The second release from Colon, Cosa Nuestra provided more evidence of the force Willie and Hector Lavoe were about to sweep the world with. Long live Salsa music!

Too smart? Too clever? Too bad. Listen with attention. Intelligence in music is a good thing.

Follow the voice and you will find Sy Smith in all kinds of places. See Sy on stage blending voice with horn on tour with trumpeter Chris Botti. See Sy on stage covering for the missed notes of America's Idols. See Sy on stage backing Michelle Ndege Ocello's machine gun funk. See Sy on stage flowing over conga drums at a Go Go in her native DC. See Sy everywhere. The epitome of the bi-coastal Independent, Sy’s elastic vocals have smoothed out the rough edges for a range of acts from Whitney Houston to Raheem DeVaughn to Little Benny to Rich Medina. For such a ubiquitous performer, the Los Angeles based Sy has remained somewhat of a mystery. Her ability to move in and out of varying musical landscapes without a hint of difficulty has begged the question… continue

Equal parts musician and inventor, Diddley brought a subversive yet full blown verbosity to the world of creation. As evidence we submit to you this list of inventions: The name “Bo Diddley,” the popularization of the “tremolo” effect in guitar playing, the “Big B” square body guitar, the three strokes/rest/two strokes syncopated beat (i.e. the Rock and Roll beat), the notion that women guitarists could riff with the big boys, and, for that matter, Rock and Roll. Even the concept of Battle Rap may have ostensibly flowed from the mind of Bo.

The man was, quite simply, an innovator in every sense of the word. As is customary here at Nat Creole, we try to ensure that no tree falls silently in the woods. Bo Diddley was one of the biggest trees in the forest of 20th century music. His passing shall not go without the sound of horns. Let the trumpets blare. continue