Almoraima is a studio album by Paco de Lucía.
When Paco de Lucía made the groundbreaking Almoraima, he was just 28 years old. Already established as a prodigious talent, he used to opportunity to expand the possibilities of the flamenco music he loved so much. It wasn't so much the addition of bass and congas (he'd employed them before) as his entire rethinking of what constituted flamenco. The title cut, which opened the album, emphasized the Moorish influence, not only in the presence of the lute-like oud, but in its melody, which borrows from Arab maqams, or modes. "Rio Ancho" transports the rhumba rhythm to Brazil, melding it to a feel taken from bossa nova, which makes it all the more sinuous and sensual. More revolutionary is "Cobre," which virtually demolishes the flamenco form of sevillanas and rebuilds it in de Lucía's vision, giving it far more gravity. He never uses the record as a vehicle for his huge technical ability; instead, he focuses on serving the music, whether that's on the sad "Llanos de Real" or using a choir on "Perla de Cadiz" (which is dedicated to the singer of that name). This remains a landmark recording, not only in de Lucía's career, but in the annals of flamenco.
I would normally say an album full of acoustic instrumental guitar songs is too much, even being a guitar player myself, but this album is full of unbelievable virtuoso. Reading the wiki page I understand this is a groundbreaking flamenco album and they are not kidding. Great entry!
A wonderful addition – thanks, recommender. The world needs more flamenco – nuevo, viejo or otherwise. Virtuosity may be apparent in even unfamiliar art forms and it's utterly obviously here, with such fierce precision. One's always found it odd how formal and structure Latin musics can seem (tango being the other glaring example). Belongs on list proper – many options to replace but will seem out of place for genre and geographical reasons (similar to South Asian and various West African artists) for its traditionalist depths, for commitment to variations within long-established (and justifiably so) contexts.
While a fun listen and a good primer into classical guitar and Latin Jazz, Paco's technique is on full display yet the album feels slow and repetitive.
3.5/5
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