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*** Eliades Ochoa

TRIBUTE TO CUARTETO PATRIA

(Higher Octave World)

This disc finds a Buena Vista Social Club star returning to his own venerable band. Ochoa inherited the leadership of Cuarteto Patria in 1978, but the group go back almost 40 years before that. At a time when BVSC stars Ibrahim Ferrer and Rubén González had effectively retired, Ochoa was soldiering on, breathing new life every year into the traditions of eastern Cuba, the region called Oriente. He brings a high and lonesome cowboy feel to his taut delivery, notably on the tuneful opener, a son once popularized by Beny Moré, “Yiri Yiri Bon.” There’s a strong rural flavor to these sones and boleros, which are rich with jangling acoustic guitars and gentle percussion. On “Tempo Entero,” Ochoa displays the elegant, flashy guitar work that probably helped win him the Buena Vista gig. Most of the material is as lively as a harvest dance, with a few sweet, slow boleros to provide a change of pace. This group may not match the punch and focus of Buena Vista, but they easily compete when it comes to spirit and authenticity.

— Banning Eyre