Xavier Cugat, born in Gerona, Spain in 1900, popularized Latin American music in the USA and the rest of the world from the 1930’s to the 1950’s. During his childhood he lived in Havana, Cuba and as a young boy he played the violin in the Orchestra of The Teatro Nacional. In 1915 the Cugat family went to New York City where he became famous as a companion player for Enrico Caruso and later as bandleader for the Waldorf Astoria Orchestra. From the late 1930’s to the early 1950’s Xavier was a star in movies like You Were Never Lovelier (1942), Bathing Beauty (1944), Week-End at the Waldorf (1945) and Neptune’s Daughter (1949). He married four times and had his biggest successes during his marriage with Abbe Lane, another star from these movies. Cugat was a great arranger and showman. He also made paintings and did true action painting on the stage. His albums for Columbia, RCA and Mercury sold well and he won various awards. He died in 1990.
A filmclip from the 1949 movie Neptunes Daughter, starring Xavier Cugat & His Orchestra in a great setting:
The Columbia Years:
Rumba With Cugat (4 X 78 RPM 10″ Set C-54) 1941
Alternative sleeve
Conga With Cugat (4 X 78 RPM 10″ Set C-74) 1941
Xavier Cugat’s Mexico (4 X 78 RPM 10″ Set C-98) 1944
Cugat’s Favorite Rhumbas (4 X 78 RPM 10″ Set C-110) 1945
Samba With Cugat (4 X 78 RPM 10″ Set C-165) 1948
Rhumba With Cugat (Columbia CL-6005) (10” LP) 1948 (two colors)
Xavier’s Favorite Rhumbas (Columbia CL-6021) (10”LP) 1948 (also released in a red colored sleeve) / Dance Party (Columbia CL-6077) (10” LP) 1949
Latin American Rhythm (Columbia UK 33S1040 / French FP-1048) (10″ LP) 1950 / Your Dance Date With Xavier Cugat (Columbia CL-6125) (10” LP) 1950
Mambo At The Waldorf (Columbia CL-6213) (10” LP) 1953 / Alternative version
LP version (Columbia CL-732) 195.
Tango With Xavier Cugat (Columbia CL-6234) (10” LP) 1953 / Samba With Xaxier Cugat (Columbia CL-6236) (10” LP) 1953
The Magic Of The Rumba (Columbia UK-33S1030) (10” LP) 1954 / The King Of The Rumba (Philips B-07673R) (10″ LP) 1955
The Magic Of The Rhumba (Columbia FP-1043) (10″ LP) 195. / Cucatango (Columbia House Party Series CL-2557) (10” LP) 1956
Quiet Music, Vol. VI: Relaxing with Cugat (Columbia CL-515) 1952
Alternative sleeve
Cugat’s Favorite Rhumbas (Columbia CL-579) 1954
Ole! (Columbia CL-618) 1955 (two different sleeves)
Cha-Cha-Cha (Columbia CL-718) 1955
European version (white edition on Philips B-07097L) 1956
Mambo At The Waldorf (Columbia CL-732) 1955
Merengue by Cugat (Columbia CL-733) 1955
Later issue
Love, Bread & Cha-Cha-Cha (Columbia CL-1016) 1957
Cugat Cavalcade (Columbia CL-1094) 1958
Waltzes By Cugat! (Columbia CL-1143) 1959
Columbia 7″ EP’s (1955-1959)
The Dance Beat Of … (Columbia Harmony HL-7242) 196.
The RCA Years:
One, Two, Three Kick Congas (RCA Victor 4 X 78 RPM 10″ Set P-73) 1945
Tangos (RCA-Victor 4 X 78 RPM 10″ Set P-83) 1946
7″ Box issue (RCA-Victor 4 X 7″ single WPT-16) 195. / Baile Con Cugat (RCA Victor 7″ EP 3-20128) 1954
Dancetime With Cugat (RCA LPM-3170) (10″ LP) 1954 / Latin Spice (RCA Victor Promo LP CS- 169) 195.
