Felix Cabrera - For Green

Album: For Green
Size: 101,2 MB
Time: 43:47
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2004
Styles: Blues, harmonica blues, Latin
Art: Full

1. Josephine (2:47)
2. Cold, Cold (6:28)
3. Self Argument In D Minor (4:45)
4. Animalism (5:15)
5. Un Moco Loco (4:20)
6. I Keep Forgettin' (5:08)
7. Please Crawl Out Your Window (3:54)
8. For Green (6:08)
9. She Put Him On A Diet (4:59)

Felix Cabrera releases his 4th recording titled “For Green” offering a mixture of blues with R&B, rock and Latin grooves. The CD contains nine tracks – seven original songs plus one Bob Dylan track, “Please Crawl Out Your Window”; and one Leiber/Stoller track, “I Keep Forgettin'”. Most of the many dozens of blues albums released every year aren’t worth the powder to blow them up. Blues is simple, traditional music that rewards personal expression but rarely gets any.

Cuban-born harmonica ace Felix Cabrera may be under the spell of Paul Butterfield (and that’s not all bad), but his feeling for the music is all the way there. The Cuban touches are subtle — a bass part here, a touch of clave and congas there — because Cabrera knows that a little goes a long way in the blues. With his collaborator of 30 years, guitarist Arthur Neilson, Cabrera created a modest treasure; a snappy, unpretentious blues record with a lot of grit, grace and charm. /Joel Selvin

(For personnel details, see artwork included.)

For Green mc
For Green gofile

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Felix Cabrera Band With Jimmy Vivino - Live At The Turning Point

Album: Live At The Turning Point
Size: 153,2 MB
Time: 66:24
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2009
Styles: Blues, harmonica blues
Art: Front, back

1. I Didn't Know (6:37)
2. Animalism (6:12)
3. Lovin' Cup (6:26)
4. Kid At Heart (4:19)
5. Too Young To Die (5:19)
6. Listen Here (10:07)
7. Birds Nest On The Ground (8:46)
8. Self Argument In D Minor (5:44)
9. Maggie's Farm (7:26)
10. Goin' Down Slow (5:21)

Cuban-born vocalist/harmonicist Felix Cabrera and American guitarist/vocalist Jimmy Vivino are far from a combination of oil and water. Instead they blend well together in a cool mix that is sophisticated, soulful, and very mindful of the tradition of electric Chicago blues. Vivino is a talented player on his instrument, his licks spare but singeing, while vocally he's quite reminiscent of Johnny Winter. Cabrera comes out of the instrumental tradition of Big Walter Horton, Magic Sam, and Little Sonny, with a piercing yet clearly defined sound, while his silky-smooth voice can be favorably compared to Sugar Blue.

Together they tear into a single set of enjoyable urban blues as recorded at the Turning Point in Piermont, NY, splitting up singing duties on a very interesting set of covers, classic blues standards, and some originals. One of the more heads-up choices is a ten-minute instrumental take of the Eddie Harris soul-jazz evergreen "Listen Here," as Cabrera's harmonica leads the way on this ultimate organ-fired Chi-Town street strutter. Bob Dylan's "Maggie's Farm" is also a good pick, as both Vivino and Cabrera add humorous vocal jive, musical refrains from the Champs' hit "Tequila," and even hip licks from "Manteca" to the roots rockin' song - a sure hit.

A classic blues like the steady-rolling 12-bar Howlin' Wolf tune "I Didn't Know," sung by Vivino, is a great warmup number for the band, while Paul Butterfield's "Lovin' Cup" is given an authentic treatment by Cabrera in a nonchalant, self-effaced statement, while the Sonny Boy Williamson perennial "Too Young to Die" is a blues shuffle with Vivino pleading his case to his maker. One of the lesser-known writers in the blues is Monk Higgins, whose slow-walking "Birds Nest on the Ground" might imply disaster, but instead Vivino admits the luck of the draw in finding a compatible woman, but then puts her down.

Cabrera contributes "Animalism" in a funky organ groove courtesy of Eddie Bishai, the laconic "Self Argument in D Minor," and an upbeat Texas-style swinger, "Kid at Heart," all featuring his best work on the harmonica. James Oden's "Goin' Down Slow" gives Cabrera one last chance to showcase his vibrato-infused harp sound, and he more than delivers the goods. This is a very good recording, bordering on great if only it was a double-CD set, which would then give listeners a better indication of how extraordinary the compatible combination of Cabrera and Vivino truly is. Hopefully a follow-up, or second volume, is in order. /Michael G. Nastos, AllMusic

(For personnel details, see artwork included.)

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Live At The Turning Point gofile

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Felix Cabrera - Pressure Cooker

Size:354 MB
Time: 59:24
File: Flac
Released: 2007
Styles: Blues
Art: Front

1. Lovin' Cup (5:45)
2. Sam King Kong (4:05)
3. Laundromat Blues (5:37)
4. Listen Here (5:30)
5. If I Dont have you (4:07)
6. Kid at Heart (4:01)
7. She told me a lie (7:04)
8. Too much of nothing (4:22)
9. Raskolnikov (4:41)
10. Lost and Found (I'm in the..) (4:40)
11. El Baile del Buey Cansao (3:33)
12. Sweaters (5:53)

