Rhythms del Mundo is a nonprofit collaborative album, which fuses an all-star cast of Cuban musicians including Ibrahim Ferrer

Ibrahim Ferrer

Ibrahim Ferrer was a popular Afro-Cuban singer and musician in Cuba. He performed with many musical groups including the Conjunto Sorpresa, Orquesta Chepin-Choven and Afro-Cuban All Stars...

 and Omara Portuondo

Omara Portuondo

Omara Portuondo Peláez is a Cuban singer and dancer whose career has spanned over half a century. She was one of the original members of the Cuarteto d'Aida, and has performed with Ignacio Piñeiro, Orquesta Anacaona, Orquesta Aragón, Nat King Cole, Adalberto Álvarez, Los Van Van, the Buena Vista...

 of the Buena Vista Social Club

Buena Vista Social Club

The Buena Vista Social Club was a members club in Havana, Cuba that held dances and musical activities, becoming a popular location for musicians to meet and play during the 1940s...

 with tracks from US, UK and Irish artists such as Dido

Dido (singer)

Dido Florian Cloud de Bounevialle O'Malley Armstrong , known as Dido, is an English singer-songwriter.Dido shot to worldwide success with her debut album, No Angel...

, Arctic Monkeys

Arctic Monkeys

Arctic Monkeys are an English indie rock band. Formed in 2002 in High Green, a suburb of Sheffield, the band currently consists of Alex Turner , Jamie Cook , Nick O'Malley and Matt Helders...

, U2

U2

U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...

, Coldplay

Coldplay

Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...

, Sting, Jack Johnson

Jack Johnson (musician)

Jack Johnson was born May 18, 1975 is an American folk rock singer-songwriter, surfer and musician known for his work in the soft rock and acoustic genres. In 2001, he achieved commercial success after the release of his debut album, Brushfire Fairytales. He has since released four more albums, a...

, Maroon 5

Maroon 5

Maroon 5 is an American pop rock band from Los Angeles, California. While they were in high school, lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Adam Levine, keyboardist Jesse Carmichael, bass guitarist Mickey Madden, and drummer Ryan Dusick formed a garage band called Kara's Flowers and released one album...

, Franz Ferdinand

Franz Ferdinand (band)

Franz Ferdinand are a Scottish post-punk revival band formed in Glasgow in 2002. The band is composed of Alex Kapranos , Bob Hardy , Nick McCarthy , and Paul Thomson .The band first experienced chart success when their second single, "Take Me Out", reached #3 in...

, Kaiser Chiefs

Kaiser Chiefs

Kaiser Chiefs are an English indie rock band from Leeds who formed in 1996. They were named after the South African football club Kaizer Chiefs....

 and others. A follow-up album, Rhythms del Mundo Classics

Rhythms del Mundo Classics

Rhythms del Mundo Classics is the follow-up album to the internationally successful album Rhythms del Mundo, featuring artists like The Killers, Amy Winehouse, Keane, Jack Johnson, The Rolling Stones, KT Tunstall and Rodrigo y Gabriela.-Charity:...

, was released in 2009.

Background

Kenny Young

Kenny Young

Kenny Young is an American songwriter who has been an active writer, artist, and producer from 1963 to the present. His most famous song was "Under the Boardwalk," co-written with Arthur Resnick and recorded by The Drifters in 1964 and by The Rolling Stones, The Beach Boys, and many other artists;...

, Founder and Trustee of APE, explains how the project emerged: "The project was sparked off by the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami. The idea came in to do a project with The Buena Vista Social Club

Buena Vista Social Club

The Buena Vista Social Club was a members club in Havana, Cuba that held dances and musical activities, becoming a popular location for musicians to meet and play during the 1940s...

 to fuse their Latin sounds with Western artists and their familiar popular songs. The project evolved when more environmental disasters struck—the Asian Earthquakes and Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...

. But the big picture was climate change. You can call these natural disasters but after all the research and scientific data, we know that we're at least partly to blame for some of these disasters. Global warming is now in the news daily. If we don't act in the time frame our experts give us, our grandchildren will curse us eternally."

