Ibrahim Ferrer Albums (8)
'The Cuban Heroes Collection'
Release Date 1/1/2008
Tracks 18
Label Union Square
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What The Critics Say
The success of the Buena Vista Social Club series gave Cuban singer Ibrahim Ferrer the chance to finally begin his dream project in 2005, the recording of an entire album of bolero pieces, the musical form Ferrer loved above all others. Unfortunately the 78-year-old singer died in August of that year while sessions for the project were still underway, and that Mi Sueño (My Dream) exists at all is in itself a small miracle. Ferrer left behind high-quality vocal demos of the boleros he still intended to record for the album, but these tapes were apparently misplaced and Ferrer's dream seemed destined to go unfulfilled. The demos were eventually recovered, and Mi Sueño has finally seen the light of day. It is the perfect goodbye from Ferrer, a fitting and beautiful last testament that spotlights his easy and smoky vocals over subtle, non-intrusive arrangements generally featuring pianist Roberto Fonseca, guitarist Manuel Galbon, and bassist Cachito Lopez. The late Rubén González adds piano to the beautiful "Melodía del Río," a track produced by Ry Cooder in 1998 that fits seamlessly with the newer recordings. Javier Zalbar's clarinet lines add perfect lift to "Copla Guajira," the closest thing to an up-tempo piece here, but then the romantic lilt of the classic Cuban bolero isn't about speed and energy but is instead about an elegant gliding through the motions of love, and Ferrer does it perfectly. He would have been proud of this album. It has a calm and measured grace, and flows like a watery sequence from a dream -- Ibrahim Ferrer's dream, to be exact. ~ Steve Leggett, All Music Guide
'Buenos Hermanos'
Release Date 3/10/2003
Tracks 12
Label World Circuit
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What The Critics Say
Ibrahim Ferrer, the "official" lead vocalist of Buena Vista Social Club, and producer Ry Cooder take numerous chances and many labyrinthine journeys (guaranteed to piss off all of the purists) on their third collaboration for the World Circuit/Nonesuch label, yet manage to come up with the most beautiful fruit of their collaborative efforts to date. The pair took tons of chances, recording both in Havana and in Los Angeles and bringing in not only additional musicians among Cuba's top session players -- such as guitarist and keyboardist Manuel Galban, Orlando "Cachaito" Lopez on bass, and Miguel Diaz on congas, to name three of more than a dozen -- but also adding Jim Keltner to the drum mix, along with Cooder's son, Joachim, who handles these chores on every track. Keltner, the younger Cooder, Ry, and Galban also play together on a few tracks. But add to this already eclectic mix master Cuban pianist Chucho Valdes and vanguard textural trumpeter Jon Hassell as well as the Blind Boys of Alabama on one cut and you have a recording that is at once celebratory, charming, eclectic, and, well, brilliant. Ferrer's talents as a vocalist transcend all boundaries and musical types, yet he makes every song a Cuban song, one rooted in the earthy spirit of his native Havana. "Perfume de Gardenias" has the Blind Boys replacing Ferrer's regular Cuban chorus of backing vocalists and features the great saxophonist Gil Bernal as well as Galban on a wonderfully understated yet commandingly melodic piano. The track lies in the seam, where the Blind Boys add a more restrained and rounded backing to Ferrer's pricelessly gorgeous croon; Bernal and Galban move this folky ballad into the realms of a jazz/pop tune, and it still comes off as a firmly Cuban song, rooted in the heat, the rhythm, and the passion of everyday life in Havana. "Mil Congojas," which follows immediately, features the band backed by a string orchestra. Ferrer feeds off the atmospherics and allows his voice to literally drip from his throat and enter the mix as if he were singing to the angels. In addition, coming off these two ballads, so silky and gorgeous, is "Hay Que Entrale a Palo a Ese," a steaming son with a large percussion section shoring up the backing chorus and Ferrer using a rapid-fire delivery to add to the rhythmic intensity of the track. In addition, there is Valdes' "Boliviana," a folky love song rooted in the traditional melodies of Cuban Indios and extrapolated to fit a more contemporary Afro-Cuban musical framework -- Abdullah Ibrahim himself could have composed the music here, so saturated in South African melodic and harmonic structures it is, with Valdes' sense of blurred, elongated time signatures and shifting rhythmic patterns. Hassell's trumpet adds a wonderfully simplistic element to the female backing chorus and Ferrer pours his heart into every crack and crevice of the song, splitting it wide open and letting its longing show through. The record closes with a burner, "Oy el Consejo," once again a traditional call-and-response son tuned into an intensely rhythmic polysyllabic poem via Ferrer's no-holds-barred vocal. In sum, this album reveals what is truly possible when musicians of other cultures get together to serve the music, not individual talents. And though Ferrer proves himself yet again to be one of the world's greatest treasures as a singer, he is always loyal to Cuba, ever the slave of the rhythm, ever the angel of the song itself. ~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide
'La Colleccion Cubana'
Release Date 10/29/2002
Tracks 17
Label Import
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What The Critics Say
To those who've come to Ibrahim Ferrer through his excellent work on Buena Vista Social Club and its spin-offs, this might prove a revelation. It collects his recordings from the 1960s and 1970s -- the post-Cuban revolution period when he was entertaining Cubans, not American tourists. And entertain he certainly does, coming at songs with an energy that wasn't present in his later work. Not that he's lacking in sophistication, as "Una Fuerza Immensa" ably shows -- he could be as subtle as anyone. If there's a problem, it's with the instruments. Listeners have become used to an acoustic sound in their classic Cuban music. This brings in some very grating electric piano that simply never gels with the smoothness of the songs. But it has to be said that on every cut the overall band is formidable. They swing with power and create the type of music that's guaranteed to get the feet moving across the floor. The years have obviously brought finesse to Ferrer's style and given him a smoothness of tone he never quite manages here. But it's still recognizably the same person -- just younger and with more bounce. ~ Chris Nickson, All Music Guide
'Tiempos Con Chepin y Su Orquesta'
Release Date 8/20/2002
Tracks 14
Label Egrem
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'Buena Vista Social Club Presents: Ibrahim Ferrer'
Release Date 5/24/1999
Tracks 11
Label World Circuit
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What The Critics Say
When the Buena Vista Social Club album was released to great acclaim in 1997, it revived the careers of quite a few incredibly talented aging Cuban musicians. Like Ibrahim Ferrer, most of those musicians (who had been legendary in the '40s through the '70s) hadn't been performing professionally in decades. With the success of the Buena Vista Social Club, everything changed; they toured the globe, and plans for follow-up albums followed. Ibrahim Ferrer's was the second of what became a line of Buena Vista releases, all hoping to cash in on the success of the first. Ferrer's album is pleasant, the kind of album you could put on during brunch on a sunny morning. The album features many classic Cuban compositions. Original arrangers, musicians, and bandleaders were involved whenever possible. One standout is "Mami Me Gusto," a rolling upbeat tune by the legendary Cuban composer/bandleader Arsenio Rodriguez. On that tune Ferrer is lively and loose, and he is joined by Rodriguez's original pianist, the masterful Ruben Gonzales. The rest of the album is nice, but rarely as inspired or joyous as the original Buena Vista release. This is a much more romantic sounding album and on the right tunes, like "Aquellos Ojos Verdes," they really hit the mark; Ferrer shines and Gonzales sends glistening piano lines cascading down the keys. At age 63-plus, Ferrer was long overdue for a debut album, and as a result the disc communicates a feel of easy satisfaction. If you're looking for classy cocktail party music that will hold the attention of music fans, and won't bother the uninterested, look no further. ~ David Lavin, All Music Guide
