A smoking later session from Ray – one of his best albums of the 80s and 90s, and recorded with a snapping Latin fusion groove that we really love! The sound is straight Latin jazz all the way – arranged with lots of dark overtones that dip and turn in a style that almost reminds us of some of the work of Bobby Vince Paunetto. The group's great, too – with Steve Slagle playing some wonderful angular passages on soprano, alto, and flute; driving keyboards and piano from Hector Martignon; and solidly rooted drum work from Ed Uribe – setting a great base for Ray to work more freely on congas and percussion. Titles include "Tercer Ojo", "Blues For Leticia", "Kwanza", "Handprints", "Santa Cruz", and "Jamprints". CD

An incredible collaboration between pianist Eddie Palmieri and vibist Cal Tajder – a record done for Tico in answer to their previous session for Verve – and a set that's even harder-jamming overall! Cal and Eddie really find something special together on the record – and both players groove into a descarga mode that burns even more strongly than their own other work of the decade – a masterful jam that's a really true collaboration, and which brings out the best that both musicians had to offer. Cal's moving way beyond his familiar modes here – with a fluid, freely colorful sound – and Eddie himself is beginning to hit some of the darker, harder notes that would show up even more strongly on his records of the 70s. There's a much more strongly jazz-based sound here than most of Palmieri's previous records – a really bold focus on the instrumentation as it rolls out over some great modally-informed grooves – and titles include "Bamboleate", "Resemblance", "Guajira Candela", "Mi Montuno", and "Come An Get It". LP, Vinyl record album