About Us
Orchestra Mambo International
¡Apúntalo! — Our Story
Orchestra Mambo International are an eminently groovy Latin big-band, based in the UK and featuring a multi-generational raft of global musicians from the old quarters of Latin music – Havana, Caracas and Bogotá – including Venezuelan 72-year-old lead-singer Carlos “Pachanga” Peña and driven by two unlikely lads from Yorkshire, in the north of England, Jonny Enright and Lubi Jovanovic.
Grouped in 2022 by Enright, a traditional northern brass-band alumni turned songwriter/salsero and Jovanovic, Latin DJ, mentor, promoter and salsa encyclopaedia, Orchestra Mambo International’s debut album ¡Apuntalo! is an impeccable set list of good-time, New Yorican era (1970s) mambo, salsa and Afro-Cuban jazz gems featuring a guest appearance from UK flautist Chip Wickham and Cuban singer Claritzel Miyares. The group will take the show on the road through the shires of England and beyond on a 13-date tour from September through December.
Afro-Cuban, Afro-Latin, pachanga, guaracha, son montuno, big band salsa – whatever you want to call it, however you want to frame or dissect it – this is deftly played, flagrantly hot-stepping, block-rocking, and seriously swinging Puerto Rican-touched Latin music, with plenty of Tito Puente-inspired timbales and mambo shake. It’s dripping with a kind of groove-based, Latin authenticity that the likes of UK jazz outfit Ezra Collective have been impressing upon its audiences in recent years.
From the delicious psychedelic artwork, reminiscent of a Fania All Stars vinyl sleeve, to the no-nonsense good-time lyrical sway, the essence of the record is perfectly summed up when Carlos “Pachanga” Peña takes it to the bridge on Llegò mi gente ya (my people have already arrived).
“We’re here for real, we come to vibe”
Proudly derivative of the golden era of Latin music that shook up New York, when Puerto Ricans, Cubans and the Latin diaspora amplified (and stomped on) the streets of Spanish Harlem and The Bronx, the birthplace of salsa, the origins of Orchestra Mambo International are curious and go back to numerous trips on the A650 road between Shipley and Bradford in West Yorkshire, the respective homes of Jonny & Lubi.
Lubi & Jonny
Jonny Enright, trombonist and co-songwriter, began blowing horns growing up in Halifax where he would perform in carpet factories with local brass bands, the kind of bands we saw competing on film Brassed Off. He attended London’s Royal College of Music and from there began a life of Latin music, and he has played with luminaries like Joe ‘boogaloo’ Bataan and Jack Costanzo, his own band Grupo X, as well as working with household names like Bootsy Collins and Peggy Seeger. He met Lubi Jovanovic in the early 1990s when Lubi was already DJing Latin music, going deeper and richer than what was coming out of the radios and clubs at the time. He has been performing and heating up Latin music in the UK over 5 decades and his dedication to Latin music led him to working as a consultant for Fania Records and now continues working with aspiring Latin music musicians, in a mentoring capacity, in the north of England of which Gustavo Andrade (sax), Víctor Estévez (trumpet) and Olivia Cuttill (trumpet), all young members of the orchestra, have benefitted from.
“Having “el veterano”, Venezuelan singer Carlos “Pachanga” Peña work and perform alongside the youthful energy and enthusiasm, and everyone working together in unison, that’s what makes this band special to me and Jonny” Lubi Jovanovic
Orchestra Mambo International was formed in autumn 2022 by Jonny & Lubi, initially for a one-off show and after a few more gigs, the rest is history. And history, includes performing a belting show at last year’s Glastonbury Festival in front of 3000+ audience which came after a session on BBC 6 Music thanks to Cerys Matthews.
¡Apúntalo! is a catchphrase Carlos “Pachanga” Peña uses in songs during live shows, and it captures the spirit of the record and live show perfectly “get involved, lock into the groove, and make this moment yours”. Whilst the orchestra includes a coro (chorus) Carlos is the leading vocal light on the album. He is a Venezuelan singer, bandleader and composer and one of his country’s great salseros, who has built an international career from early days in Caracas with leading orchestras to touring worldwide as corista with the legendary Oscar D’León. He has performed in more than 60 countries at festivals including Montreal Jazz Festival, WOMAD, Canterbury and Glastonbury, led projects such as London’s cult band Ska Cubano, and recorded with leading salsa and Latin jazz bands including Grupo X and La Clave.
His charismatic presence is integral to the vibe of the band; he’s rhythmically sharp with his highly inventive sonero chops, rooted deeply in salsa tradition, and delivers beautiful verses and call‑and‑response coro/pregón improvisations.
Olufina is the lead single and is an irrepressible Afro-Cuban mambo, fired by authentic batá drums, punchy call-and-response vocals from Carlos and the full band hitting on all cylinders, with standout horn, vibraphone, and percussion solos built for the dancefloor. The title is a devotional name for Changó, Yoruba orisha of thunder and fire. The track delivers exactly that energy: raw and joyful.
Guest appearances include jazz flute maestro Chip Wickham (Gondwana Records) on Flauta Pa’ Ti, Cuban singer Claritzel Miyares on Rumba, Ron Y Rico Son, plus strings from Cuban-born, New York-based violinist Yrving Yeras on the same track.
Chip’s flute delivery comes over a classic pachanga/charanga groove with a distinctive UK Orchestra Mambo International twist. Driving piano montuno, including a brilliant solo from Andrzej Baranek, bass tumbao from Simon Edwards, heavy horns and Jimmy Le Messurier's joyous timbales power a track that nods towards Típica 73 and early Johnny Pacheco (Fania All Stars).
“When Jimmy Le Messurier and I were writing and arranging “Flauta Pa’ Ti”, we were really inspired by the approach from Orquesta Novel’s Que Viva El Son Montuno (Fania Records, 1980). I bought this record from Mr Bongo in London in the mid-90s, and I’ve listened to the title track, “Que Viva El Son Montuno”, loads of times. The piano, bass and violin slot in beautifully, leaving plenty of space for the flute to glide freely in its improvisations. We wanted a tight groove with enough space for the flute to move around and do its thing. Chip Wickham absolutely nails it” says Jonny Enright.
The band members are diverse both in age and their background, with a mix of talent from Brazil, Cuba, Colombia, Venezuela, Spain and the UK. Spanish and English are the ‘get-around’ languages when the group are traversing trains, dressing rooms and stages. What’s central to the wonderful development of this group is the sense that everyone feels like they are part of something very special, a sort of right-time-right-moment sensation and with twenty-somethings mixing with seventy-somethings, it’s a music for everyone, and hopefully it unpacks Latin music for those who just want to put their first foot forward and have a good time.
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