[engl] Latin Funk Psych Fuzz Blaster basically covers all the realms of rare record collecting in one shot!! There's the Funk Fuzz Blaster "Maranatha" or the Ray Barretto Latin Jazz Groove cut "El Que Se Fue" with freaky synth blasts. The Texas Easy Funk moves of "Squeeze" which remind of Steam Heat, or the lounged out soul rendition of Stevie Wonder's classic "Bird Of Beauty”. Something for everyone and impossibly rare!!

[engl] At the age of 24, Juan Piña formed the eight-piece La Revelación with his brother Carlos, releasing their first album in 1975 on Discos Zeida. This self-titled debut LP of Piña with his group is something of an anomaly in his discography as subsequent albums would feature a different sound and concentrated almost exclusively on Colombian coastal Caribbean and ‘sabanero’ genres.Although Juan Piña’s debut record never made much of a splash, it is an excellent little slice of Colombian mid-70’s madness, with a very diverse sound. An interesting and joyful sounding mix of New York style salsa, Cuban son montuno and guajira with Colombian tropical flavors, the simple, spare arrangements featured electric guitar, piano, Latin percussion, two trumpets, occasional sax, and Juan sang lead while Carlos backed him on chorus. It also sounds like Joe Arroyo may have done ‘coro’ chores on Juan Piña Con La Revelación (Arroyo was a very close friend of Juan and sang chorus on several Revelación albums).This album is hard to find in the original edition, but collectors in the know treasure it for its two hot salsa tunes (‘Negro con salsa’ and ‘Chana’, both written by famous Chocoano composer and vocalist Alfonso Córdoba “El Brujo”) as well as producer Rafael Mejia’s salsa guajira ‘Hogar campesino’ and the genius rendition of the Peruvian classic ‘Virgines del sol’.A beautiful and mature sounding work for the relatively young Juan Piña and his crew, and well-worth rediscovery by today’s Colombian music enthusiasts.

[engl] While Discos Fuentes was known for recording all sorts of interesting sounds from traditional folkloric Colombian music to the latest popular international styles, every once and a while they would put out a “novelty” record, perhaps to exploit a passing fad, and at times the label would green-light something strange or even outlandish. Many of those left-field releases have their merits and have subsequently become collectors’ items over the years.One such case is the mysterious Los Picapiedra (which translates as The Flintstones, no doubt inspired by the 1960s American sitcom cartoon show), a short-lived studio group with one album to their name, “Kabwlú” (an unpronounceable, invented “caveman” term that is also untranslatable, but seems to have been the ‘traditional rhythm’ of Los Picapiedra’s ‘homeland’). What is interesting about the record is that it is very musically diverse; not only are there the requisite genres that could be found on similar Colombian teenage-oriented groups’ records of the time, such as cumbia, gaita, rock, twist and pachanga, but there is also a smattering of surf, doo-wop, Latin jazz, guajira, ska, and calypso. But what makes the whole thing so special is the odd, off-kilter arrangements, spooky tunings, rudimentary clanging percussion, invented ‘cave’ language, prominent twanging electric guitar and many zany sound effects.Much like its namesake American cartoon The Flintstones, “Kabwlú” trades in creative anachronism, mixing ‘folkloric’ and ‘modern’ elements with calculated ‘caveman’ humor that works on many different levels. For instance the title tune seems to have been inspired by the pachanga craze and recalls the vibe of Ray Barretto’s massive 1962 hit, ‘El Watusi’, but it has a certain joyful simplicity and rock-solid underpinning that elevates it beyond mere novelty or exploitation — and argues for its timely reissue for today’s audience.The band was a studio invention that had no major significance in Medellin’s live music activity. However, several of Los Picapiedra’s songs were very popular in Colombia as well as Venezuela and especially in the ‘rebajada’ (slowed down) version as played by the ‘sonidero’ sound system DJs in Mexico, such as “La Hossa”.

