Cool 60s work from guitarist Snuff Garrett! Maria Elena takes a host of older Latin themes and tunes them towards a hip 60s style – using the overdubbed guitar approach of the 50 guitars group, and really stretching the sound out wide towards the farthest reaches of both speakers! Snuff Garrett's guitar is in the lead, but it's also cast here in a pretty full sound – one that makes for a spacious quality that still sounds pretty darn great all these many years later. Titles include "Jungle Drums", "Anna", "Without You", "The Breeze & I", "Brazil", and "Poinciana". (Now Sound, Latin) LP, Vinyl record album

Singer Ruben Blades scored a big early moment of fame on the Siembra album by Willie Colon – and here, he works with the larger ensemble of Roberto Delgado to pay tribute to that classic record from the late 70s! The album's a live one, recorded before a very enthusiastic crowd in Puerto Rico – and the tracks are long, and maybe even have a sense of majesty that the original record never possessed – really righteous, soaring songs that show that Blades' voice hasn't dimmed at all over the years – set to instrumentation that's equally powerful as well! Titles include "Ligia Elena", "Dime", "Siembra", "El Cazanguero", "Buscando Guayaba", and "Plastico". LP, Vinyl record album

Singer Ruben Blades scored a big early moment of fame on the Siembra album by Willie Colon – and here, he works with the larger ensemble of Roberto Delgado to pay tribute to that classic record from the late 70s! The album's a live one, recorded before a very enthusiastic crowd in Puerto Rico – and the tracks are long, and maybe even have a sense of majesty that the original record never possessed – really righteous, soaring songs that show that Blades' voice hasn't dimmed at all over the years – set to instrumentation that's equally powerful as well! Titles include "Ligia Elena", "Dime", "Siembra", "El Cazanguero", "Buscando Guayaba", and "Plastico". CD

A legendary look at the sounds of Puerto Rico – one that brings together tracks from a time when the island was really hopping with fresh new rhythms, served up by a host of young, soon to be important leaders – music that's every bit as powerful as work coming from Havana and New York at the time! The rhythms here are slightly different – with some bomba and plena thrown into the mix, served up with plenty of percussion too – all at a level that would have a huge influence on Latin music for decades to come! The package features detailed notes that provide the sort of background and information that some of the leaner Latin reissues of previous years never had – and titles include "Cortaron a Elena" by Cortijo (as Canario & Su Grupo con Raful), "En Orbita" by Baltazar Carrero, "Habla Cuembre" by Los Caballeros Del Ritmo, "El Plenero" by Mon Rivera Y Su Orquesta, "Dejalo Que Suba" by by Cortijo (as Canario & Su Grupo con Raful), "Belinda" by Chivirico, "Cucala" by Cortijo Y Su Combo con Ismael Rivera, and "Ron Con Coco" by Mon Rivera Y Su Orquesta. 30 tracks in all! LP, Vinyl record album