A killer little set from Les McCann – one of his greatest records of the 60s, thanks to a fair bit of Latin Soul influences! The album's got a groove that's much grittier than Les' other work – a solid, soulful emphasis on bottom rhythms – which are mostly in a boogaloo and shing-a-ling mode – clearly McCann's nod to the Spanish Harlem scene at the time! The backings here are a bit fuller than usual for Les too – and his trio with Leroy Vinnegar is augmented with lots of added percussion, plus vibes from Lynn Blessing, sax and flute from Plas Johnson, and trumpet from Lee Katzman. The whole thing's wonderful – a non-stop party that rivals similar boogaloo jazz sets of the time – and titles include "Fakeout", "Boo Go Loo", "Hey Leroy", "Bang Bang", "La Brea", and "Music To Watch Girls By". (Jazz, Latin) LP, Vinyl record album

A great lost descarga session from the 60s – led by Chihuahua Martinez! Martinez plays both timbales and guiro on the sessions, fronting a group that includes Alberto Valdez on conga, Mike Martinez and Chivirico Davila on coro, Manfredo Lee on guiro, Elpidio Vazquez on piano, Elpidio Vazquez on bass and Pupy Legarreta on flute and violin. The set features some nice vocals by Goody Osvaldo – but there's also a key focus on the instrumentation, with quite a bit of flute in the mix. Nice stuff! Titles include "Descarga Chihuahua", "Te Necesito", "Guajiro Son", "Ritmo Ideal", "Echate Palla", "No, No No Te Voy A Querer", "Busco Una Chiquita" and "Me Voy Pa Moron". LP, Vinyl record album