Thom Yorke

Thom Yorke

Thomas "Thom" Edward Yorke is an English musician who is the lead vocalist and principal songwriter for Radiohead. He mainly plays guitar and piano, but he has also played drums and bass guitar...

 comments, "We need a law, we need to have the Government put climate change in its place. If you leave industry to sort it out on a voluntary basis that's never going to happen. So everybody, if they've got any concerns about climate change, has to register that concern with their Government officials because it's the only way to go."

Charity

Album proceeds benefits the environmental nonprofit organization Artists Project Earth, which raises awareness and funds for climate change projects and for disaster relief efforts . The artists on this album fully support the record as a commitment to the music and to the cause that it endorses.

Music

The main recording sessions took place in Havana

Havana

Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...

 at Abdala Studios from April 2005 to June 2006 and mixed at Lazy Moon Studios (UK). While the majority of the vocals remain the same, the musicians of the Buena Vista Social Club

Buena Vista Social Club

The Buena Vista Social Club was a members club in Havana, Cuba that held dances and musical activities, becoming a popular location for musicians to meet and play during the 1940s...

 reworked the original orchestration from each song and created something utterly unique, casting their trademark mastery over each track. Rhythms Del Mundo includes restructured tracks such as "Clocks" by Coldplay

Coldplay

Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...

, "Better Together" by Jack Johnson

Jack Johnson (musician)

Jack Johnson was born May 18, 1975 is an American folk rock singer-songwriter, surfer and musician known for his work in the soft rock and acoustic genres. In 2001, he achieved commercial success after the release of his debut album, Brushfire Fairytales. He has since released four more albums, a...

, "She Will Be Loved" by Maroon 5

Maroon 5

Maroon 5 is an American pop rock band from Los Angeles, California. While they were in high school, lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Adam Levine, keyboardist Jesse Carmichael, bass guitarist Mickey Madden, and drummer Ryan Dusick formed a garage band called Kara's Flowers and released one album...

, "High and Dry" by Radiohead

Radiohead

Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...

, "Dancing Shoes" by Arctic Monkeys

Arctic Monkeys

Arctic Monkeys are an English indie rock band. Formed in 2002 in High Green, a suburb of Sheffield, the band currently consists of Alex Turner , Jamie Cook , Nick O'Malley and Matt Helders...

 and "Modern Way" by Kaiser Chiefs

Kaiser Chiefs

Kaiser Chiefs are an English indie rock band from Leeds who formed in 1996. They were named after the South African football club Kaizer Chiefs....

, as well as other popular songs.

Rhythms Del Mundo also includes music by famed Cuban singers Omara Portuondo

Omara Portuondo

Omara Portuondo Peláez is a Cuban singer and dancer whose career has spanned over half a century. She was one of the original members of the Cuarteto d'Aida, and has performed with Ignacio Piñeiro, Orquesta Anacaona, Orquesta Aragón, Nat King Cole, Adalberto Álvarez, Los Van Van, the Buena Vista...

 and the last vocal recording of Afro-Cuban bolero singer, Ibrahim Ferrer

Ibrahim Ferrer

Ibrahim Ferrer was a popular Afro-Cuban singer and musician in Cuba. He performed with many musical groups including the Conjunto Sorpresa, Orquesta Chepin-Choven and Afro-Cuban All Stars...

, who died in 2005. The other Cuban musicians from The Buena Vista Social Club

Buena Vista Social Club

The Buena Vista Social Club was a members club in Havana, Cuba that held dances and musical activities, becoming a popular location for musicians to meet and play during the 1940s...

 who perform on this album are as follows: Barbarito Torres

Barbarito Torres

thumb|Barbarito Torres.Bárbaro Alberto Torres Delgado, best known as Barbarito Torres , is a Cuban musician best known for his work with the Afro Cuban All Stars and the Buena Vista Social Club. Torres plays the laúd, a traditional Cuban instrument of the lute family that is most associated with...

