Raices - Raices (1975)

Hailed by Mister Gilles Peterson as one of the best latin fusion albums of all-time, this 1975 release by Raices is indeed a killer batch of spiritual and funky latin-jazz that deserves a high praise. Mixing strong jazzy playing, a great New York-produced sound, and a gift for energetic shifts within the compositions, it stands as one of the better lost gems of the era —with that disrespect for fixed categories which makes adventurous music so fantastic.
Includes the self-explicit 'Bluegarian Funk Dance', the great 'Lenguas', 'Bamboo' and the soulful 'Parallax'.

Enjoy it!
Greg

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Joe Bataan - Afrofilipino (1975)

A key piece of latin funk, though not such a famous piece of Mr Bataan's discography, 'Afrofilipino' pays tribute to his origins while pushing ahead the boogaloo/soul formula that made his breakthrough with Fania in the 1960s.
Bataan's first album on the newly-formed Salsoul label (a phrase he was instrumental in coining), this record contains a healthy dose of organ/keyboard- filled latin funk, with a rather unique sound. The hit single back in the days was his great pre-disco cover of Gil Scott-Heron 'The Bottle' (re-titled 'La Botella'), while the title track, 'Women Don't Want To Love Me' and the epic 2-part song 'What Good Is A Castle' are all high points of the genre.

Enjoy it!
Greg

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Pucho & the Latin Soul Brothers - Jungle Fire! (1969)

One of my favorite albums by this funky Latin combo! The record differs from some of their earlier Prestige albums in that the tracks are longer, more instrumental, and have a hard fuzzy electric groove. The band jams hard in a way that's more like some of the funk combos of the early 70s, than the Latin groups from which they came — and the results of this mix are wonderful!

Includes two funky numbers written by Sonny Phillips – "The Spokerman" and "Jamilah" – plus a great extended cover of "Cloud Nine", and the amazing break cut "Got Myself A Good Man". Great horn work from the funky Pazant Brothers, plus Seldon Powell, who also plays flute and tenor on the album – and other jazz funk stars on the album include Bernard Purdie, Billy Butler, and Neal Creque, Pucho's right hand man!

Enjoy it!

Greg

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