At first glance, Baltimore might seem an unlikely place for cultivating one of the hottest sounds in Latin Jazz. Then again, it is the port city that spawned John Waters, Edgar Allen Poe, Babe Ruth and, more recently, Rumba Club, whose funky, energetic sound blends jazz and salsa with tinges of Afro-Cuban and Calypso in their pursuit
of the almost religious tradition of eclecticism indigenous to Baltimore.
After a decade of performing throughout the mid-Atlantic, logging over 600 gigs, having shared the stage with Tito Puente, Jon Faddis, Nestor Torres and Doc Cheatham,
among many others, Rumba Club caught the attention of Andy Gonzalez, considered to be Latin music’s premier bassist, and a supreme composer/producer/arranger. It was Gonzalez who produced and played on their 1996 debut, Desde La Capital, to critical acclaim, which began garnering Rumba Club its long deserved national attention.
With the release of their sophomore bow, Mamacita! -- also produced by and featuring Gonzalez -- Rumba Club cemented its reputation as "...one of the East Coast’s hottest Latin jazz groups," proffering what Latin Beat Magazine goes on to say is "some of the finest dance and listening music possible."
Rumba Club’s new CD, Espiritista, divines an otherworldly combination of Afro-Caribbean rhythms and jazz interplay. Borrowing from the same rhythmic foundations that have made the Buena Vista Social Club popular, they add a definitive jazz statement, resulting in a sound that the Washington Post has called a "vibrant, highly danceable polyrhythmic weave with brassy exclamations, bopish essays and wistful refrains."
The Rumba Club’s nascence as a small straightahead jazz ensemble grew quickly to embrace the wonderful variety of Baltimore’s multicultural scene. Founder and bassist Josh Schwartzman studied with Creative Music School in New York and with the Art Ensemble of Chicago before launching this multifaceted ensemble in 1986 with trombonist Craig Considine and timbalist/arranger Jim Hannah. Rounding out the Rumba Club are percussionists Rudy Morales, Orlando Cotto and Sam Turner, pianist Tim
Murphy, trumpeter Alex Norris and Paul Hannah on saxophone.
With the host of talented Latin bands in New York, what brings Andy Gonzalez to Baltimore? "I was drawn to the group because it showcases some very talented percussionists from Cuba, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic playing with these top-notch jazz performers." Besides co-leading the famous Fort Apache and Conjunto Libre bands, Gonzalez has held the bass chair in Latin bands led by Tito Puente, Eddie Palmieri and Dizzy Gillespie.
Rumba Club’s commitment to syncopation and fascination with rhythm enhance their varied and enthusiastic albums. Both visually and musically provocative, the band’s repertoire embraces rumba, merengue, mambo and cha cha, among others -- all of which act as a springboard into time-honored improvisation.