The King Plays Some Aces (RCA Victor LSP-1882) 1958
Alternative version (RCA Victor UK SF-5038)
Cugat Spain (RCA Victor LSP-1894) 1959
Chile Con Cugie (RCA Victor LSP-1987) 1959
That Latin Beat (RCA Camden CAL 323) 1959
Same album in a green sleeve
The King Plays Some Aces (RCA Victor 7″ EP S-20235) 1958 / That Latin Beat! 7″ EP (RCA Camden 7″ EP CAE-345) 1959 / Que Gusto Me Da (Philips 429265-BE) 1958
Cugat In France, Spain & Italy (LPM-2173) 1960
Latin For Lovers (RCA Camden CAL-516) 1961
‘
Other RCA 7″ EP’s (1955-1960)
The Mercury Years:
The Band With The Latin Beat (Mercury UK MG-20065) 1955
Here’s Cugat (Mercury MG-25120) (10”LP) 1956 / Alternative issue
7″ EP (Mercury EP-1-3000) 1956 / Dace Date With Cugat (Mercury 7″ EP EP-1-3007) 1956 / Mambo (Mercury 7″ EP-1-31780) 1957
Dance Date With Cugat (Mercury MG-25149) 10”LP) 1956 / Mambo (Mercury MG-25168) (10”LP) 1957
Music For Latin Lovers (Mercury MPT-7530) (10”LP) 1957 / Mambo (Mercury MEP-14017) 1952
Cugat’s Favorites (Mercury MG-20065) 1955
Mambo (Mercury MG-20108) 1957
Viva Cugat! (Mercury PPS-6003) 1961
Viva Cugat 7″ EP issues (Mercury 1961)
The Best of Cugat (Mercury PPS-6015) 1961
Plays Continental Hits (Mercury PPS-6021) 1962
Best of Xavier Cugat (Mercury MG-20870/SR-60870) 1962
Twist With Cugat (Mercury MCL-125037) 1962
7″ EP (Mercury 126-058-MCE) 1958
Cugat In Europe (Mercury 222 000-MCY / MWY) 1962 (two different editions)
The Most Popualr Movie Hits As Styled By Xavier Cugat (Mercury MCL-125205) 1963
Cugi’s Cocktails (Mercury MG-20832/SR-60832)-1963
Cugat Caricatures (Mercury MG 20888)-1963
Cugat’s Golden Goodies (Mercury MCY-135316) 1963
Plays the Music of Ernesto Lecuona (Mercury MCL-135937-mono) 1964
Plays the Music of Ernesto Lecuona (Mercury MCY 135937-stereo) 1964
He was the king of the mambo, by far the most popular Latin bandleader in the 1950’s and 1960’s. He made the sound booming and explosive with his hits like Mambo # 5, Mambo #8, Cherry Pink And Apple Blossom White and some tracks he did with Beny More as a vocalist: Pachito E-Che, Babaratiri and Anabacoa. Although Perez Prado was born in Havana in 1916, he became enormously popular in Mexico in the 1940’s and later in the USA where he became a key figure for Latin dance music on the RCA label where most of his biggest records were issued. His sound was very loud like massive thunder with a lot of percussion and pumping trumpets. In the many breaks Perez used his voice to give extra fire to the music with words like haa!! or ugh!! This was music to dance to if you wanted or not.
