''Bele Bele en la Habana'' is an album by the Cuban pianist

Chucho Valdés Jesús Valdés Rodríguez, better known as Chucho Valdés (born October 9, 1941), is a Cuban pianist, bandleader, composer and arranger whose career spans over 50 years. An original member of the Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna, in 1973 he fo ...

, released in 1998. Valdés supported the album with a North American tour. The album peaked at No. 22 on ''Billboards

Jazz Albums The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, pr ...

chart. It was nominated for a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

, in the "Best Latin Jazz Performance" category.

Production

The album was produced by Réne López. It was recorded in Toronto, with Valdés leading a trio. "Con Poco Coco" was written by

Bebo Valdés Dionisio Ramón Emilio Valdés Amaro (October 9, 1918 – March 22, 2013), better known as Bebo Valdés, was a Cuban pianist, bandleader, composer and arranger. He was a central figure in the golden age of Cuban music, especially due to his big b ...

, Chucho's father. "Los Caminos" was written by

Pablo Milanés Pablo Milanés Arias (24 February 1943 – 22 November 2022) was a Cuban guitar player and singer. He was one of the founders of the Cuban nueva trova, along with Silvio Rodríguez and Noel Nicola. His music, originating in the Trova, Son and o ...

. "Lorraine" is dedicated to the owner of the

Village Vanguard The Village Vanguard is a jazz club at Seventh Avenue South in Greenwich Village, New York City. The club was opened on February 22, 1935, by Max Gordon. Originally, the club presented folk music and beat poetry, but it became primarily a jazz ...

. " But Not For Me" is a cover of the Gershwin song. "Son Montuno" was written by Valdés in the 1960s.

Critical reception

The Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Pennsy ...

'' 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." The ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' stated that "the music ranges from a son to a mambo, from a danzon to a guaguanco." The ''

Hartford Courant The ''Hartford Courant'' is the largest daily newspaper in the U.S. state of Connecticut, and is considered to be the oldest continuously published newspaper in the United States. A morning newspaper serving most of the state north of New Haven ...

'' thought that Valdés's piano "sounds like a giant modern orchestra powered by a dynamo percussion section." ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

'' 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."

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

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."

Track listing

References

{{Authority control Chucho Valdés albums 1998 albums Blue Note Records albums