The American Rhytm & Blues pioneers Kool & the Gang helped Cuba get its funk on, bringing their eclectic mix of sounds Sunday to an open-air stage a stone's throw from the sparkling waters of the Caribbean. The members of the veteran American band Kool & the Gang stated that an approach to Cuban culture was among their expectations about the concert at the Jose Marti Anti-Imperialist Tribune.

Robert “Kool” Bell, leader of the group, said upon his arrival in Havana last Saturday that the main thing was to know the Cuban people, and they had planned to visit some of the music schools of the capital.

Kool thanked the Cuban Music Institute for the invitation and said they expect to enjoy this first stay in the island.

Answering about inclusion of the famous song Celebration in their presentation, he said they recorded the original version in Spanish, but had not yet decided which they would sing here.

Founded in 1964, the main band members are Robert "Kool" Bell on bass and Ronald Bell on tenor sax, George Brown on drums, Robert Mickens on trumpet and Dennis Thomas on alto saxophone. Claydes Charles Smith on guitar, Clifford Adams on trombone and Rick Westfield on keyboards are also part of the bansd's essential core.

Robert "Kool" Bell," his brother Khalis Bayyan, saxophonist Dennis Thomas and drummer George "Funky" Brown became one of the few U.S. musical acts to perform in Cuba in recent memory, amid Washington's travel restrictions.

"We are all about the music. We travel the world and our message is love, understanding and unity," Bell, a singer and bass player, said before taking the stage for a performance authorized by the U.S. government. "We don't come as politicians, we come as musicians."

With thousands of spectators stretching down Havana's storied Malecon coastal boulevard, the band played at the open-air Anti-ImperialistTribune, which sits in front of the U.S. Interests Section. Fans, many of them middle-aged with children in tow, danced and jumped up and down to the music while tenants in nearby apartment buildings watched from balconies.

Offering a hybrid of funk, disco, Rhytm & Blues, dance and soul, Kool & the Gang came into its own in the 1970s and '80s. Its "Celebration" has been a mainstay at sports stadiums across the United States for a generation, and another hit, "Jungle Boogie" enjoyed a renaissance when it was featured in Quentin Tarantino's cult smash "Pulp Fiction."

The most recent show by a U.S. group was the heavy-metal band Audioslave's thundering concert before thousands at the same amphitheater in 2005.