[engl] Piano player from Rio de Janeiro, he started playing at night in the late 1950s, quickly participating in the Bossa Nova movement. He joined the legendary Bossa Três alongside drummer Edison Machado and bassist Tião Neto, with whom he recorded three albums in the United States in 1962. Back in Brazil, he continued to perform with Bossa Três alongside other works with Jorge Ben, Quarteto em Cy, Elis Regina and many others. Vinhas was one of the great exponents of Bossa Nova. He worked as a pianist at Beco das Garrafas, as well as appearing on Elis Regina's albums, Quarteto em Cy, Jorge Ben Jor, Maria Bethânia, among others. He also formed one of the first musical groups of this period, Bossa Três, which, in 1966, with Leny Andrade and Pery Ribeiro on vocals, was renamed Gemini V. In 1963, he released Lp “The Bossa 3”. In 1964, he participated in the fabulous album - “O Som” by Meirelles e Os Copa 5. Still in that year he recorded the phenomenal Lp - “Novas Estruturas”. In 1968 he released "O Som Psicodélico de Luiz Carlos Vinhas" a bold mix of jazz with the sounds that came from the tropicalist movement and psychedelic. This LP is a milestone in Brazilian music and very rare in its original edition. Finally Mad About Records officially reissued it.

[engl] Often overlooked, “Maravilhas Contemporâneas” is one of the greatest Brazilian albums of all time and one of the finest recordings on Som Livre.Just listen to Luiz Melodia singing to understand that his music escapes any attempt to strict labelling. Obviously, the Brazilian music tradition is very present on this record but Melodia’s rhythmic sense when using his vocal skills also brings it close to funk or jazz, an idea that is reinforced through the explosive brass arrangements that embrace the whole LP.This album was released in 1976 and marked the confirmation of Luiz Melodia as one of the best artists in Brazil at a time when the local music scene was synonymous with excellence. His first album, “Pérola negra”, released three years earlier, had featured the outstanding arrangements of Arthur Verocai and the performance of top musicians such as Hyldon or Meirelles, but this second album stands as another essential milestone in his career and further proof of his formidable talent. One of the tracks included here, ‘Juventude trasviada’, was featured in the soundtrack of a popular Brazilian soap opera, Pecado Capital, boosting the artist’s increasing popularity.The creative freedom and the wide range of influences managed by Luiz Melodia reach their peak in that wonder entitled ‘Baby Rose’, a song that evolves from cosmic psychedelia, including the sounds of the sitar, to the peaceful beauty of some kind of highly tuneful samba funk. Sublime.‘Questão de posse’ features fierce proggy guitars while ‘Veleiro azul’ adds Latin rhythms into this unique recipe, but again, it is the talented voice of Luiz Melodia what grants this recording a pass to another league.“Maravilhas Contemporâneas” deserves to be filed next to the finest albums by Caetano Veloso, Jorge Ben or Gilberto Gil.

[engl] Reissue of 1972 Afro-Cuban Jazz album by Nico Gomez & his Orchestra. For Fans of Easy Listening drenched Latin Jazz with a lot of rhythm!

[engl] Probably the most rare release south–African jazz Along with Chris McGregor, Gideon Nxumalo helped pioneer the pre–exile South African Jazz sound. His 1962 album ’Jazz Fantasia’ is widely regarded as a seminal South African jazz record. The record featured legendary jazz altoists Kippie Moeketsi and a very young Dudu Pukwana Dudu Pukwana plays sax in similar Albert Ayler’s vein! Moeketsi was a colossal South African jazz figure during this time, and ’Jazz Fantasia’ signaled Moeketsi’s last commercial success before his struggles with alcohol and depression took their toll. The album was recorded at the Great Hall at Wits University in September 1962. It was commissioned by the university as part of an arts festival. With a limited pressing at the time, the album has become a revered foundation of modern South African jazz music, even though it is a rare album to find.

