Thousands of Cubans attend American concert

Havana, Dec 22 : The US band 'Kool and the Gang' gave a concert in Havana over the weekend that attracted thousands of Cubans who danced and sang along to songs like 'Celebration'.

The band performed for almost two hours Sunday before 250,000 people on the Jose Marti Anti-imperialist Platform on the Malecon, Havana's famous seaside esplanade, according to official media.

The concert, which included a cast of guest Cuban artists like trumpet player Alexander Abreu, was free of charge and was the only show the band intended to stage during this visit to the island.

Group frontman Robert "Kool" Bell said at a press conference a few hours before the show that the concert was dedicated to the "brotherhood and unity" of nations.

Bell said he didn't come to Cuba "as a politician but as a musician", and said there has always been a significant relationship between the music of his country and that of Cuba.

The US musicians also said that during their stay they hoped to keep up a "good exchange" of ideas with their Cuban colleagues.

Kool and the Gang got its start in New Jersey in 1964.

The album "Celebrate" in 1980 marked the first of its hits, and after a period of decline from lists of the top discs, Kool and the Gang recovered in 1994 with the song "Jungle Boogie" that was included on the sound track of the movie "Pulp Fiction" by Quentin Tarantino.