Havana, Cuba, circa 1949: A dance club resplendent with the elegance of the island's nightlife before the Revolution. Sparkling chandeliers, bow-tied waiters, couples dressed to the nines. On stage, a big, brassy band fronted by a slick-haired heart-throb. There is the kind of gaiety in the air that can only brew in the company of young people and everyone here is young. (pbs)

Can you picture it? This is the buena vista social club.

This is the album that i've been listening to lately. this is what i've been drawn to. I recently found out about this group, but i've become a HUGE FAN! I just love their music.

The singer croons of heartache and devotion,
of love requited and not and, subtly, with light or dark double-entendres
and innuendo, of desire itself.
But he also invokes that which is beyond desire.
The metaphors often involve fire and water:
direct references to ancient deities that crossed, and survived,
Middle Passage and gave birth to
the New World Afro Caribbean religion of Santería,
the spiritual heart of Cuban music.
Indeed, the syncopated rhythms and similarly complex lyrics symbolically
link with some of history's greatest events:
the meeting of Old and New worlds, slaves and masters,
the feudal and the imperial,
the advent of the modern in the 20th century life in the city.
It's all there to be heard in the instrumentation, which is European (brass), and African (percussion) and, loosely, "American"
(the manner in which tropical music incorporates jazz influences).

-PBS

From the first time I heard their music, I was hooked. It just takes me to a differnt place, a different mind set. My brother in law introduced this group to me, him having some spanish in his background. The essence of music is beautiful. Its truly universal and can be a link one culture to the next. So open up your mind to something new and try them out. Im sure you'll love it as much as i have. I can not listen to at least one of their songs, and not walk away with a little spring in my step.

The history behind this group caught my intrest also. They started off as a young popular group in Cuba. Because of the Cold War conflict, and Fidel Castro's tyranny and position, the US prohibited them from playing in the US ever again. This group was to be forgotten by the americans for decades, until an american music producer heard their recordings and fell in love with them. These once young men had turned into old men. He vowed to bring them all together again and record them. He found them one by one, but they thought he was crazy because they haven't song in years.

To await the day to relive their former glory....powerful. After they accomplished this impressive task of ressurection, many of the original group members passed away. They left behind an album rich of beautiful music.