Salvador Pascual, kick it For friends, he could not imagine how his life would change the day when, in front of the television, an advertisement for pens with a catchy soundtrack crossed before his eyes: “Bic orange, write fine, Bic cristal, write normal…”. He himself would remember the sensations that assaulted him in the documentary 20 years is not short. Cambalache Jazz Clubby director Antonio de Cos: “I always liked music, quantity. But in that Bic ad he was doing a double bass and drums thing that blew me away. For me it was wonderful.” I didn’t know what that music was called, but I had just discovered jazz.
kick it He was not, of course, the introducer of these sounds in Cádiz. The previous generation had already emulated the American orchestras with the popularly called jambs (jazz-bands), and some performers such as the guitarist Manolo Perfumo or the pianist Chano Domínguez explored those territories in the midst of general misinformation and the absence of references.
The truth is that, following the revelation of that television spot, Salvador Pascual began to hoard anything that had to do with jazz, from newspaper and magazine clippings to books and, naturally, records, many records. And with a commendable vocation for proselytizing, he began to preach the good news among his neighbors, whether by recording tapes or simply talking about it with anyone who would listen.
An adventure that now reminds us of another documentary, Agent Patby another Cádiz director, Juande García, focused on the papers that Pascual bequeathed after his death in 2022. Clippings, concert tickets, hand programs and fetishes of all kinds that help reconstruct not only the history of this music lover’s hobby , but also the way in which jazz achieved a notable diffusion in Western Andalusia from the arrival of democracy until the splendor of ’92.
The man who was always there
For Juande García, “he was one of those people who are never forgotten. When I undertook the task of reflecting in a documentary all those wonderful graphic testimonies, which arrived inside an old folder, I felt that I did justice to his person by giving him the prominence that he never wanted to have due to his tremendous humility and generosity. He witnessed a transcendental moment in the history of Cadiz jazz. My interest in him is also my interest in honoring all those great musicians from the province of Cádiz who, in my humble opinion, have not been sufficiently valued.”
Chano Domínguez himself, today an international celebrity of the genre, remembers him in this film as someone “who was always there. In some way, his figure is repeated throughout the world. He is a type of person who is very introverted, and has a staunch love for live music, which is what keeps them going. He would arrive at places and talk to practically no one. He was absorbed in listening, but paying close attention to everything. They are the type of people who create fans, because people see how they experience music, how they love poetry, culture, and want to share everything. That is his desire and his leitmotif.”
It is signed by another musician, the saxophonist Carmelo Muriel, who even dedicated a song to Kick it. “Every time I met him, I thought: ‘Here is the one who knows jazz.’ “I loved playing and having Patalo listen to me, to know if I had improved.”
Encyclopedic knowledge
In the development of jazz in Cádiz, in which in addition to those mentioned, artists such as Luis Balaguer, Nono García, Tito Alcedo or Tato Macías, among others, were soon going to show signs of their talent, the opening of jazz played a no small role. Cambalache club, which still opens its doors on José del Toro street run by its owner, Hassan Assad. There, Salvador Pascual stood out among the irreplaceable parishioners. In 20 years is not short. Cambalache Jazz ClubAssad himself remembered him as “friend Pat. The disco here [decía señalando a la colección de cds del local] It’s thanks to him. It is the jazz dictionary for us. If someone doesn’t know a name or something, we ask him, and he clears up our doubts.”
In addition to the folders full of jazz documentation, Patalo gathered a library of more than fifty volumes, many of them out of print, which his family donated to the Cádiz Municipal Library Network to continue creating a hobby among the neighbors. The drummer Juan Sáinz, who served as spokesperson at the donation ceremony in which the mayor of the city, Bruno García, was present, recalled that “encyclopedic knowledge, based on endless hours of listening” that little by little “was introducing him to aspects most technical aspects of music”, to the point of being a notable drummer himself, although his natural shyness prevented him from lavishing himself too much on stage.
Antonio de Cos, who recorded Patalo at the bar of the Cambalache Jazz Club along with another recently deceased client, the much missed Antonio Almozara, comments that “for me, Patalo was one of the many figures of the Cambalachera night, where reference points abound. , the people who at any moment can give you a master lesson on music. And without a doubt, one of those who paved the way for the fans to grow in this city, until, for example, we have a high-level festival today. In addition to being a great person, Patalo was an open book.”
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