, Amadito Valdés

Amadito Valdés

Amadito Valdés is a Cuban percussionist, best known for his work with the Buena Vista Social Club.Valdés studied at the Havana Conservatoire and it was there that he began to develop his improvisational style on the timbales, mixing Afro rhythms in 6/8 time with the Cuban son syncopated rhythms in...

, Virgilio Valdes, Angel Terri Domech, Manuel "Guajiro" Mirabal, Orlando Lopez 'Cachaito' and Demetrio Muniz.
This project is the brainchild and concept of Kenny Young

Kenny Young

Kenny Young is an American songwriter who has been an active writer, artist, and producer from 1963 to the present. His most famous song was "Under the Boardwalk," co-written with Arthur Resnick and recorded by The Drifters in 1964 and by The Rolling Stones, The Beach Boys, and many other artists;...

 and the Berman Brothers. They produced the 16 new original recordings on the CD.

Track listing

1. "Clocks
   Clocks (song)
   "Clocks" is a song by English alternative rock band Coldplay. It was written by all members of the band for their second album, A Rush of Blood to the Head. Built around a piano riff, the song features cryptic lyrics of contrast and urgency themes. Several remixes of the track exist and its riff...
   
   " - Coldplay
   Coldplay
   Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...
   
    - 5:01
2. "Better Together
   Better Together
   Better Together is a song written and performed by Jack Johnson. As well as being the first track on Johnson's album In Between Dreams, which was released in February 2005. "Better Together" was released as a single in January 2006. It charted at #24 in the United Kingdom...
   
   " - Jack Johnson
   Jack Johnson (musician)
   Jack Johnson was born May 18, 1975 is an American folk rock singer-songwriter, surfer and musician known for his work in the soft rock and acoustic genres. In 2001, he achieved commercial success after the release of his debut album, Brushfire Fairytales. He has since released four more albums, a...
   
    - 3:27
3. "Dancing Shoes" - Arctic Monkeys
   Arctic Monkeys
   Arctic Monkeys are an English indie rock band. Formed in 2002 in High Green, a suburb of Sheffield, the band currently consists of Alex Turner , Jamie Cook , Nick O'Malley and Matt Helders...
   
    - 2:29
4. "One Step Too Far
   One Step Too Far
   "One Step Too Far" is a song by Faithless from their third studio album Outrospective. This song peaked at #6 in the UK singles chart, #4 in the US Dance Club Play chart, and #21 in Australia. The song features Rollo's sister Dido on vocals...
   
   " - Dido
   Dido (singer)
   Dido Florian Cloud de Bounevialle O'Malley Armstrong , known as Dido, is an English singer-songwriter.Dido shot to worldwide success with her debut album, No Angel...
   
    & Faithless
   Faithless
   Faithless were a British electronica band consisting of Maxi Jazz, Sister Bliss and Rollo. The group is best known for their dance songs . Faithless recorded six albums. During their career they sold over 15 million records worldwide...
   
    - 3:17
5. "As Time Goes By
   As Time Goes By (song)
   "As Time Goes By" is a song written by Herman Hupfeld in 1931. It became most famous in 1942 when it was sung by the character Sam in the movie Casablanca. The song was voted #2 on the AFI's 100 Years... 100 Songs special, commemorating the best songs in film. It was used as a fanfare for Warner...
   
   " - Ibrahim Ferrer
   Ibrahim Ferrer
   Ibrahim Ferrer was a popular Afro-Cuban singer and musician in Cuba. He performed with many musical groups including the Conjunto Sorpresa, Orquesta Chepin-Choven and Afro-Cuban All Stars...
   
     - 3:10
6. "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
   I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
   "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" is a song by rock band U2. It is the second track from their 1987 album The Joshua Tree and was released as the album's second single in May 1987...
   