RCA albums
10” LP Play Mucho Mambo For Dancing (RCA LPM-21) 1951
7″ EP (RCA EPA-302) 1951
LP Mambo Mania (RCA LPM-1075) 1955
Alternative sleeve (RCA Victor BKL-9) 1955
7″ EP (RCA Victor EPB-1075) 1955
LP Voodoo Suite (Plus 6 All Time Greats (RCA Victor LPM-1101) 1956
7″ EP (RCA Victor EPB-1101) 1956
Mambo By The King (RCA Victor 10” LP LPM-3108) 1956
7″ EP (RCA Victor EPA-404) 1056
LP Mambo By The King (RCA Victor LPM-1196) 1956
7″ EP (RCA Victor EPA-732 / 33046 / ) 1956
LP Havana 3 A.M. (RCA Victor LPM-1257) 1956
7″ EP (RCA Victor EPB-1257) 1956
LP Latin Satin (RCA Victor LPM-1459) 1957
7″ EP Vol. 1 / Vol. 2 (RCA Victor EPA-1-1458 / EPA-2-1458 / 3.33100) 1957
LP Prez (RCA Victor LPM-1556) 1957
7″ EP (RCA Victor SRC-7004 / 3.20210) 1957
LP Mambo Happy (early 1950’s recordings) (RCA Camden CAL-409) 1957
LP Dilo (Ugh!) (RCA Victor LPM-1883) 1958
LP La Nina Popoff (early recordings) (RCA Victor MKL-1197) 1959
LP Pops And Prado (RCA Victor LPM-2028) 1959
LP Latino (RCA Camden CAL-547) 1960
LP Big Hits By Prado (RCA Victor LPM-2104) 1961
LP A Touch Of Tobasco (with Rosemary Clooney) (RCA Victor LPM-2133) 1961
LP Rockambo (RCA Victor LPM-2308) 1961
LP La Chunga (RCA Victor LPM-2379) 1962
LP Twist Goes Latin (RCA Victor LPM-2524) 1962
7″ EP (RCA Victor 75.703 S / 3.20477) 1962
LP Exotic Suite Of The Americas (RCA Victor LPM-2571) 1962
LP Our Man In Latin America (RCA Victor LPM- 2610) 1964
The birth of the so called Beat Generation began with a bunch of drop-outs crossing the United States by car in search of true and authentic stories, feelings and of course kicks. Jack Kerouac wrote about them in his novel On The Road, that saw the light in august 1957. He wrote the whole story on a roll of paper that he put into his typewriter and created his continuous stream of consciousness. It was a time when drugs were not already forbidden and getting high was meant to free your mind of the sober postwar 1950’s style of living. You could not only cross worlds by dreaming about life, but you could really search it by leaving your house and explore the world by yourself. So let’s drop out!
Not only writers began to explore other worlds, but also artists and musicians went on searching other images and other sounds. Eden Ahbez was living as a drop out nature boy on the desperate beaches of California and he dreamt of exotic islands in the sun. His music on Eden’s Island, that came out in the very early 1960’s was soft and warm. You could actually feel the sun and hear the soft winds blow. He became the prototype hipster.
Beatniks (analogue to ‘sputnik’) became the voices of the Beat Generation. Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs, Ken Nordine and Lenny Bruce were some of the people who became the most inspiring voices of the Beat Generation. They could thrill the listener by modern storytelling in a more psychologic sense and the use drugs were the cornerstone to find that form of speech.
Many album sleeves of that time had a true authentic feeling of freedom. You could just sit there in the New York metropolitan playing bongos, shouting some strange words and have your own trip. You could make a photo collage of yourself playing guitar in outer space or picture yourself having lunch on a graveyard. It was hip, it was already far-out. Long before the British designers of Hipgnosis made their collages for bands like Pink Floyd or Led Zeppelin.
The best examples of Beatnik album sleeve art can be found on Rod McKuen’s Beatsville, Del Close & John Brent’s How To Speak Hip and Katie Lee’s Songs For Cough And Consultation, just to name a few.
