Viva El Chicano

Over the years, El Chicano has often been compared to Santana and, to be sure, there are a lot of parallels. Both are from California, both are led by Mexican-Americans, both have recorded in English as well as Spanish, and both have favored a very eclectic and unpredictable mixture of rock, soul, funk, jazz, blues, and Afro-Cuban salsa.
After creating a buzz in East L.A. in the late '60s, El Chicano signed with MCA in 1970 and recorded its debut album, Viva Tirado. The instrumental title song, which was written by jazz pianist Gerald Wilson, was released as a single and became El Chicano's biggest hit; the recording reached number 28 on Billboard's pop singles chart and number 20 on its R&B singles chart. On regional L.A. charts, "Viva Tirado" spent about 12 weeks at number one…

The most consistently enticing disc in the Rock Instrumental Classics series, this is both a great party and driving record and a window on the rhythms that powered soul music in the '60s (and early '70s, in two cases). In addition to some obvious choices (the four Booker T. & the MG's tracks, the Mar-Keys' "Last Night"), it also offers some left-field picks, such as the varied approaches to Latin music offered by Ray Barretto, Mongo Santamaria, and El Chicano. The stock of virtuoso performances here is all but endless: the bass-and-drums breakdown on Cliff Nobles and Co.'s "The Horse," the glinting guitar solo on the Bar-Kays' "Soul Finger," Hugh Masekela's questing trumpet on "Grazing in the Grass".

Latin-Soul-Rock by the Fania All-Stars is a half-live, half-studio album. In addition to featuring a few of the actual Yankee Stadium recordings, such as the now-infamous Larry Harlow/Heny Alvarez–penned “Congo Bongo,” the record demonstrated how well the Fania All-Stars could play with others in the studio, namely Billy Cobham, Jan Hammer, and Jorge Santana; and at the same time, flex their Latin rock and funk muscles on tunes like the Marty Sheller–arranged “There You Go” and “Viva Tirado,” recently made a hit by El Chicano; and then there was the Bobby Valentín–arranged “Smoke,” which wouldn’t have been out of place spinning on one of Kool Herc’s turntables a few miles down the road from the “House that Ruth Built.” It was fusion, it was funk, it was salsa.

Various Artists - Mexican-American Border Music - An Introduction, 1928-1958 (1994) {Arhoolie CD-7001}
XLD rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 251 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 171 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 36 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1994 Arhoolie | CD-7001
Latin / Tejano / Corrido / Mexican Traditions / Norteno / Tex-Mex

The first album in Arhoolie's superb Tex-Mex series, this traces the roots of the modern norteño-Tejano-conjunto sound. We hear the early accordion players and duet singers, then see them come together in the 1930s and '40s, forming the heart of the style as it has existed ever since. All the key names are here, from the blind fiddler El Ciego Melquiades to the magnificent Texan diva Lydia Mendoza, accordion pioneers Santiago Jiménez and Narciso Martinez, and the trend-setting Alegres de Teran. A 36-page booklet puts the music in context and makes this an essential purchase for anyone interested in border music.

Gerald Wilson's Pacific Jazz albums of the 1960s were arguably the most significant of his career. This CD reissues his second record of the period and has among its highlights the original version of "Viva Tirado" (a catchy number made into a surprise pop hit by El Chicano later in the decade) and a driving rendition of "MIlestones"; the other seven songs (six of which are Wilson's originals) are also quite enjoyable. Among the more notable soloists are trumpeter Carmell Jones, both Teddy Edwards and Harold Land on tenor, guitarist Joe Pass, and pianist Jack Wilson.

The Jazz Club series is an attractive addition to the Verve catalogue. With it's modern design and popular choice of repertoire, the Jazz Club is not only opened for Jazz fans, but for everyone that loves good music.
Quincy Jones, Tom Scott, George Duke, Astrud Gilberto, Milt Jackson & Ray Brown and more.
Sampled by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, Mos Def, Gang Starr, Massive Attack, Jazzanova and others.