   " - U2 & Coco Freeman - 4:53
7. "She Will Be Loved
   She Will Be Loved
   "She Will Be Loved" is the third single from the Californian band Maroon 5's 2002 debut album, Songs About Jane. Released in 2004, the single peaked at #5 in the United States and has sold over 2,178,000 downloads since release; it also peaked at #4 in the United Kingdom. The song reached #1 in...
   
   " - Maroon 5
   Maroon 5
   Maroon 5 is an American pop rock band from Los Angeles, California. While they were in high school, lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Adam Levine, keyboardist Jesse Carmichael, bass guitarist Mickey Madden, and drummer Ryan Dusick formed a garage band called Kara's Flowers and released one album...
   
    - 4:05
8. "Modern Way
   Modern Way
   "Modern Way" is the fourth and final single to be released by Kaiser Chiefs from their debut album Employment on November 7, 2005. It entered the UK Singles Chart at #11. Its lyrics refer to loneliness and regret....
   
   " - Kaiser Chiefs
   Kaiser Chiefs
   Kaiser Chiefs are an English indie rock band from Leeds who formed in 1996. They were named after the South African football club Kaizer Chiefs....
   
    - 3:58
9. "Killing Me Softly
   Killing Me Softly with His Song
   "Killing Me Softly with His Song" is a 1971 song composed by Charles Fox and Norman Gimbel. It has been covered by numerous artists, most notably by Roberta Flack whose version topped the U.S...
   
   " - Omara Portuondo
   Omara Portuondo
   Omara Portuondo Peláez is a Cuban singer and dancer whose career has spanned over half a century. She was one of the original members of the Cuarteto d'Aida, and has performed with Ignacio Piñeiro, Orquesta Anacaona, Orquesta Aragón, Nat King Cole, Adalberto Álvarez, Los Van Van, the Buena Vista...
   
    (cover song of Roberta Flack
   Roberta Flack
   Roberta Flack is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who is notable for jazz, soul, R&B, and folk music...
   
   ) - 4:27
10. "Ai no Corrida
    Ai No Corrida (song)
    "Ai No Corrida" is a song written by Chaz Jankel and Kenny Young, first recorded in 1980 and featuring on Chaz Jankel's self-titled debut album for A&M Records.- Interpretation :...
    
    " - Vania Borges feat. Quincy Jones
    Quincy Jones
    Quincy Delightt Jones, Jr. is an American record producer and musician. A conductor, musical arranger, film composer, television producer, and trumpeter. His career spans five decades in the entertainment industry and a record 79 Grammy Award nominations, 27 Grammys, including a Grammy Legend...
    
     - 4:30
11. "Fragilidad
    Fragile (song)
    "Fragile" is a song composed by English musician Sting from his 1987 album ...Nothing Like the Sun. Released as a single the following year, it placed to number 70 on the UK Singles Chart. Sung additionally in both Spanish and Portuguese under the title Fragilidad, it appeared twice more on his...
    
    " - Sting - 4:17
12. "Don't Know Why
    Don't Know Why
    "Don't Know Why" is a jazz song written by Jesse Harris which originally appeared on his 1999 album, Jesse Harris & the Ferdinandos. It was the second single by Norah Jones from her breakthrough 2002 album Come Away with Me. Although Jones's version only peaked at number thirty on the U.S...
    
    " - Vania Borges (cover song of Norah Jones
    Norah Jones
    Norah Jones is an American singer-songwriter and occasional actress.In 2002, she launched her solo music career with the release of the commercially successful and critically acclaimed album Come Away With Me, which was certified a diamond album in 2002, selling over 20 million copies...
    
    ) - 3:10
13. "Hotel Buena Vista" - Aquila Rose & Idania Valdez - 3:27
14. "The Dark of the Matinee
    The Dark of the Matinée
    "The Dark of the Matinée", also known simply as "Matinée" is a song by Scottish rock band Franz Ferdinand. It was released as the fourth track on the self-titled album Franz Ferdinand on 9 February 2004...
    