Louis Armstrong in the leader of the 1959 movie The Beat Generation
Books …
Eden Ahbez – Eden’s Island (Del-Fi DFLP-1211) 1960
Steve Allen – Bebop’s Fables; Adapted, Played And Told By … (Brunswick 7″ EP EB-71025) / 986002) 1953
Steve Allen – … At The Roundtable (Roulette SR-25053) 1959
Steve Allen’s – Grimm Fairy Tales For Hip Kids (Brunswick 86001) 1953 / Steve Allen’s Grimm Fairy Tales For Hip Kids (Brunswick 86001) 1953 /(El ACMEM-162 CD) 2008
Sheldon Allman – Folksongs For The 21st Century (Hi Fi R415) 1960
Leona Anderson – Music To Suffer By (Sparton LP115) 1958
Warren Barker – 77 Sunset Strip; Music From This Year’s Hottest New Television Show! (Warner Bros. Vitaphonic 1289) 1959
Warren Barker – Warren Barker Is In (Warner Bros. 1331) 1959
John Barry – Beat Girl (Columbia 33SX 1225) 1960
Ray Bauduc & Nappy Lamare – Two-Berat Generation; Swingin’ Dixie By … (Capitol 1198) 1958
Les Baxter & His Orchestra – Skins! Bongo Party With Les Baxter (Capitol T 774) 1957
John Benson Brooks Trio – Avant Slant (One Plus 1 =2?); A Twelve Tone Collage (Decca DL75018) 1964
Elmer Bernstein – O.S.T. Staccato; A Revue Television Production Starring John Cassavetes (Capitol T1287) 1959
Bianchi & His Jungle Sextet – Music To Play In The Dark (Hi-Standard LP 101) 1959 (see: Bob Romeo)
Axel Stordahl And His Orchestra – The Magic Islands Revisited (Decca DL-9096) 1961
Axel Stordahl And His Orchestra – The Lure Of The Blue Mediterranean (Decca DL-9073) 1959 / Guitars Around The World! (Decca DL-74337) 1962
Yma Sumac – Voice Of The Xtabay (Capitol CD-244 / H-244 / T-684 / W 684) 1950
Yma Sumac Legend Of The Sun Virgin (Capitol L 299 / T 299 / SM 299) 1952
Yma Sumac – Mambo! (Capitol H-564 / L-564 / T-564 / M-11892) 1954 / Legend Of The Jivaro (Capitol T-770) 1957
Yma Sumac – Original Cast Flahooley (Capitol S-284 / T-11649) 1957
Yma Sumac – Fuego Del Ande (Capitol T-1169 / ST-1169) 1959 / Recital; Live In Rumania (Electrecord EDE-073) 1961
Yma Sumac – Miracles (London XPS-608) 1972
Jerry Sun – The Exotic Sounds Of … (recorded in 1962) (Bachus Archives BA 11110) 2011
Sun Ra – Exotica (Modern Harmonia 3LP MH-8012) 2017
The Surfmen – The Sounds Of Exotic Island (Somerset P-10500) 1960
The Surfmen – Hawaii; The Romantic Lure Of … (Somerset SF-17100) 1963
Don Tiare & His Enchanting Violins – Strings Over Tahiti (Warner Bros. 1434) 1962
Don Tiare & His Orchestra Exotique – The Music Of Les Baxter (Mercury MG-20845 / SR 60845) 1963
Don Tracy – A Night With The Voodoo Family (Columbia TWO-106) 1965
Wal-Berg & His Orchestra – Exotic Music From The Far East (Mercury MG-20601 / SR-60601) 1960
Elisabeth Waldo – Maracatu; Mystic Music And Sounds Of The South American Jungles (Barbary Coast BC-33022) 1959
Miss Elisabeth Waldo
Elisabeth Waldo & Her Concert Orchestra – Rites Of Pagan; Mystic Realm Of The Ancient Americas (GNP Crescendo GNP(S)-601) 1960
Elisabeth Waldo – Realm Of The Incas; An Original Suite For Orchestra And Voices! (GNP Crescendo GNP-603) 1961
Elisabeth Waldo – Viva California (PSO PSO-002) 1969
Paul Whiteman – Blue Hawaii (Masterpiece MASTER-543) 195?
Marty Wilson – Jungala (Warner Bros. 1326) 196
Stanley Wilson – Pagan Love; Exotic Instrumentals By … (Capitol T-1552) 1959
More exotica albums and compilations:
The Broadway Singers And Orchestra – The Best Musical Comedy Songs (Halo LP 50245) 1957 / Various Artists – Betty Page; Jungle Girl, Exotique Music (QDK Media CD-017) 1998
Various Artists – Music For A Bachelor’s Den In Hi-Fi; Exotica (DGC Compact Classics DZS-092) 1996
‘
musiceureka 