A Colombian responsible for exporting Vallenato music abroad…Carlos Vives!!

jonny305 says on Jul 22, 2008, 16:08:

my favorite artist 2 thanks

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Lcacique says on Jul 22, 2008, 16:16:

monpirri:

Here's a few more:

Hoy se nota en la floresta un ambiente de alegría. ¡Y el rumor de ranchería es mas dulce y sabe a fiesta!

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Monpirri says on Jul 22, 2008, 16:20:

Lcacique, truly outstanding!

Annette Taddeo for US Congress 2008

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Lcacique says on Jul 22, 2008, 16:40:

I agree, monpirri. I love the music of Carlos Vives and he seems like a great person as well.

Hoy se nota en la floresta un ambiente de alegría. ¡Y el rumor de ranchería es mas dulce y sabe a fiesta!

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Sam Salmon says on Jul 22, 2008, 21:17:

La Casa en el Aire-an outstanding tune and a very touching video.

' a la orden!'

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ColombianoGringo says on Jul 22, 2008, 21:22:

Nice collection of videos. He also has some on music.yahoo.com. I posted some a while back, but I don't remember the thread link. There are so many great Vives songs it's hard to list favorites. I personally love Fruta Fresca, Quiero Verte Sonreir, La Tierra del Olvido, Maria Teresa, Como Tu, Dejame Entrar and many others.

Fonseca is another Vallenato singer getting a lot of exposure in the US. He is following in Carlos Vives' footsteps.

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goin_south says on Jul 23, 2008, 05:22:

monpirri, ... you're alright! (I don't care what they say about you on c-blog)

Where do we go from here?

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droble77 says on Jul 23, 2008, 08:35:

Wasn't familiar with "Casa en el Aire" but agree with Sam. Wonderful lyrics, almost poetic, and classy video too!

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Mononoke28 says on Jul 23, 2008, 08:36:

I love Carlos Vives and I really do appreciate what he's done for vallenato. While growing up in Colombia and watching him on Pequeños Gigantes never did I think he was going to be THE one responsible for the international success of vallenato. I just wish foreigners would understand that he, as well as Fonseca & Fanny Lú are mainly known for their pop sounding vallenato songs and that there are many other artists and styles as well.

Diana

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MaFe says on Jul 23, 2008, 09:10:

Mononoke28 says on Jul 23 (today): flag

I love Carlos Vives and I really do appreciate what he's done for vallenato. While growing up in Colombia and watching him on Pequeños Gigantes never did I think he was going to be THE one responsible for the international success of vallenato. I just wish foreigners would understand that he, as well as Fonseca & Fanny Lú are mainly known for their pop sounding vallenato songs and that there are many other artists and styles as well.


Me too! I love him, what he does for Vallenato, for Colombia...me parece muy hulmide..

"All human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance, nature, compulsions, habit, reason, passion, desire. "-Aristotle

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Mononoke28 says on Jul 23, 2008, 13:47:

En cambio a mí me parece muy humiLde. =D

Diana

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Lcacique says on Jul 23, 2008, 16:09:

Carlos Vives, in my opinion, comes off as more genuine than some of the other modern Vallenato stars. Not genuine in the sense that his interpretation of vallenato is more genuine, rather as an artist he seems more authentic than some of the others that are currently popular. With respect to his music, it is obviously far from the traditional style of vallenato, it is clearly POP (captials to add emphasis) as well as a fusion of other styles. That being said, I love the bulk of his output.

It should be noted that La casa en el aire doesn't sound like poetry, it is poetry (in my opinion). Many would argue that it was written by the most important composer of vallenato, Rafael Escalona. Anyone familiar with Vallenato and/or Carlos Vives will remember that the singer ( a telenovela star) played Raphael Escalona in a telenovela loosely based on the famous composer. Partly because of this role, Carlos Vives decided to move away from singing sappy romantic pop, choosing to sing the songs that were so popular in the region where he was born. Given the popularity of the series, 2 CDs (Un canto a la vida-Escalona and Escalona volume 2) were released with Carlos Vives singing nothing but songs written by Escalona (now there is a third that essentially comprises "the best" of the 2 CDs called Carlos Vives canta los clasicos del vallenato).

A little later, Carlos released an enormously popular album called Clasicos de la Provincia where he again sang older/popular material that was written by important vallenato composers (i.e. Emiliano Zuleta, Juan Polo Valencia, Leandro Díaz, Alejo Duran, Calixto Ochoa, Sergio Moya Molina, Chema Gómez, etc). His band modernized the compositions, fusing the songs with rock and elements from other Latin American styles. While this modernization pissed off purists, he quickly became an international star and everybody referred to him lovingly as that hippie in shorts from Colombia.

His band is incredibly underrated. Egidio Cuadrado (who also was in Escalona and has played with Carlos since those days) is phenomenal. Luis Angel Pastor is one of my favorite bass players. And the gaita, played by Mayte Montero, adds so much to the music (i.e. Fruta Fresca). And the variety of percussionists and guitarists have all been top notch.

