Jamie Dubberly - La Clave Del Gumbo

The idea for this album came through pure happenstance . Orquesta Dharma was playing a concert at CSU Stanislaus (where I am on faculty), in Turlock, Ca. and also on the program was a student New Orleans style brass band that I was directing. I wanted to write something that combined the 2 groups as a finale to the concert, and arranged my original "Soul Provider', which begins as a 2nd line New Orleans tune, and ended as a Cuban, gospel-bluesy sounding cha-cha-cha. The result was something pretty special, I thought, and got me thinking about how much these two have in common, and the idea behind this album was born! Since the Cuban clave rhythm was at the heart of the very beginnings of jazz, and to this day permeates the sound of modern New Orleans brass bands, it seemed like an exciting and natural fit to combine them. This album is the result of exploring the relationships between these types of music. Mambo, salsa, cha cha cha, and even cumbia (brass band style) are "mashed up" with New Orleans 2nd line brass band grooves, funk, and soul/gospel influences. We recorded as much as possible of this music live with everyone in the studio at the same time, with a minimum of overdubs ( some were necessary because the sheer size of a latin jazz group and a brass band together isn't very practical to record!), to try and capture the energy that exists both in a 2nd line street party in New Orleans and a latin jazz or salsa descarga (jam session). The result, I believe, is a vibrant set of music that showcases some amazing musicians that I am so honored and happy to be able to work with on this . We sincerely hope you enjoy- Pa Gozar! -JD.