By Jim Parisi

It’s a funny thing about music: it does not recognize the imaginary boundaries men have drawn on maps or in the ground. Put simply: music transcends borders.  It travels into the ear of its listeners then, hopefully, into their hearts as well, no matter where they live. And music does not need a passport to accomplish this. That is part of the appeal of World Music for aficionados from anywhere on the globe. We have had a plethora of Euro café discs, Middle Eastern lounge CDs and Indonesian trip-hop fusion albums while, regretfully, Central American music has been nearly unheard during this wave of international awareness. Until now. A joint venture by the four most popular and progressive recording labels in this part of the world has begun to fill that void with the release of La Caja de Musica Centroamericana, the Central American Music Box.

This compilation of sixteen songs showcases musical styles that ignore the borders of places we call Nicaragua, Belize, Honduras, Guatemala and Costa Rica. The Garifuna music represented here from Ivan Duran’s Stonetree label from Belize is a good example. The Garifuna culture was spawned nearly four centuries ago when survivors from two sinking slave ships began cohabitating with the indigenous Carib tribes, including the Arawaks on the islands of Saint Vincent (in the Lesser Antilles), Dominica and Santa Lucia, as well as with other escaped African slaves. Later, under British domain, they were relocated to the Honduran island of Roatan and from there they migrated to the surrounding countries in Central America. The resulting music is unique, mesmerizing, and anything but Latin.

Read More…

Filed under: Jim Parisi, Music Review, Uncategorized on May 24th, 2010
No Comments »

By Jim Parisi

The origin of reggae in Costa Rica dates back to the 1920s, when Jamaican leader Marcus Garvey evoked his ideas and beliefs throughout the Caribbean province of Limon. Born in St. Anne’s Bay, Jamaica, the future birthplace of Bob Marley, Garvey is considered the prophet of Rastafarianism. So, it is easy to see how reggae music is considered a kind of Costa Rican folk music.

Remaining consistent in its mission statement, Papaya Music recently unveiled its newest release, Costa Rica Reggae Nights. The CD embraces a variety of Costa Rican reggae bands and styles. Included on this disc are eleven bands, demonstrating the versatility during a span of the past two decades of reggae in this country. All the recordings were previously unreleased and the compilation offers songs in Spanish, English, and Limon Creole.

Read More…

Filed under: Jim Parisi, Music Review on April 19th, 2010
No Comments »

By Jim Parisi

The essence of Calypso is in its rhythm and its humor, not necessarily in that order. The seed of this musical style sprouted around Barbados, Trinidad and Ciudad Colon, Panama. It spread, literally by word of mouth, to other Caribbean ports, including Kingston, Jamaica, where it spawned the nucleus of reggae music.

Walter Ferguson is probably the last Calypsonian to learn his craft in this traditional, organic manner. Born in Guabito, Panama in 1919, he moved to Cahuita, Costa Rica at an early age with his father, Melsh, who was a cook for the Banana Company there. For years, Ferguson, or “Gavitt” as he is affectionately referred to by his wife and family, plied his trade with an old Martin guitar, creating songs and exchanging them with other wandering Calypso minstrels up and down the Caribbean coast of Central America. Walter even recorded a vinyl album of original songs in the early 1970s, which quickly slipped into obscurity along with its composer.

Read More…

Filed under: Jim Parisi, Music Review on January 31st, 2010
1 Comment »

When Alice stepped through the looking glass, one of her first observations was that “things are not what they seem to be”. Lewis Carroll’s fairytale was written as a double-edged sword: a bright and cheery surface story, with an underlying cynical twin meaning. The rock duo who call themselves Amigosintimos have taken this theme and extrapolated on it with their debut CD, “En el Pais de las Maravillas”. There are direct references to Carroll’s work, including a song titled “Alicia” and a quote from Edgar Allen Poe in the lyric book which is included in the CD package.

Read More…

Filed under: Jim Parisi, Music Review on December 25th, 2009
No Comments »

By Jim Parisi

Rock and Roll has had an element of humor and playfulness since its inception; it is simply a part of its inherent makeup. Sure, there is a serious side, as well: the musicianship has always been concrete and the messages diverse, be they political, philosophical or romantic. But the whimsical part has always been there, throughout the history of Rock and Roll. Ben Orton has been a serious Rock and Roll musician with a serious funny bone for more than twenty years. Born near Champagne, Ill, he relocated to the Ozark Mountains and Fayetteville, Ark to pursue his college degree “in three easy decades” as he has explained it. Ben has spent time living in Seattle, India and Iran as he took the long road to eventually come to Costa Rica and live in the Quepos/Jaco area. On his way here, he paid his dues, including playing bass guitar and recording with a biker/porno band, and then released his first solo project, “Ben Orton & Other Infamous Fugitives”, a good, straight-forward rollicking, rocking album. He recently released his first album from Costa Rica, a self-produced CD entitled “Hecho en Costa Rica” along with his band BenJammin and the Howlers. All the songs are Ben’s original material and the album was recorded in Jaco and Quepos.

Read More…

Filed under: Jim Parisi, Music Review on November 27th, 2009
1 Comment »

by Jim Parisi

Religious hymns and spiritual music have played a role in Costa Rican culture for more than two centuries. Traditionally, however, the practice of organized groups celebrating and singing these songs has been confined to within their respective church walls, primarily in Limon and San Jose. Enter music historian Manuel Obregon, who is also the president and founder of Papaya Music, Costa Rica’s premier music label. Obregon felt this musical legacy deserved to be shared with the general public. So he enlisted more than thirty participants from a variety of denominations to perform live for two nights for an audience at National Theater in San Jose, which is truly how gospel music should be heard; live rather than canned studio work. Appropriately, a recording of this event, “Wade in the Water” has recently been released.

Read More…

Filed under: Jim Parisi, Music Review on October 2nd, 2009
No Comments »