Cuban grooves galore – all collected by Sonar Kollektiv with the same care and class they brought to their compilations on Eastern European jazz! The sound here is quite different than other looks at the Egrem/Areito labels – in that the tunes are often quite sophisticated and ambitious – way more than just traditional Latin jazz, and instead a masterful blend of unexpected influences – at levels that remind us a lot of some of the hippest European work of the time! A few tunes are somewhat rootsy, but others use electric instrumentation, full arrangements, chorus vocals, and spacious production to really change things up – really blowing our minds with the sort of sounds these guys managed to come up with back in the day. As with other SK collections, the set features full notes on the artists and scene – and this EP version features 6 tracks that include "Y Que Se Sepa" by Orchestra Los Van Van, "Gadinga Mondongo Y Sandunga" by Quinteto Instrumental De Musica Moderna, "Yo No Me Ire" by Orchestra La 440, "Son En 7/4" by Emiliano Salvador Y Ges Icaic, "Yayabo" by Tema IV, and "De Tu Anorme Enamore" by Yotu El Y Ella. 12-inch, Vinyl record

Titles include "Cada Noche Que Estas Sola"," El Cuarto De Petrona", "Xiomara Quiere Un Retrato", "Rico Pilon", "Como Entro", and "Echame A Mi La Culpa". LP, Vinyl record album

A totally cool Cuban gem from the 70s – one of those wicked little records from a time when the scene in Havana were mixing together all sorts of styles, and really coming up with a fantastic blend of modes that never got much exposure on our American market at the time! The set's got this great way of blending rootsier elements with warmer electric instrumentation – sweet basslines next to heavy congas, soaring trumpet over keyboards – often with vocals in the mix, but never in a way that gets in the way of the jazzy instrumentation in the lead! The whole thing's great – a very different take on New York Latin funk of the early 70s – and titles include "Banana", "Yo Mejor Te Doy", "Ruta 30", "Abuela Tula", "Mi Pequeno Gran Paolo", "Paco La Calle", "Tu No Me Puedoes Conquistar", and "Del Copacabana A 34". LP, Vinyl record album

A tasty set from the later Havana scene – with work on piano from Ruben Gonzales, trumpet from Felix Chapottin and Luis Mirabal, violin from Enrique Jorrin, tres from Nino Rivara, congas from Tata Guines, and flute from Joaquin Oliver! LP, Vinyl record album

... CD

... CD

Features trombone from Jorge Aquino, trumpets from Juan Casas and Rafael Morales, and titles that include "Llevale", "Sembrando Amores", "Dame Otra Que Tengo Sed", "Un Son Para El Tivoli", "El Entierro De Musulungo", and "Razon Incierta". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Features Gonzalao Rubalcaba on piano. CD

A great collection of recent Cuban jazz – featuring tracks from many harder to find import labels, like Egrem, Ashe, Messidor, and Qbadisc. The whole thing's very nicely packaged (despite the stupid title), and it includes the tracks "Mambo Influenciado" by Chucho Valdes, "Nueva Era" by Orlando Valle, "Night In Tunisia" by Arturo Sandoval, "Lorenzo's Wings" by Paquito D'Rivera, "Momo" by Cuarto Espacio, "Zambia" by Mario Bauza, and "A Chano Pozo" by Irakere. 17 tracks in all! CD