All Categories — All Formats  

Joyous grooves from congolero Johnny Ray – a contemporary set of salsa tracks, put together with a mix of keyboards and acoustic instrumentation at the core! Ray's conga's lost none of its edge over the years, and helps direct the group with a nice rootsy vibe – even amidst the more modern keyboards – and singers in the group include Jose Davila and Sammy Gonzalez Jr. Titles include "Si No Soy Yo", "Estoy Amandote", "Te Quiero Un Monton", and "Ganas De Ti".

Two great slices of work from Johnny Ray – one a salsa set from the 70s, the other a batch of boogaloo tunes from the 60s! The first 5 tracks here are from a studio set directed by Charlie Palmieri, and done in the best New York salsa mode of the time – with vocals from Yayo El Indio and Adalberto Santiago, and other players who include Barry Rogers on trombone, Ray Maldonado on trumpet, and Manny Corchado on timbales – all grooving tightly in soaring, soulful formation on tracks that include "La Guerra", "Oye Nicola", "Que Risa Me Da", "Descarga No 2", and "Descarga El Tres". The second half of the CD features some real killers from Johnny's boogaloo years as Johnny Zamot – tracks from his Decca albums and other indie sides that bristle with tight, jazzy energy! Tracks include 3 great Pat Patrick compositions – "Catfish Bag", "Gaboom", and "Mambo Village" – plus "Descarga Zamot", "Guadajaljara", "Alma Llanera", and "Kool & The Gang".

A cooker of a boogaloo album from the legendary Johnny Zamot – quite possibly even better than his classic sets recorded for Decca in the 60s! The sound here is totally great – a non-stop Latin Soul party through and through – filled with romping rhythms, jazzy instrumentation, and loads of soulful lyrics in English – almost all of which have a playful, party-grooving feel! English vocals are by John Fernandez – who sang on Hector Rivera's great At The Party record, a set that's very similar to this one – and Spanish vocals are by Pete Bonet, who also sung with Ray Barretto. Titles include "Boogaloo Frog", "Hey Mama", "Are You Ready", "Miriam Baby", "Do You Really Want To Fly", "Cat Fish Bag", and "Catalina".

Contemporary work from Johnny Ray – aka Johnny Zamot – a set of salsa-heavy tunes that also aims to cross over nicely – thanks to its choice of popular tunes, and its slight use of electric instrumentation! Johnny's group here salsifies a batch of numbers from the 70s and 80s – taking familiar Anglo tunes, and giving them a nice dose of Latin rhythms and instrumentation – yet often still keeping the lyrics upfront, in English. Sammy Gonzalez sings lead, and titles include "Suavecito", "Hot Hot Hot", "Lady", "You'll Never Find", "Besame", "Always & Forever", "Endless Love", and "You're My Everything".

Johnny Ray's combo is cooking nicely on this set – steeped in Puerto Rican salsa sounds, but carrying off the music with lightly grooving quality! The instrumentation here includes trumpet, trombone, piano, and percussion – plus a bit of more contemporary keyboards on a few tracks, but not too much to keep the music from sounding too classic. One title is a bit of a reggaeton number, but the rest are older styled salsa, with vocals by Jose Davila and Sammy Gonzalez – and titles inclu de "Preciosa", "Lejos De Ti", "Jibarito Mio", "Sonando Con Puerto Rico", "Amanecer", "La Parranda", and "Aunque Me Llore".

Great 70s work from the legendary Johnny Zamot – a set recorded around the same time as his monstrous album for Salsoul – with a similar salsa-heavy groove! The vibe here is nicely old school – lots of heavy percussion in the rhythms – including conga and guiero from Johnny – plus brassy horns, piano, bass, and drums. A few tracks feature a bit of guitar and keyboards – and vocals are by Adalberto Santiago, Yayo El Indio, and Nestor Sanchez. Titles inlcude "Tiempo Muerto", "Vano Empeno", "Sigo Buscando", "Mi Cuerpo", "La Solucion De La Salsa", "Sonero Soy", "Dime Que", "En La Barandilla", and "No Lograro".