Alonso Brito
Alonso Brito (born 1950) is a Latin, alternative, salsa singer, songwriter born in Havana, Cuba. The Los Angeles Times has compared him to "part Mick Jagger, part Caetano Veloso, and part Desi Arnaz on acid"[1] and as a face for Los Angeles salsa music. During his time in Miami as a socialite he was known to have owned many nightclubs and rubbed shoulders with the likes of Barry Gibb and Donald Fagen.
Alonso Brito | |
---|---|
Born | La Habana, Cuba | 27 April 1949
Genres | Latin |
Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter |
Instruments | Voice |
Years active | 2006–present |
Labels | Condor Entertainment |
Website | www.candorrecords.com/alonsobrito/ |
Members | Alonso Brito Inocente Alvarez Rigoberto Lopez Raul Pineda Luis Eric Gonzalez Juliana Munoz Ariel Moya Fabrizio Gazzola Chris McClure Andy Abad |
Life and music career
Early life
Brito was born in La Havana, Cuba in 1950. At the age of 10, a year after Fidel Castro took power in 1960, Brito was forced to leave due to political and civil unrest.
Moving to Miami at a young age he attended an all-boys Catholic prep school. Somewhat Catholic he still practiced Buddhism as well as Afro-Cuban Santería.
Musical rise
Brito's first instrument was the drum, which he played in psychedelic rock bands.
He fronted hard-working bands such as Watchdog and Beat Poets, dabbling in styles from smooth jazz, reggae, and British pop to a Latin-tinged style dubbed "troparock."
In Miami, he was known as Dennis Britt; an eclectic musician, nightclub manager, and a night time socialite who rubbed shoulders with the likes of Barry Gibb and Donald Fagen. After separating from his wife he became a fixture of the Miami music scene during the '80s and '90s. "The singer spent his life as a bohemian troubadour, playing in bars, working in various bands and writing songs."[2]
As a respected songwriter he moved to Nashville in the 90s to help write songs for Raul Malo and The Mavericks; contributing to the country band's Grammy-award winning playlists writing for their song "Things I Cannot Change".
Alonso Brito moved to Los Angeles in 2006, signed with Candor Entertainment and is currently working on the record Santo Bueno to be released in 2008.
Discography
Album | Year released |
---|---|
Santo EP | 2008 |
Santo Bueno | 2008 |
See also
- Music of Cuba
- Afro-Cuban
- List of Famous Afro-Latinos
References
- "Alonso Brito left Cuba, but it never left him". Los Angeles Times. 10 August 2008. Retrieved 7 October 2008.
- "With 57 years of anonymity leaves Alonso Brito". NewsOK. 28 July 2008. Archived from the original on 8 December 2019. Retrieved 7 October 2008.
External links
- Official website
- Alonso Brito on YouTube
- Alonso Brito at Myspace
- Alonso Brito article NewsOK
- Alonso Brito with Los Angeles Times
- Alonso Brito with The Boston Globe