There are several bazillion websites devoted
to Cuba and Cuban music. This page is a
selective sampling of pages which either have
good, substantive content, or that link to other sites
which may be of interest. My artist pages
have links related to individual musicians or groups
which are not included here. For example, if
you were looking for pages on Perez Prado,
look at the links on the bottom of my Perez Prado discography.

I have also compiled short lists of record labels
and music distributors which specialize in Cuban music.
I avoided sites that I find overly-commercialized,
garish, or difficult to navigate, as well as most
on-line music sales pages. (Buy from your local record store!)

Any comments or suggestions for new links are welcome.

• Afro Cuba Web is a large, well-organized site which focuses heavily on Cuban music, but also questions of racial and cultural identity. In addition to a slew of resources and news, the site also provides links to several lively discussion groups.

• Music of Puerto Rico is well-written, well-organized and packed with hundreds of artist profiles. Kinda gives short shrift to the jibaro music that I like, but as a source of information on PR salsa, jazz and pop, this site is pure gold.

• Tito's Page has an incredible links list to dozens of sites, including artist profiles, a dictionary/glossary and record recommendations. The only drag about this cool Danish site is that he uses a server (Tripod) with scripts which take over your navigation at the drop of a hat in order to try and "market" things. (Using the Frame version helps avoid this) If you can get past that, though, this site is well worth checking out.

• Jesus del Valle's guide to the EGREM catalog is similar to my own profiles of the Tumbao and Caney labels, and a very good links section. (In English and Spanish.)

• salsa2salsa is a fine page, built around a weekly Internet webcast with a wide range of styles, and also includes a nice links section. (In English.)

• Salsa SF features a comprehensive listing of salsa events in the San Francisco Bay Area, including club listings, record reviews and information on local dance classes. An impressive resource.

• Salsa Roots is a great salsa enthusiast's site, with some historical information, descriptions of various Latin American dances, artist info and a healthy links page of its own... (En ingles.)

• Plaza Cuba is an arts/cultural exchange group that organizes travel groups to the island, including many group tours that are linked to cultural events they help organize. Their website has lots of practical information about how to travel to and within Cuba.

• Boogalu is another part of the San Francisco Cuban connection... Although this (rather handsome) site takes its name from the swinging, bouncy dance style of the 1960s, the artists it profiles seem to tend more towards the acoustic end of the spectrrum. Nonetheless, worth checking out!

• Hot Salsa is a wide-ranging site which includes a nice glossary of terms, several artist profiles and features. Unfortunately there seem to be a lot of commercial links, too, such as banner ads, etc., and internal navigational glitches (as of this writing...) Still, it's a pretty cool site... well worth checking out, especially for folks who would like to find out about some artists who are more modern than the ones I feature in Slipcue.

• Vinyl Safari profiles several Cuban artists, such as Noro Morales, Tito Puente and Perez Prado. The site has a kitschy, loungey slant, and also has commercial aspects, but it's still pretty cool. Good layout and good information.

• Escape Artist has some weird peripheral action about offshore investment strategies (I don't even want to know...!) but also links to several good pages on various Cuban musicians, from Ernesto Lecuona and Cachao to Gloria Estefan. Worth checking out

• Solar De La Timba is a fledgling e-zine (started June, 2003) that features articles on both contemporary and historical musical figures, and a nice, informative editorial tone. I'm looking forward to watching this site grow! (In Spanish and English)

• Mary Overby's Cuba Page looks at many modern Afro-Cuban bands such as Los Munequitos de Matanzas, etc. Fairly light on content (it's mostly pictures of her trip to Cuba), but with all the right names, and links to additional sites, this will definitely point you on the right path.

• Bata Drums Another page about drumming, also with a great links section.

• Likewise, Bembe Records has a drumming "advice column," called Ask Dr. Clave. All that rhythm stuff is over my head, but if you're a drumming freak, I'm sure this will be fun for you!

• Cuba Net is a multilingual cultural/political site which includes some music. The totally awesome glossary of Cuban music and musicians that I found there a year or so ago no longer seems to be posted... but if you poke around, you might find stuff that's similarly interesting... As far as I can tell, their editorial focus is to provide a balanced, both-sides-of-the-divide view of contemporary events in and about Cuba. Of course, this probably means that verybody hates them, but if you're kind of neutral on the whole Castro/anti-Castro thing, this site may be for you.

• Wanna learn how to dance? Salsa Web has a small but growing list of salsa instructors... with the goal of listing them all! If you know of any instructors, feel free to write these folks and add 'em to the list.

• Orisha Net -- A North American page, devoted to the Orisha cult. While the Yoruban Orishas have had a big influence on Cuban music, the site is pretty exclusively devoted to the religious alone, not so much about the music. Bilingual.

• Similarly, The Santeria Music Database has plenty of groovy info, including a massive discography of Santeria-related records. Recommended resource!
  
  
• A-a-a-and... Though it's a little far afield for me (at present!) there is also the world of the tango... Music that is kept alive through enthusuiasts such as the folks at New York Tango... If I get more into the tango scene, I'll be sure to add a few more links!
  
  

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