Latin — All Formats  

A mad mix of Latin and funky rhythms – a 70s classic from the Belgian group Chakachas! The album's best known for its title hit "Jungle Fever" – an insane cut that features heavy drums, choppy guitar, and a stop/start action that's peppered with sounds of female pleasure! The track was a worldwide hit, and continues to be a funky classic today – thanks to a heavy sample history, and a life in playlists worldwide – but the rest of the album's pretty darn great too, and even weirder. Some tracks mix easy Euro grooving with heavy conga, others have kind of an LA Chicano funk approach, and still others throw in some mad horns to complicate matters with nice jazzy riffing. Really great throughout – and maybe one of the best funky albums to ever come out on a major label! Titles include "Jungle Fever", "El Canyon Rojo", "Chica Chica Bau Bau", "Eso Es El Amor", "Ay Mulata", "Cha Ka Cha", "Latin Can Can", and "Yo Soy Cubano".

The obscure second album from Emiliano Zapata – one of the coolest groups on the Mexican scene of the early 70s! Like the first, this one's got a quality that's right up there with the best South American psych of the time – fuzzy guitars mixed with funky rhythms, and some occasionally more serious elements that bring in a bit of strings that really deepen the group's sound! Gentle flute comes to the forefront on a few numbers, making for an instrumental range of colors that's really great – and the songwriting is right on a par with some of the biggest Anglo acts of the period, yet produced here with some nicely rough touches around the edges. Titles include "El Kuino", "I Dig It", "Hace Mucho Tiempo", "Ahora Escucha Esta Cancion", and "Otra Vez". CD also features bonus tracks "Congore Tumbero A La Mar", "Mr Jones", and "Bad Dreams".

One of Candido's funkiest albums! The record's got a similar sound to Candido's great albums for Blue Note and Solid State – with short, hard funky tunes that have a really great 70s edge! Chico O'Farrill did the arrangements, and the record chops along nicely with some very funky tracks that feel like they were lifted from a blacksploitation soundtrack – conga mixed with great keyboards, wah wah guitar, and tight blasts of horns in just the right bits! The whole thing's a killer – filled with heavy funky 45-type numbers – and tracks include "Soulwanco", "Succulent", "Yolanda", "Candido's Funk", "Kushy", "Sultry", and "Mighty Mouth". Very nice!