OPEN POST: Manor Music Monday With The Legendary La Lupe!

Greetings, sloots, and welcome to another edition of Manor Music Monday, today with a sunny visit to "The Pearl of the Antilles," as it was once called, or "El Cocodrilo," which translates to "The Crocodile," since viewed from above, this is the country's shape on a map. I speak of Cuba, of course, from yesteryear to today, where, if its achingly slow rebirth isn't quashed by El Jefe de Covfefe, distinctive music has and will hopefully continue to flourish.

Since my delicious, squeezable hubs is from Cuba, I've long known about the country's culture, food and music, all of which are practically inseparable. And lucky for all of us, DJ Li'l Scratch is bringing home the Cubano tonight at "Mamar Pinga," the Manor's popular after hours bar, club and Lechon Asado eatery. Plus there'll be lots of barn-burning music. Of course. When people think Cuban music, they invariably think of Gloria Estefan. Which is understandable, especially in North America. Yet for many, there is only one Cuban diva who really matters:

Yes, it's La Lupe, the supernova Cuban songstress who blazed a trail all her own - both on stage and off. Will you "get" La Lupe on first listen? Maybe, maybe not. Or think of it this way: a while back, a resident at the Manor noted that she never really understood jazz legend Anita O'Day until he saw a documentary about her - and then she "popped" for her. She got her at last because she saw her performing. I was introduced to La Lupe by my Cuban through her TV performances on the internutz, and I have to admit, I might not have fully appreciated her as a vocalist without actually watching her first. Recently, we saw a fantastic Youtube documentary about her life, which I heartily recommend, especially if you're a La Lupe newbie.

Her rise was swift. At first working as a school teacher, she went against her strict father's wishes by entering and winning a music contest, and in no time at all, found herself performing at Havana's legendary "La Red" club in the late 1950s. There, she earned almost instant international acclaim from its audience, which included the likes of Ernest Hemingway, who praised her intense raw talent, Jean-Paul Satre, who dubbed her "a musical animal," and Tennessee Williams, who claimed she had "the devil in her body." 

Later exiled to Mexico, then New York City, she became the most popular Latin singer in the world throughout the 60s, her massive success fueled by her galvanizing live performances and her increasing catalog of LPs. And, yes, she "broke through." And how. She became the first Latin artist to perform at Carnegie Hall and appeared on major TV shows like "The Tonight Show."

Her 1966 LP, "They Call Me La Lupe," is explosive fun. Her singing - which ricochets from raspy Latin music stylings, to rock 'n' roll, to blinding-fast patter - goes way beyond standard vocal pyrotechnics. In fact, she redefines what it means to communicate with every inch of your body and soul. Oh, and marvel at how she completely devours and reinvents "West Side Story's" "America" ("Amore Ciego"). There's no one like her.

 

Though her career peaked in the early 70s - thereafter, a house fire left her seriously burned and temporarily paralyzed - she continued to perform, then became a Pentecostal preacher and sadly died of a heart attack in 1992. She was only 53. In 2002, 140th Street in the Bronx was renamed La Lupe Way. As to her ongoing legacy, it continues to grow, I think, because, like Judy Garland, she's so uncompromisingly herself, and in a way few performers have been or are. No emotion is too explosive for this legendary diva. Yet the liveliness, even violence, of her vocals is no mere stunt. This was a singer who lived on the edge - then shot right over it. Over twenty years after her death, she still surprises. 

What are you listening to this week? DJ Li'l Scratch wants to know.
Till next time...purr, bitches, purr! 🐾

Photo Credits: Getty Images, Tico/Fania Records/Concord Music