Mononoke28: with respect to outsiders realizing that his music is poppy and that there are many forms of vallenato, I am with you 100%. Not to mention, I have argued extensively with my Mexican friends who believe that both cumbia and vallenato originated in Mexico. And gringos...forget about it. Most have a hard time distinguishing genres (which, admittedly, can be VERY difficult) let alone knowing anything about their roots. To be fair, it is difficult to get exposed to the classic artists of vallenato because their recorded material is not widely available. Hell, it is difficult to obtain the CDs of groups like Los Hermanos Zuleta or the original Binomio de Oro in the US and they are not even that old.

Here's another piece of Colombian poetry (written by Freddy Molina and sung by Carlos on Los clasicos de la provincia).

Amor Sensible
Tanto te quiero que pienso
sin saber lo que he pensado (bis)

nos acariciamo´ y luego
solo se que yo te amo. (bis)

Es un amor que nació profundo,
limpio como se vé la nevada

de misterio esta lleno el mundo,
no sé que sentirá tu alma. (bis)

Será sensible como el silencio,
que domina la montaña. (bis)

Fredy Molina te quiere,
eres mi duda esperanza, (bis)

Cuando el Guatapurí se crece,
al sentir mi pasión se calma. (bis)

Es un río que nace en la Nevada,
que en todo el Cesar fuerte se siente

pero mi gran pasión la iguala
el ímpetu de su torrente.(bis)

Si no me miras el propio cielo
siente mi pena y se entristece (bis.

En Valledupar yo canto
versos de mi inspiración. (bis)

Si algún día sufro un desengaño
me voy lejos de esta región. (bis)

Como pájaro que vuela alegre
y aunque viaja herido no lo encuentran

y que en la inmensidad se pierde
como si lo llevara la pena. (bis)

Pa´ que cantar el sufrimiento
cuando el amor sufrir no deja. (bis)

Hoy se nota en la floresta un ambiente de alegría. ¡Y el rumor de ranchería es mas dulce y sabe a fiesta!

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ColombianoGringo says on Jul 23, 2008, 16:13:

I agree that Carlos Vives is definitely the leader in Vallenato Pop or whatever you call it, but Fonseca has done a really good job following in his footsteps. He is a good songwriter and singer. Also, his band is really good, especially the accordionist.

Another of my Vivies favorites is El Cantor de Fonseca, no relation;)

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Simon says on Jul 23, 2008, 16:34:

"I have argued extensively with my Mexican friends who believe that both cumbia and vallenato originated in Mexico."


Those Mexicans must have the IQ of a tortilla!

"Tu vas a ver, llegaras a mi edad y veras que Colombia seguira igual"-----Simon Sr.

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ColombianoGringo says on Jul 23, 2008, 17:06:

That Kumbia garbage mutated in Mexico, but that stuff is an abomination, like most NORTHERN Mexican music and culture. QUE PINCHE NACO!!!. Luckily, the rest of Mexico is pretty great.

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goin_south says on Jul 23, 2008, 23:22:

did you lose a few (mexican) friends, there..... simon?

Where do we go from here?

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MaFe says on Jul 24, 2008, 06:43:

"Mononoke28 says on Jul 23, 2008, 13:47: flag
En cambio a mí me parece muy humiLde. =D"

ja ja I forgot the L...

LC...I agree and share your opinion about vallentao,

Simon...they probably have guacamole brains..

"All human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance, nature, compulsions, habit, reason, passion, desire. "-Aristotle

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Lcacique says on Jul 24, 2008, 11:31:

It is kind of interesting that Carlos Vives gets blamed for the bastardization of Vallenato. I have read several articles that mention how he modernized Vallenato, and by doing so he moved it away from its roots. However, in reality, he was simply following in the footsteps of many others that had done so before him (clearly he had more success abroad than anyone that preceded him). But the music of Binomio de Oro, Los Hermanos Zuleta, and Diomedes Díaz (to name a few) is far from the traditional vallenato of Francisco "Pacha" Rada, Alejo Duran, Emiliano Zuleta (to name a few). One clear difference is the fact that the original performers always used names in their songs. The songs were about real people and they were used as a means of communicating news and gossip as the performers would travel from pueblo to pueblo. More recent artists rarely sing songs about specific people. Instead they use "tu" so that everyone can imagine that the song is about them. Another modernization that took place long before Carlos Vives was the utilization of instruments foreign to vallenato: a variety of percussion instruments, guitars, bass, keyboards, etc. Carlos definitely added more genres to the mix than anyone before him, but I doubt he was the first to begin to fuse styles.

I'm not a purist, though I do love traditional vallenato music. I simply think it is strange that so much of the blame for the modernization of vallenato is placed on the shoulders of Carlos Vives when it is obvious that vallenato was already being modernized by so many other artists.

Hoy se nota en la floresta un ambiente de alegría. ¡Y el rumor de ranchería es mas dulce y sabe a fiesta!