[engl] Francis Hime has been a fundamental artist of Brazilian music since the mid-1960s. He began to play the piano when he was only six years old and in 1963 he started working with Vinicius de Moraes, with whom he would compose many songs. For example, ‘Sem mais adeus’, included in “Os Seis Em Ponto”, his first album as part of the band of the same name, released in 1964 on the prestigious RGE label.Hime’s rhythmic piano swings between bossa and jazz along the entire record, with the typical groove of the then emerging Brazilian sound and the characteristic arrangements and solos of the American jazz genre. The complexity of the instrumentation present on the album already anticipates what would be the pianist’s later career as arranger and director of orchestras. But the instrumental depth does not diminish the infectious groove of many of the tracks on the album, a wonderful repertoire by such solid composers as Carlos Lyra, Roberto Menescal or Castro Neves, as well as absolute legends like Vinicius, Jobim or Edu Lobo.“Os Seis Em Ponto” is a representative record from the time of its making: the golden age of bossa jazz, full of sweet and luminous melodies, but also of energetic moments in which Francis Hime’s piano receives the brilliant backing of the flute and the trombone, or the effective guitar of Nelson Motta. Despite the young age of the whole band, their instrumental skills are beyond any doubt and this is proven by the masterful performances not only of the many classics contained in the album but also of Hime’s original compositions. Among the most notable cuts on the LP are ‘Mar azul’, ‘Se você pensar’, ‘Sem mais adeus’, ‘A paz de um homem so’, ‘Amor a Êsmo’ and ‘Borandá’.

[engl] Can you imagine a Dutch band playing top- notch 60s- 70s sounding Brazilian music? Originally released as a private pressing in 1983, Palmeiras only album will please any lover of bossa, jazzy and latin- fusion sounds. Beautiful femme vocals, superb musicianship featuring the awesome lead electric guitar of Jeanette van der Pligt, self- penned songs and choice covers of Caetano Veloso, João Gilberto and Rita Lee among others. Palmeira was a Brazilian styled band formed by Angelo Noce Santoro (ex- Cosmic Dealer) along with some Dutch, North American and Brazilian musicians. The group existed from 1979 till 1985, playing lots of gigs at jazz and night clubs in Holland. In 1983 they released their only album in a private edition of 500 copies on Angelos ANS label. A cult item for fans of Bossa- Jazz, it was first reissued as a limited edition in Japan, now long out of print. Heres a new reissue featuring no less than six bonus tracks on our CD edition. These bonus (one more over the previous Japanese CD release) come from Angelos tape archive and all of them were recorded the same year as the album, including some great covers of giants like Edu Lobo and Jorge Ben among others.

[engl] Reissue of 1966 MPB album by Quarteto Em Cy / Tamba Trio. Lots of Acapella in the foreground with a decent portion of Brazil rhythm and Latin moods.

[engl] 60s jazz holy grail LP outta California This album is on the extremely limited and sought after private press label HME. It's a deep, Latin, Afro/Cuban-influenced, primarily acoustic jazz piece. Influences range from the cerebral to the soulful, but it defies any one-dimensional tag like "spiritual jazz" or "soul-jazz" or "jazz-funk." Heralding from L.A. and led by pianist Reggie Andrews, it doesn't sound particularly "west coast." It's a beautiful session all around, really something special and profound. In recent years, Reggie Andrews has taught, mentored, and produced many talented musicians including Patrice Rushen, Terrace Martin, Ndugu Chancler, and the Dazz Band who wrote "Let it Whip" along with his close friend Leon Ndugu Chancler. He is the founder of the jazz-fusion group Karma He worked with Earth, Wind & Fire, produced Moacir Santos for Blue Note Records and served as "Electronics Consultant" for Donald Byrd, and mentoring The Pharcyde to J.Dilla.

[engl] Renata Lu is a bit of a mystery figure... She only made a few albums in the 1970s and sang backup on many more such Tim Maia and Nonato Buzar but for whatever reasons never seemed to make it into the MPB upper echelons. Debuted solo in 1971on her self-titled album for Copacabana Records with a heavyweight fusion of US style soul and funk with added Latin percussion. This features Renata Lu singing over a hybrid samba/boogaloo backing track rich in jaunty bass, rasping horns and jazzy electric piano riffs. Rare LP finally reissued on a deluxe edition. One of the landmarks of Funk Carioca.

