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!
Truly phenomenal! As a guitarist I appreciate the skill, the passion and intensity delivered from every song. The album really resonates with me. Time is impeccable, even throughout the fast picado the groove remains, the control is perfect and it sounds so relaxed and effortless. I'm in awe by the colour he brings with the classy jazz voicings and modal shifts. Magnificent and inspiring!
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.
Flamenco is not something I'm usually listening to, but whenever I'm exposed to really good examples I'm entertained and impressed. I'm a fan of any kind of virtuoso guitar playing and this is top notch. I don't know much about it but it seemed a little bit more out on an experimental limb in some of the pieces, which I liked a lot.
Cool to hear some classical guitar wizardry on the list, I don't play even a tenth as well as Lucia but I'm still psyched to hear the instrument represented in its own light. This LP does open up a thorny can of worms, though, as it broaches on modern classical – would contemporary arrangements and other symphonic pieces be up for inclusion here? The list has always seemed more focused on music aimed toward popular culture. It's an interesting discussion to have, the musicianship shown here is insane at the end of the day and does stand on its own two feet. Kinda straddles the line between the two worlds, thanks for adding an LP that first of all rocks and second made me think deeply about what the 1001 is about for the first time in a while.
This is a pleasant change and I really enjoyed this. The musicianship is amazing. I can't imagine how good you'd need to be to play like this.
It's more classical than popular but I don't care. We need more of this on the chart.
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
While the guitar work on this album is fantastic and may have been revolutionary for flamenco, I can’t find myself loving it. It’s definitely good. It’s easy to listen to and works nicely in the background, but maybe my knowledge of flamenco guitar work is lacking to truly understand the praise this album receives. 6.5/10
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