Contesting that Damned Mambo: Arsenio Rodríguez, Authenticity, and the People of El Barrio and the Bronx in the 1950s

This essay focuses on the local history of the Park Palace/Plaza, Club Cubano Inter- Americano, and the Tropicana of El Barrio and the Bronx and the contribution of black Cuban musician Arsenio Rodríguez (1911 1970) to this history. It documents Rodríguez s contestation for recognition as the creator of the mambo in the mainstream American media, the contribution of his conjunto and son montuno style to the music culture of El Barrio and the Bronx, and the reception of his music among resident Cubans and Puerto Ricans. The essay seeks to understand the history of this music culture not as an archaic, traditional, or authentic cultural phenomenon that was disconnected from the Palladium and the modern styles of mambo big bands, but rather as a contemporary cultural phenomenon in dialogue with the internationally popular mambo musical and dance styles of the 1950s.