Search - Ismael Miranda con Orchestra Harlow :: Abran Paso

EXCELLENT, RAW, AND POWERFUL style of music from the beginni

S. | 07/16/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This 1970 album is A MUST HAVE (A HAVE OR DIE) for the REAL listeners of the HIGHLY intense and rhythmical style of New York salsa music from the good old days!... The album's intensity is very powerful, the music is quite raw (so definitely not for the 'faint hearted') and the excitement is ALL OVER THE PLACE, HERE!



Ismael Miranda, ONCE AGAIN, broke his head to compose 5 songs in this album, which turned out to be part of what the album had best to offer, OBVIOUSLY! (Abran Paso, Donde Llevas El Son, Abandonada Fué, Oigan Bien Mi Guaguancó, and Dolór Y Amór)!



The title track Abran Paso was this album's biggest hit, also because it appeared in the Fania movie Our Latin Thing back in 1972. (The video of this song from the movie is available at youtube, but I prefer MUCH MUCH MORE this album's more intense and exciting version).



Donde Llevas El Son ('Ven, yo quiero bailar ahora el son!') is a very enjoyable and powerful rock-solid sort of Son-Chá with very good and long arrangements, also including a piano solo by Larry Harlow.



Se casa La Rumba is a song that shifts up a gear rhythmically compared to the previous tune, with a faster paced rhythm and a more aggressive sort of chorus consisting in the whole album, by the way, of: Marcelíno Guerra, Eladio Peguero 'Yayo El Indio', Justo Betancourt and also Santos Colón in some songs I believe. (He is not credited, but I'm almost sure that I did hear him involved in the chit-chat at the very beginning of Donde Llevas El Son.)



With the more musical Abandonada Fué we go back to the Ismael Miranda 'melancholically frustrated love' style of song with the lyrics: 'Jugastes, conmigo! Pero no con mi corazón!' In English: 'you played with me, but not with my heart!' Which in this case also has a slower tempo and a piano solo by Larry Harlow; DEFINITELY a very nice song to listen to!





Side B's opener, which is Curet Alonso's Vengo Virao ALSO HAS to be one of the high points of this album, with great involvement from that powerful chorus at its best, a TERRIFIC song to listen to with an aggressive mood, tough arrangements all the way through since the beginning, and my favourite Harlow piano solo from the album.



Now, we come to MY favourite tune of the album, the one that I can listen to 6 or 7 times in a row which is: Oigan Bien Mi Guaguancó! Wow! The sensation it caused me the first time I heard it!... I was amazed! Really Overwhelmed! The WHOLE band shines through in SUCH a way that it can't get any better than this in any way!...

You'll see it when you buy the album!...



Ayer Me Enteré is a Bolero (ballad) written by Catalino Curet Alonso, and Rise Up is a tune in English which is WELL worth the patience, as what comes after the waiting is a very nice jam session with Harlow using keyboard and piano at the same time, a good trombone solo probably by Leopoldo Pineda, and a Conga-drum solo by Frankie Rodríguez.

Check out how 'impotent' Ismael Miranda is on his English vocals in this tune!



His 'young' and raw performance throughout this whole album is outstanding, as he gave the MOST out of himself and his voice all the way through, but here, he visibly was not 'in his element'! (like we say...)





To finish off, we get ANOTHER HUGE highlight from this album which is the musically intense Dolór Y Amór with, AGAIN, a melancholic lyric related to the meaning of love and pain, and whether they signify the same thing or not!...

On top of that we get EXCITING rhythmical music, BURNING arrangements and again, a big, big intensity!...





GET THIS ALBUM! YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPOINTED (IF IT IS THAT YOU ARE EXPECTING FROM THIS AN INTENSE AND FLAVOURSOME STYLE OF SALSA A L'ANCIENNE!...)



Another album to go for, similar in style to this one is their previous album from 1969 titled: Electric Harlow Vocal: Ismael Miranda (unfortunately not available remastered YET)









Remastered By: Sound Booth. 9/10. A high 9, PERFECT volume, PERFECT sound, Original recording PERFECTLY preserved!

THANK GOD THEY DIDN'T MESS AROUND WITH THIS ONE!)

Thank you Sound Booth!

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