Felix Cabrera was born in La Habana, Cuba. FelixHe listened to music on the radio since he was 5 -- not only his native music but also Bill Haley and Nat King Cole. His musical activity at that time was beating conga patterns on benches with school friends... Then off to the U.S. and Miami. Felix continued his musical education by listening to the radio. The first R&B record he heard was "Hit the Road, Jack". He started singing a bit with records and did a lot of dancing in after school hops (albeit alone). Felix then moved from Miami to Union City, New Jersey. He continued listening to the radio and sang along with Levi Stubbs and Eric Burdon, heard Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone", was caught by the sound and purchased his first harmonica. He saw the legendary Paul Butterfield and Mike Bloomfield live and was hooked. He purchased more harmonicas and played along with recordings. Felix saw BB King, Albert King, Otis Rush, James Cotton and Muddy Waters and then Cannonball Adderley, Charles Lloyd and Chico Hamilton and started liking jazz. He played with various bands until, in 1974, he and Arthur Neilson formed the "A Train Blues Band", one of the first Chicago styled Blues bands in the New York metropolitan area. The band backed up and recorded with Victoria Spivey and North Carolina bluesman Tarheel Slim besides doing their own gigs. Felix also played duets with Honey Boy Edwards. Blues Unlimited writer Andre Hobus saw Cabrera perform at Max's Kansas City and wrote about his "fluent harp techniques". In the next few years Felix experimented with the diatonic harmonica in Cuban music and co-led The Internationals, mixing blues and classical overtones. They opened shows for Big Joe Turner and James Cotton. n 1984 he formed Felix and the Havanas, recording "NEXT!!", Felixwhich was released by the Skyranch record label in France. The opening gig for this aggregation was for James Brown at the Lone Star Café in New York City. The band opened for the Godfather of Soul another six times. They also opened many times for Buddy Guy and Jr. Wells, Bobby Blue Bland, Jr. Walker, Wilson Pickett, Dr. John, Lonnie Mack, Marcia Ball and others.Felix Felix was the inaugural act at Manny's Car Wash, the renowned New York Blues Club and he performed on NPR's program Blues Stage, hosted by Ruth Brown. In the late 90's, Mr. Cabrera joined Jimmy Vivino and the Black Italians. They became a Thursday night fixture at the Manhattan music club, Downtime. Felix released his second CD, "Cubops Cublues" backed up by Vivino and company. Vivino and some of the Black Italians became the Max Weinberg 7 on the Conan O'Brien show on NBC and more recently became the Basic Cable Band on Conan's Turner Broadcasting show where Felix had made at least one guest appearance. Felix has also been on stage in Mark Naftaliln's Marin County Blues Festival where he performed with Naftalin, Jimmy Vivino and the late great Butterfield Blues Band drummer Billy Davenport. It was in Marin Country that Felix re-discovered the rage Butterfield favorite "East West". FelixHis next recordings "Pressure Cooker" (2001), "For Green" (2004) and "Felix Cabrera and Jimmy Vivino-Live at The Turning Point" (2009), have gotten 4 stars in Downbeat Magazine, the venerable jazz journal. The San Francisco Chronicle called "For Green" a "modest treasure". Since 2001, Felix has performed numerous times with Vivino, backed up Marty Balin and fronted The Ed Palermo Big Band in a program of Paul Butterfield/Mike Bloomfield music. Beginning in the Fall of 2008, The Black Italians, who had not performed together in almost 12 years, started playing again and appeared at such venues as the Cutting Room and the Turning Point Café. They followed up in 2012 by recording "Jimmy Vivino and The Black Italians-13 Live" at Levon Helm's Ramble in Woodstock, NY, featuring Felix on the tunes "Animalism" and "Maggie's Farm". They went on to perform on the Conan TV show and headlined the 2014 King Biscuit Blues Festival in Helena, Arkansas. Felix and Jimmy then headlined with the Ed Palermo Big Band at New York City's Blues & Barbecue Festival in 2015.

Pressure Cooker FLAC

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Felix Cabrera - Pressure Cooker

Size: 354 MB
Time: 59:24
File: Flac
Released: 2007
Styles: Blues
Art: Front

1. Lovin' Cup (5:45)
2. Sam King Kong (4:05)
3. Laundromat Blues (5:37)
4. Listen Here (5:30)
5. If I Dont have you (4:07)
6. Kid at Heart (4:01)
7. She told me a lie (7:04)
8. Too much of nothing (4:22)
9. Raskolnikov (4:41)
10. Lost and Found (I'm in the..) (4:40)
11. El Baile del Buey Cansao (3:33)
12. Sweaters (5:53)

Felix Cabrera can shout the blues and blow a mean harp. But the Cuban-born bandleader also has a knack for rolling with the punches. The day before this Friday night gig, Phil Butler, Cabrera’s bass player for the past 11 years, was injured in a car accident. Then Guitar ace Jimmy Vivino, a frequent and popular addition to the band, was called out of town with Conan O’Brien. But Cabrera was undeterred. He contacted bassist Ritt Henn, who played in his band twenty years ago and has filled in before. Fiery blues guitarist Jason Green, one of several local players who have rotated through Cabrera’s band, answered the call too. With longtime drummer Bill Schroeder and keyboardist Eddy Bishai, the subs rocked this small basement club and solidly showcased Cabrera’s Latin blues style. The self-taught Cabrera, who left Cuba as a child and came to New York by way of Miami and Union City, NJ, calls Paul Butterfield his first influence. He saw the original Butterfield Blues Band at a New York City club in 1966 and almost always starts his show with their songs. “Driftin’ and Driftin’” featured Cabrera’s emotional vocals, crying guitar from Green and jazzy organ from Bishai. The band likes to stretch out and jam, and as they took turns riding the groove, the warm-up caught fire. The intensity on the bandstand continued to build until Cabrera took it down with a small hand gesture. Even with little or no rehearsal, he seemed to be in complete control.

Pressure Cooker FLAC

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