Zaccai Curtis: 'Cubop Lives!' on JazzWax
The first person to give me a heads up about Zaccai Curtis's new album Cubop Lives! was Harry Sepulveda. Harry used to manage Record Mart, the astonishing Latin music store in the New York subway near the Times Square Shuttle. Not only did the store carry an enormous collection of Latin albums dating back to the early 1950s, including rare 45s, but also lots of great jazz.
Over the years, Harry and I became friends, and he routinely calls to hip me to great upcoming Latin releases. Or he sends them along by mail. I always take Harry's recommendations seriously. This one arrived weeks ago. Then came Lydia Liebman Promotions' package that included the CD.
If you buy one album this year, make it this one. Trust me. It would be easy to say that Zaccai was influenced by Bud Powell, but that would be selling him short. Zaccai has multiple influences from a range of great jazz and Latin keyboardists, and he has distilled them all to create his own elegant style. On Cubop Lives!, Zaccai puts a Latin spin on 17 tracks that are enormously diversified. His technique is extraordinary, and his taste is exceptional.
