As John, Paul, George and Ringo were forming the Beatles in Liverpool in the early 1960s, another band was coming together in the tough district of Cayo Hueso in Havana. Music, history, and emotion fuel this dynamic, award-winning tribute to Los Zafiros. Playing a brilliant mix of American inspired Doo Wop and traditional Latin forms, they became a sensation in Cuba and beyond before dissolving in the mid 1970s from the effects of the fast life, infighting and changing political and musical tastes. Thirty years after their breakup, the two surviving band members, multiple-Grammy winner and Buena Vista Social Club alumnus Manuel Galbán, and the group’s co-founder, Miguel Cancio, reunite in the streets of present-day Havana, a place full of unforgettable songs and memories for them and for their still-loyal fans. Evocative archival films and recordings of the group are interwoven with newsreel footage that vividly parallels the Los Zafiros story with life in Cuba at the height of the Cold War. Engaging performance footage and original interviews help family members, fellow artists, and friends create a stirring and definitive portrait of The Sapphires for a whole new audience.

Listen to the show from NPR's Fresh Air