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ColombianoGringo says on Jul 24, 2008, 11:37:

I don't see it as a bastardization. Like in every genre, it is simply an evolution. In some ways, it has made the genre more accessible. Not everyone can get into traditional vallenato right away.

It's like when you introduce someone to Jazz. Few "uninitiated" people will be receptive if you play them some really hardcore Coltrane right off the bat. It sometimes helps to start people off with "Happy Jazz" and slowly transition them into the "harder" stuff.

Man I sound like a pusher. Hey little girl. The first one is free.

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Mononoke28 says on Jul 24, 2008, 11:41:

People don't like change and that's why there are some who never got into Carlos Vives' music. But we have to roll with the times and embrace the new sounds. I heard that song from Los Chiches the other day and it has electric guitar sounds up the ying yang, it was alright but still vallenato.

Diana

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Lcacique says on Jul 24, 2008, 12:04:

I agree with you both...Not to mention that classifying music into nice/perfect fitting genres is problematic in the first place.

His long hair and short shorts probably caused a certain crowd to disapprove of his music as well.

For me, most of his music is packed with a tremendous amount of enthusiasm. He seems very invested in the material. Like I said before, he seems like a sincere and genuine artist (and person). And to me, that is really appealing. Quite a few of the mainstream artists who are currently popular just seem to lack the same kind of authenticity that I see in Carlos Vives. Maybe I am completely nuts. Maybe I haven't given other artists a chance or been exposed to enough of the current groups. In addition, I do have a tendency to prefer the older stuff (i.e. Los Hermanos Zuleta, Diomedes, Toby Murgas, Romauldo Brito, Binomio, etc.).

So, besides Fonseca...who else do you recommend?

Hoy se nota en la floresta un ambiente de alegría. ¡Y el rumor de ranchería es mas dulce y sabe a fiesta!

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Mononoke28 says on Jul 24, 2008, 13:14:

I don't like to see Carlos Vives in those Daisy Dukes either but the guy loves 'em. What can ya do?

Besides Fonseca, the only other person who's into that pop sounding vallenato is Fanny Lú and she's just aight.

Peter Manjarrés has come out with very good stuff lately and I really dig his version of "Obsesión", Silvestre Dangond is also pretty modern, a bit on the wild side.

Diana

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MaFe says on Jul 24, 2008, 13:33:

Ja ja ...I don't think men should wear those type of shorts...and I agree we can't stop him. He likes them, he sings great, who cares what he wears? Again he is so humble- and this is what really matters....

"All human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance, nature, compulsions, habit, reason, passion, desire. "-Aristotle

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Lcacique says on Jul 24, 2008, 14:17:

I have heard a little from both Manjarrés and Dangond that I enjoyed. I have a couple of friends that really like them both as well as Jorge Celedon.

I found a nice, long interview with Carlos i thought I'd share with you all. In the middle he sings one of the most beautiful songs, Noche Sin Lucero, written by Rosendo Romero (compositor de clásicos como Fantasia). If anyone knows how to obtain a version of Rosendo singing this song or has a copy of the song sung by someone else...let me know!

Hoy se nota en la floresta un ambiente de alegría. ¡Y el rumor de ranchería es mas dulce y sabe a fiesta!

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Lcacique says on Jul 24, 2008, 14:23:

Here is a great link to some excellent interviews and short documentaries about Vallenato. There is one with La Maye, the real woman that Escalona was in love with. And there is another about the origins of the song Alicia Adorada. There is one about Carlos and Los Clasicos de la provincia. Another about the wedding of Pacho Rada. And a couple that deal with the Zuleta family. Enjoy!

http://youtube.com/profile_videos?user=emccausland

Hoy se nota en la floresta un ambiente de alegría. ¡Y el rumor de ranchería es mas dulce y sabe a fiesta!

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Monpirri says on Jul 24, 2008, 18:26:

Bravo Lcacique usted es bravo para musica!
I do not know what would I do without you.:>)

Annette Taddeo for US Congress 2008

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MaFe says on Jul 24, 2008, 19:33:

LC great video!! I liked that interview, interesting things about him that I didn't know... Carlos Vives, tan bello como ama su Colombia, y su musica...que bello! Thanks for sharing!

"All human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance, nature, compulsions, habit, reason, passion, desire. "-Aristotle

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Lcacique says on Jul 24, 2008, 21:54:

Thank you both...

Hoy se nota en la floresta un ambiente de alegría. ¡Y el rumor de ranchería es mas dulce y sabe a fiesta!

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tampavallenato says on Jul 25, 2008, 00:15:

Great Information Lcacique. It will take me the rest of my life to learn 1/4 of all there is to know about Vallenato Music. Lcacique what do you think about Nelson Valesquez Y Emerson Plata?

Ay Hombe!!!

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Mononoke28 says on Jul 25, 2008, 08:22:

Nelson Velásquez, besides his "sisas parce" look, is awesome. I know you asked Lcacique but I always like to butt in. ;D

Is it just me or the Carlos Vives interview freezes up from time to time?

Diana

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