[engl] Sweet Soul Funk from 70s Brazil. Ronie aka Ronaldo Mesquita, the drummer of Bossa Três Combo! This album's got a smoother groove and luxurious use of Fender Rhodes, gliding alongside sweet samba soul arrangements in a mode that's a bit like some of the funkier 70s work by João Donato. Reissue on vinyl for the first time in a 180 gram heavyweight vinyl.

[engl] This isn’t just a seminal album. It is an estuary. All the black rivers that would form Brazilian funk/hip–hop flow through it. Led by Paulista pianist Salvador Silva Filho – Dom Salvador – "Som, Sangue, e Raça" from 1971, one year after the explosion of Tim Maia on the scene, catalyzed the bossa nova and jazz background of its leader with the rhythm and blues of its members like saxophonist Oberdã Magalhães, nephew of samba–enredo master Silas de Oliveira and future leader of Banda Black Rio, who since the group Impacto 8 (which had, among others, Robertinho Silva on drums and Raul de Souza on trombone) had already been trying to reconcile MPB with Stevie Wonder and James Brown. Add to all this a mixture of samba, Nordestino accent, and even the black side of the Jovem Guarda represented by the authorial presence of Getúlio Cortes (older brother of Gerson King Combo, our James Brown "cover") in ’Hei! Você’. Alongside these elements and the presence of Rubão Sabino (bass), who still called himself ’Rubens’, drummer Luis Carlos (another member of Black Rio), the record enlists the trumpet and flugelhorn of symphonic musician Darcy in place of the original Barrosinho (yet one more founder of Black Rio), who was traveling during the recording but would end up being a leading force of the band. The album ’Som, Sangue e raça’ paves the way for future generations of musicians and producers of the Carioca scene at the beginning of the 1970s. The lyrics that dealt with the question of race and the explosive fusion of samba, soul, jazz, and funk, elaborated by Dom Salvador and his troupe, Abolição, established the bases for the development of new sounds and tendencies in Brazilian music.

[engl] Ultimate space-age exotica trip from Venezuela. In the early 70s, well-known composer and arranger Chelique Sarabia (who penned the famous “Ansiedad” when he was just a kid) decided to register an album of traditional & folkloric songs from Venezuela but giving them a modern touch, using especially developed equipment (M.R.A.A.), based off of the principles of the Moog. Chelique, helped by a team of gifted musicians, employed traditional instruments like the cuatro and the bandola llanera, filtering them through oscillators, playing with feedback, tape delay, synthesized frequencies, echoing sounds… The result was “Revolución Electrónica en Música Venezolana”, an album with a truly exotic, psychedelic, and ahead of its time sound. Originally, the album was sponsored by the Shell Company in Venezuela, given away to customers, employees and friends of the company as a Christmas gift in 1973. It was titled “4 Fases del Cuatro - Música Venezolana desarrollada Electrónicamente por Chelique Sarabia” (“4 Phases of Four – Venezuelan Music Electronically Developed by Chelique Sarabia”). Once the exclusivity period with the petrol company was over, Chelique did a commercial release, this time under the name of “Revolución Electrónica en Música Venezolana” (“Electronic Revolution in Venezuelan Music”). Thanks to this, Chelique and his team were considered electronic music pioneers in Latin America. “In the past five decades, there have been many attempts at modernizing the vast folkloric tradition of Venezuela, but nobody has reached the level of depth that CHELIQUE SARABIA did when he put his impeccable reputation as a composer and arranger at risk with this out-of-the-blue revolutionary musical manifesto in 1971. 47 years later, an album that remains ahead of its time.” - Alex Figueira (Fumaça Preta)

[engl] This EP was born from magical and psychedelic experience combining electric hypnotizing rhythms and Mururi (Uitoto) songs, creating a new sound that emerges from the mystical wisdom of the Colombian Amazon. It is a musical dialogue between producer and composer Miguel Navas known as Savan and ancestral grandfather Reinaldo Giagrekudo -guardian of ancient knowledge of rituals, dances, nature, myths, “mambe” (the original form in which coca plants are consumed in the Amazon) and chants- gathered in this two songs devoted to the arrival of abundance, the sun and Buinaima. They are written with a series of rhythms that comes form the heart of the amazon using the sounds of birds, frogs, insects and variations of the Maguaré and mini Maguaré drums, to recreate a sonic palette and a cosmic wake up call.

