El Jangueador by Sencion Minaya Y Los Quisqueyanos

[Spanish text below]

With this release, we celebrate two compositions by one of the forgotten and underrated songwriters of merengue: Sención Minaya (aka "El Caballo Indio"). In the early 1970s, Sención penned several local hits, which he performed and recorded with electric guitar adapted to the strings of a Cuban tres (a Cuban instrument in the guitar family and commonly played in a variety of Afro-Cuban genres), which was uncommon and different from his contemporaries that used a requinto guitar.

Waaghals Records are proud and excited to serve up to two of Sención's finest compositions that were first released on his debut album. The a-side, "El jangueador," is a contagious and rhythmic merengue with gorgeous electric guitar work. The track kicks off with a thundering interplay in the rhythm section between the tamborero (drum player) playing in the traditional straight-ahead merengue and the guirero (the metal scraper player) before the electric guitar comes in, elevating the quality with funky groove chords that draw you in and keeps you listening. The lyrics were inspired by him listening to Nuyoricans' usage of the term janguear in the streets, which means to hang out in English. On the flip, we have "Me voy para mi Quisqueya" the up-tempo merengue tribute to the Dominican Republic. This recording is characterized by the swinging jaleos or riffs of Juan Núñez on alto saxophone, a former band member of the 1960s iteration of the Conjunto Típico Cibaeño and musical mentor early on in Sención's career. The patriotic lyrics are sung from the perspective of a migrant who has nostalgia for his homeland.

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Con este disco, celebramos dos grandes temas de un compositor de merengue caído en un olvido inmerecido: Sención Minaya, alias El Caballo Indio. A principios de los 70, Sención tuvo varios éxitos locales que interpretaba con una guitarra eléctrica que tenía las cuerdas adaptadas a un tres cubano (un instrumento musical cubano de la familia de las guitarras utilizada en diversos géneros afro-cubanos), que era poco común y diferente a la guitarra de requinto que tocaban sus contemporáneos.

Nos llena de emoción y orgullo presentar dos de las mejores composiciones de Sención, que fueron publicadas por primera vez en su álbum de debut. En el lado A figura "El jangueador”, un merengue contagioso y rítmico con un excelente trabajo de guitarra eléctrica. El tema arranca con una retumbante interacción de la sección rítmica entre el tamborero, tocando un merengue tradicional, y el guïrero (con el raspador de metal), antes de que entre la guitarra eléctrica, que seduce con acordes funky groove que seducen e invitan a seguir escuchando. La letra está inspirada en el uso que hacen los nuyorrriqueños del término janguear (spanglish para ‘pasar el rato’). En la otra cara está la canción "Me voy para mi Quisqueya", un merengue rápido que rinde homenaje a la República Dominicana. Esta grabación se caracteriza por los jaleos o riffs de Juan Núñez en el saxofón alto, antiguo miembro del Conjunto Típico Cibaeño en los años 60 y mentor musical de Sención al principio de su carrera. Las letras, de contenido patriótico, son cantadas desde la perspectiva de un emigrante que siente nostalgia por su tierra natal.

Sención Minaya aka "El Caballo Indio,” is one of the forgotten and underrated songwriters of merengue. He was born in La Vega and emigrated to New York City in 1968, where he would hone multiple talents as a singer, songwriter, guitarist, and bandleader. Sención penned several local hits, which he performed and recorded with electric guitar adapted to the strings of a Cuban tres.