard individually, clearly and distinctly throughout. Traditional pieces by Ernesto Lecuona, Manuel Corona, Julio ...

TV / Film

Chico & Rita (Soundtrack) Featuring Songs Written and Performed by Bebo Valdés

Source: Kelly Krueger
February 28, 2012

Chico & Rita is an animated film directed by Spanish Oscar-winner Fernando Trueba, along with Javier Mariscal and Tono Errando. An exquisitely drawn story of love inspired by the life of Cuban maestro Bebo Valdés , Chico & Rita takes audiences from the famous Tropicana club in Havana to the Pleyel club in Paris, to Radio City Music Hall in New York to Village Vanguard and Palladium. The film was nominated for a 2012 Academy Award in the category of ...
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Award / Grant

Bebo Valdes Wins GRAMMY Award for Best Traditional Tropical Latin Album: "Bebo De Cuba"

Source: All About Jazz
February 9, 2006

Pianist Bebo Valdes Wins GRAMMY Award in “Best Traditional Tropical Latin Album" Category for Bebo De Cuba, A 2-CD/DVD Celebrating Cuban Big Band And Jazz Traditions

Marks Valdes' fifth GRAMMY in 3 years, following two for El Arte Del Sabor (2002) and one for Lagrimas Negras (2005), featuring Flamenco vocalist Diego El Cigala.

Legendary arranger / composer / bandleader Bebo Valdes has won the GRAMMY Award in the “Best Traditional Tropical Latin Album" category for his Calle 54 Records release, ...
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Award / Grant

Grammy Nomination For Bebo Valdes' Stellar 2-CD/DVD Release, "Bebo De Cuba", On Calle 54 Records

Source: All About Jazz
December 8, 2005

Legendary arranger/composer/bandleader Bebo Valds has been nominated for a GRAMMY Award for his latest Calle 54 Records release, Bebo De CubaA, in the Best Traditional Tropical Latin Album category. The 48th Annual GRAMMY Awards will be held on Wednesday, Feb. 8, at Staples Center in Los Angeles and will be broadcast live on CBS. Bebo De Cuba was co-produced by Spanish filmmaker Fernando Trueba, whose stylish 2000 Miramax documentary and live music film CALLE 54 brought a wide range of ...
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Award / Grant