Obo

Solidly based in Flamenco techniques, Obo has been exploring the music of the Americas for years, mixing the soulful sounds of Andalusia with the exciting rhythms of the Caribbean. The result is music with a flavor all its own. His new CD appropriately entitled, Bossarrosa, is his latest release and presents the Latin beat in many guises—salsa, merengue, rhumba—with a healthy dose of Spanish duende and even a splash of American funk. It is a compilation of his best previous recordings, plus 3 new tunes. Now in his forties, Obo is an artistic Jack-of-all-trades: instrumentalist, composer, even an accomplished painter whose warm, whimsical paintings decorate his CDs. He lives in Darmstadt, Germany, in an old water tower that also contains an art gallery where he exhibits his canvases. A self-taught guitarist, he learned his instrument as a youth haunting the gypsy caves around Granada. He has been expanding his musical reach ever since, sometimes as one half of the guitar duo Obo & Jorge, sometimes under his own name. “Our idea,” he says, “was to combine traditional flamenco, classical guitar and Latin American music with modern percussion patterns.” If you didn’t get to the islands last winter—or if you did and just want to prolong the pleasure—Bossarrosa is a more than reasonable facsimile. Just close you eyes and enjoy.

RECORDING: Produced by Obo ; Mastered by G. Frei, Munich, Spring 2000

ARTISTS

Obo (Flamenco Guitar), Pino Supertino (Acoustic Guitar, Bass), Jorge Dill (Acoustic Guitar), Christian Paulus (Assorted Percussion), Franco Latragna(Percussion), Wilson De Oliveira (Clarinet and Flute), Vitold Rek (Acoustic Bass), Aurelio Calabro (Saxophone, Flute)

TRACKS

Bossarosa (3:29), Laguna Verde (3:35), Sonora (2:53), Skyline (4:06), Lagrimas (3:26), Sola (3:44), Coral Beach (3:17), Coconut (3:26), Flying Fish (4:18), Mexian Moon (2:42), Olympic Fire (3:20), And I Love her (3:41), My Old Salsa (4:32), Portosaler (4:54), Saleblanca (2:38), Osborne (3:22), recuerdos de Granada (3:10)

Usage with kind permission by 1201 Music (www.1201music.com)