[engl] This is cool jazz album all the way around. From the black and white hand drawn to the fact that it came out of Fresno, California (not exactly a hotbed for jazz) to the handful of styles present (straight ahead, funky, free, and even a raga), this record’s got it going on. High quality musicianship and some far out stoner tracks make this album stand head and shoulders above most of its private peers. Original very limited issue (rumor has it that only 300 were pressed). This album was a very limited press that was handed out at their shows and sold to local record stores. Only together for nine months, Mike Selesia (who plays Sax and Flute) and band recorded this album in one day presented this fascinating hybrid of early 60s Coltrane, early 70s Miles Davis.

[engl] By the time Sexteto Miramar’s groundbreaking “¡Salsa! Mi hermana” LP was released in 1968 they had been performing for over a decade and had gone through changes in both personnel and instrumentation. Formed in Medellín as a children’s “murguita” (little holiday party band) that used to annoy the neighbors, they quickly grew into a hot teen combo specializing in Cuban and Colombian music with accordion and sax arrangements in a conjunto (small group) format, eventually recording for local labels including Zeida. During this time the group had several hits that became standards (later covered by domestic and foreign artists) including ‘Carruseles’ and ‘Cumbia del sol’. By the mid-1960s the old band had dissolved and original founding member and bandleader/arranger Hernán Builes had formed a new outfit, signing with Zeida rival Discos Fuentes. Miramar then recorded an obscure album of tropical music called “Cumbias con El Miramar”, sounding much like their earlier records.However, inspired by New York’s Joe Cuba Sextet and La Playa Sextet (as well as the savvy record label head Don Antonio Fuentes), several years later Builes decided to swap the folkloric accordion for the more contemporary sounding electric guitar, piano and vibes and signed a new contract with Fuentes under the name Sexteto Miramar. During this period Miramar featured several vocalists who would later go on to greater fame, including Humberto Muriel, Johnny Moré and Rodolfo Aicardi. The newly minted Sexteto Miramar were perhaps the first Colombian group to use the term “salsa” as a musical genre when they recorded “¡Salsa! Mi hermana”. The record was also their first album as a sextet under their new name, instrumentation and membership. Humberto Muriel has said that back in the late 1960s Colombians became instant fans of the sextet and their records “because nobody here dared to [play or] record this music”, what later would become known as Nuyorican salsa. He has also said that Builes led the band with a firm hand, being responsible for the tight musicianship and interesting arrangements, unusual for such young musicians.The album features several originals as well as cover versions of New York Latin and Cuban tunes first popularized by Orquesta América del ‘55, Tito Rodríguez, Celia Cruz, Sabú Martínez, La Playa Sextet, Joe Cuba Sextet and the Peruvian group Pepe Moreno y su All-Star Band. As to how Builes came up with the album’s signature tune, ‘Salsa Boogaloo’ (which explicitly references The Bronx and Manhattan as well as Maracaibo and Lima), he had most likely been listening to Venezuelan radio broadcasts of the new Latin records by artists such as Pete Rodriguez, Ricardo Ray and Johnny Colón coming out of New York, which had been described as “salsa” since 1966 by bohemian disc-jockey Phidias Danilo Escalona. With this fresh approach and the aid of Discos Fuentes, Miramar’s fame quickly spread from Medellín to Cali, Buenaventura, Bogotá and beyond. According to Muriel, the fact that “¡Salsa! Mi hermana” did not have any overtly Colombian genres like cumbia and instead concentrated on foreign sounds such as guajira, mambo, charanga, bolero, guaguancó, guaracha, boogaloo and salsa meant that the band was consciously trying to update Colombian tastes. “We were in that story, we were living what was happening with Antillean music [at the time], for instance bringing salsa and boogaloo to Colombia,” explains Muriel. This was the first of many bands and recordings to come out of Discos Fuentes in the salsa genre, and as such it deserves special consideration, though it is certainly the incredible music contained within the record’s groves that will insure its popularity in this lovingly restored reissue.