    " - Coco Freeman feat. Franz Ferdinand
    Franz Ferdinand (band)
    Franz Ferdinand are a Scottish post-punk revival band formed in Glasgow in 2002. The band is composed of Alex Kapranos , Bob Hardy , Nick McCarthy , and Paul Thomson .The band first experienced chart success when their second single, "Take Me Out", reached #3 in...
    
     - 3:58
15. "High and Dry
    High and Dry
    "High and Dry" is a song by the English alternative rock band Radiohead, and was the first single released from their second album, The Bends . It was as a double A-side with album opener "Planet Telex"...
    
    " - El Lele de Los Van Van
    Los Van Van
    Los Van Van is a Cuban band led by bassist Juan Formell, it is one of the most recognized post-revolution Cuban bands, while Juan Formell has arguably become the most important figure in contemporary Cuban music....
    
     feat. Radiohead
    Radiohead
    Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...
    
     (sample
    Sampling (music)
    In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...
    
    s) - 5:14
16. "Casablanca (As Time Goes By)" - Ibrahim Ferrer
    Ibrahim Ferrer
    Ibrahim Ferrer was a popular Afro-Cuban singer and musician in Cuba. He performed with many musical groups including the Conjunto Sorpresa, Orquesta Chepin-Choven and Afro-Cuban All Stars...
    
     & Omara Portuondo
    Omara Portuondo
    Omara Portuondo Peláez is a Cuban singer and dancer whose career has spanned over half a century. She was one of the original members of the Cuarteto d'Aida, and has performed with Ignacio Piñeiro, Orquesta Anacaona, Orquesta Aragón, Nat King Cole, Adalberto Álvarez, Los Van Van, the Buena Vista...
    
     - 3:10

In Summer 2008, the first follow-up album, Rhythms del Mundo – Cubano Alemán was released in Germany, with some popular German artists recording Cuban remakes of their songs in Cuba and other artists sending their songs to Cuba, waiting for a Cuban remake to rerecord the voice over the now Latin music recorded in Cuba by Cuban artists. The CD was a charity project for a climate protection project, "Artists' Project Earth".

In July 2009, the second follow-up album Rhythms del Mundo Classics

Rhythms del Mundo Classics

Rhythms del Mundo Classics is the follow-up album to the internationally successful album Rhythms del Mundo, featuring artists like The Killers, Amy Winehouse, Keane, Jack Johnson, The Rolling Stones, KT Tunstall and Rodrigo y Gabriela.-Charity:...

was released, featuring artists like The Killers, Amy Winehouse

Amy Winehouse

Amy Jade Winehouse was an English singer-songwriter known for her powerful deep contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres including R&B, soul and jazz. Winehouse's 2003 debut album, Frank, was critically successful in the UK and was nominated for the Mercury Prize...

, Keane, Jack Johnson

Jack Johnson (musician)

Jack Johnson was born May 18, 1975 is an American folk rock singer-songwriter, surfer and musician known for his work in the soft rock and acoustic genres. In 2001, he achieved commercial success after the release of his debut album, Brushfire Fairytales. He has since released four more albums, a...

, The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones

The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...

, KT Tunstall

KT Tunstall

Kate Victoria "KT" Tunstall is a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist from St Andrews, Scotland. She broke into the public eye with a 2004 live solo performance of her song "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" on Later... with Jools Holland...

 and others.

Reception

AMG rates Rhythms del Mundo: Cuba with 4.5 out of 5 stars and goes on to praise the flawless musicianship, the inspired arrangements and also the timeless quality of some of the tracks.

Chart performance

Chart (2006)/(2007)	Peak position
Belgium (Flanders) Albums Chart Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts...	22
Belgium (Wallonia) Albums Chart Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts...	94
French Albums Chart Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry...	59
Mexican Albums Chart	34
Swiss Albums Chart Swiss Music Charts The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75...	11
U.S. Billboard Billboard (magazine) Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis... Top World Albums	74

Year-end

End of year chart (2007)	Position
German Albums Chart	50

External links

• http://www.apeuk.org/music.htm
• http://www.rhythmsdelmundo.com
• http://www.myspace.com/rhythmsdelmundo