Delgado Brothers (USA)
Learn To Fly
©Bell Asher Records 2009
The Delgado Brothers have been considered LA's "Best Kept Secret", but they are over that. When major artists such as John Mayall have covered your songs, and your latin flavored music has been placed in movie soundtracks, they're a secret no more.
For the last 30 years the Delgado Brothers have been music makers, collaborators and ordinary citizens; raising children, grieving the loss of parents, marrying & divorcing. All of this life experience may explain the Brothers flare for illuminating many of the every-mans joys, sorrows,triumphs and losses and why their music has long been embraced both locally and globally by a wide spectrum of people undivided by culture, age or socioeconomic status.
Their latest,self released 4th CD, Learn to Fly, is testament to the bands long evolution and scope of musical diversity. Raising a variety of real world concerns from the topical, ‘I Wanna Know (what the fighting's about)’, to the meaningful and brilliantly nuanced, ‘Man without Plan’.
Los Angeles is filled with a brotherhood of world class musicians, studio players and living legends. So when word got out that the Delgado Brothers were in studio recording their latest release, all the brothers needed to do was ask,and a who’s who of musicians responded. Evidence that by the lineup of players on Learn to Fly. Lee Thornburg led and arranged the all star horn section of Paulie Cerra & Arturo Velasco. Ramon Banda of the critically acclaimed latin jazz Banda Brothers played timbales and drums and Tony Banda on bass. Slide guitar great, Dave Melton. Blues singing sensation, Sherry Pruitt and last but not least the legendary Chambers Brothers of classic hit songs ‘Time’ & ‘People get ready’ fame.
Hardworking and heartfelt, each and every song represents asoaring musical vignette expressing a dynamism of musicianship, humanity, & soul.
When asked what propels and inspires the lyric writing, singer, drummer, brother Steve explains, “If you don’t think about the future, be it the environment, your family, your marriage or your job, later on down the road, you’re gonna be sorry. You’ve got to do the work”.
Always original and intensely prepared these journeyman musicians fully infuse all of their song crafting talent with a real world sense of urgency and an authentic emotional aspect that rings true with intelligence and depth.
Tug on the Delgado Brothers musical roots and you’ll find big brother Bob’s bass playing days tied into the East Los Angeles’ band, the Exotics circa 1960’s. Yet another brother Eddie played with the Ambertones during the same period.
For years the Delgado Brothers band played venues, clubs and special events throughout Los Angeles and the San Gabriel Valley. In 1987, they released their first album on the Hightone label, with the same producers, Dennis Walker & Bruce Bromberg responsible for Robert Cray’s hit making success.
After selling 25,000 units worldwide, Hightone dropped the Delgado Brothers. “ What that experience taught us is that we had to stay true to our artistic convictions and vision,” says guitar playing brother Joey.
In the mid 1990’s, the band stalled out and the group disbanded. Credit long time Delgado Brother friend and advocate, harp player, DJ, recording artist and producer John “Juke” Logan for reuniting the brothers and releasing the Delgado Brothers’ second album, Let’s Get Back on Mocombo Records in 1997. Considered their most blues centered must-have release by blues aficionados, this album was well reviewed and features a Delgado Brothers perennial signature song, ‘Church of El Monte’.
“The great thing that happened with Let’s Get Back is that John Mayall covered two of our songs, ‘If I don’t get home’, and ‘Something about my baby’, on his album ‘Along for the Ride’ in 2001,” states Joey.
Royalties from the sale of those two songs financed the release of their third CD, A Brothers Dream, on the brother owned Bell Asher Records in 2003. A milestone release foretelling of a band who has really come into their own by staying true to their musical visions and refusing to bow to corporate genrefication.
From the shadows of their genre defying brand to the forefront of musical Americana, the Delgado Brothers storytelling and musical focus is one fueled by passion, courage and a heartfelt love of humanity.
Unrestricted by the business end of the music industry, the Delgado Brothers are free to write,sing and produce original content music branded only by their uniqueness of musical integrity and independence.
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