[engl] The Silvery Boys was created in 1965 in the district of Campo Grande, Rio de Janeiro, featuring a unique blend of organ, guitar, bass, drums, trumpet, and trombone. They became known as "The Famous Bandinha de Campo Grande” and released their debut album on RGE in 1967.At the end of the 60s, the sound of the garage beat and the bossa nova and samba coexisted smoothly in the repertoire of a good number of Brazilian bands. You could find playful farfisa licks and guitar riffs combined with moving bossa rhythm drum patterns and powerful brass arrangements, groovy club tunes next to lounge mood sounds, across the tracklist of so many albums released at the time. That is exactly what the second album of The Silvery Boys (1968) comprises.Band members José Carlos (trombone) and Fernando Soares (guitarra) sign most of the songs on this self-titled record that also includes some versions of the Spanish famous Duo Dinámico, ‘Amor amargo’ and ‘A Recordar’, as well as other international hits (Tommy James & The Shondells’ ‘Gone, Gone, Goner’). However, ‘Você Balança Meu Coração’ -composed by José Messias- is the stand-out cut here and became a much sought-after club tune after being included in the second volume of the cult compilation series “High Jazz” in the early 00s. A dance song so irresistible that makes the search for this elusive Brazilian album worthwhile.After years unavailable and with originals currently selling for outrageous prices, we are thrilled to offer The Silvery Boys LP, reissued on vinyl for the first time in its original artwork and quality 180g pressing.

[engl] Impressive jazz–rock–fusion with progressive, funk, afro–caribbean and Zeuhl elements courtesy of multi–cultural French band SYNCHRO, featuring an impressive cast of French, African, Afroamerican, Antillean and Martiniquens musicians: drummer Steve McCall (AIR, CECIL TAYLOR), sax player Jo Maka (INTERCOMMUNAL FREE DANCE MUSIC ORCHESTRA), violinist Jean–Yves Rigaud (ZAO), electric guitar player Gerard Curbillon (SPEED LIMIT), pianist Georges–Edouard Nouel (NOEL Mc GHIE & SPACE SPIES), bass player Louis Xavier (LADJA). Synchro was iniatilly created by legendary drummer Eddy Gaumont but after his unexpected death, Louis Xavier took the control. Soon after, they recorded a couple of albums for French label Moshé–Naïm, created by the famous patron of the arts of the same name. "Lambi" was released in 1972 housed in a beautiful gatefold cover, featuring liner notes by jazz critic Maurice Cullaz and BYG’s Pierre Lattés. Here, you’ll find Zeuhl grooves a la Magma–ZAO–Soft Machinhe ("Rigibo"), jazz–funk–breaks galore ("ABCD"), afro–latin–jazz ("Pasto", "Rete"); library jazz funk ("El Gason") and outstanding jazz–rock–prog. Here’s the first ever vinyl reissue, expanded to a double album including some essential bonus tracks taken from the recording sessions.

[engl] Recorded Live at S. Paulo in 1982 it was originally issued on Amado Maita’s small indie label in the 80s called Poitou. Featuring one of the best Brazilian Sax Players, the legendary Nestico and his sister composer, piano player Lilu. Nestico joined several Jazz ensembles in São Paulo, having participated in 1977 in the first Jazz festival held at the Municipal Theater, alongside the musicians Samuel (piano), Nilson (bass) and Caram (drums). He performed several times in São Paulo with Syncro Jazz group. In 1982 released with the ensemble the LP "Syncro Jazz – Live", along with the musicians Lilu Aguiar (piano), Peter Wooley (bass), Vidal (sax and flute), Dagmar (trumpet) and Ronny Machado ( drums). In the repertoire, the songs "Pro César", dedicated to pianist César Camargo Mariano, "Winter know" and "Black Cock", all by Lilu Aguiar, "For Guzi" (Peter Wooley), "Cruzan" (M. Santamaria) and Revelation (S. Fortune). The LP contains amazing Fender Rhodes solos in a Heavy Modal Spiritual and Bossa Jazz a la Strata–East & Black Jazz Records.