Celia Cruz, Queen of Salsa, dead at 79

7/16/2003 | Luis Gonzalez

[Luis Gonzalez]

Rest in peace Celia, nos vemos en una Cuba libre.

[Luis Gonzalez]

Sorry david, that nice to "see" you thing on the previous post was meant for Migs...not that it isn't nice to see you as well.

[Luis Gonzalez]

Great post Victoria.

[Luis Gonzalez]

Thanks for posting that, Celia passed away at home in New Jersey.

I was putting up this thread as the story was being reported on the local news, I assumed that she had died here.

[Luis Gonzalez]

I don't politicize art; Castro did that to Celia Cruz.

And I can't condemn the artists themselves for practicing their art under the confinement of an oppressive regime.

[PhilDragoo]

[JohnHuang2]

She will be missed, Luis. Thanks for the ping, my friend.

[JohnHuang2]

Re: #52, thanks for posting, mi hermanita.

[William Wallace]

Sad news. It would have been a terrible shock, if not for your mom's false alarm last week. Knowing the seriousness of her illness, at least we were prepared for the news.

Celia vive en eternidad con Cristo Rey!

[Paradox]

My deceased inlaws just LOVED this woman. It makes me sad to think that she, like they, died before they could see a free Cuba! I truly believe that one way or another, Cuba will be free (Castro can't last forever..).

RIP Celia, and tell my inlaws that I love them and miss them, and that their new nietos are doin just fine...

[William Wallace]

[xsmommy]

: (

[BunnySlippers]

*

[Luis Gonzalez]

"It would have been a terrible shock, if not for your mom's false alarm last week."

Mom now claims it was a presentimiento.

[Luis Gonzalez]

"...tell my inlaws that I love them and miss them, and that their new nietos are doin just fine..."

Your suegros are dancing one mean son montuno right about now.

[William Wallace]

Thanks Victoria. Great graphic/music!

I still get chills whenever I hear Celia sing. In one of her autobiographical lyrics, she humbly describes herself this way: "Lucky me to be from Havana where I became a singer of songs." But she was more than a singer, more than a performer, more than an artist. She was also a Cuban patriot and, as Willie Chirino would say, un amante de la libertad, a true lover of freedom. She had a dazzling smile, a magical voice and transcendental energy and presence on stage. But it was something else that made her so special.

Celia Cruz was one of those rare individuals who literally are larger than life. She simply was much more alive than the rest of us, her vivaciousness was obvious to everyone she met. That was the source of her talent, her energy, her passion. She loved life so much and was so full of life that she literally burst into song and dance. That was the only way she could express how alive she was, mere words could not capture what was inside her.

I suppose it's a blessing that Celia was able to pass away at home with her husband at her side. But oh how I wish she could have died the way she wanted, on stage looking radiant and triumphant after her final and greatest performance, shouting "AZUCAR!" one last time to her adoring fans. In my fantasy, her last concert takes place in an auditorium as resplendent and larger than life as she was, an immense stadium large enough to seat the millions who'd want to see her and it would be filled to capacity. And of course, it would take place in Havana upon her triumphant return to celebrate Cuba's freedom at long last. A freedom that will be bittersweet when it finally comes because she did not live to see it.

Rest in peace Celia. Nuestro dia ya viene llegand.

AZUCAR Y LIBERTAD!

[William Wallace]

Mig, it's great to see you posting again.

Almost seems like the good old days.

[William Wallace]

Mom now claims it was a presentimiento.

You'll have to buy her a new hat.

[Luis Gonzalez]

[archy]

I heard the sad news early this morning.

I also miss Tito Puente.

The instrumentals and percussion of the King required the Salsa vocalizations of La Reina. And someday, the sounds they've left us to remember them by, we may hear again, more clearly than ever before. Angels with harps and lyre, may await some of us, but timbalitos and that voice of sucre as well, in some other corner reserved for those more used to that flavour. Mambo!

The first time I saw her, when I was around 10 years old, she was smiling, as she was when I saw her last, some 40 years later. I'll always think of her that way.

[Victoria Delsoul]

Great post, William. Thanks so much for putting into words what we think about Celia Cruz. She was a brilliant singer.

Azucar!!!