Latin 45's/Mr Bongo レコード& CD

Review: Two previously rare Julio Ernesto 'Fruko' Estrada productions on one super-juicy 45! First up are The Afrosound with a cover of The Chakachas' instantly recognisable "Fiebre En La Jungla". Throwing an array of steamy, sensuous vocal textures, it will cause some serious heat on any floor whose dancers knows the original. We remain in Columbia on the B as one of Wganda Kenya's rarest Disco Fuentes 45s gets a revisit. Heavily percussive cumbia laced with rich organ-primed funk, things get really hypnotic when the groove strips back to the insistent rhythm devices.

Review: Heavyweight Latin funk from 1968: In case you're unacquainted, "Happy Soul" is the ultimate super-swing sample source of Christina Aguilera's "Ain't No Other Man", and remains the most distinctive cut in Cortez & The Moon People's extensive repertoire. We head over to Cuba for the B-side as La Lupe digs deep with a sun-splashed salsa cover of "Fever". Swelteringly good.

Review: An extra special 45: Jack Costanzo's nickname Mr Bongo inspired the label's very name. One of the most prolific band leaders of his time, the drum-heavy "Jive Samba" was originally released on Tico in 1968 on his Latin Percussion With Soul album. For more percussive precocity flip for Al Escobar's take on Archie Bell & The Drells' classic northern soul anthem "Tighten Up". First released as The Modern Sound Of Al Escobar, original pressings have long since vanished or found a place in collections, making this an even more attractive release.

Review: Founded by Julio Ernesto Estrada and heavily inspired by the Fania All-Stars, legendary Latin funk troupe Fruko Y Sus Tesos delivered over 10 albums during their 30 year tenure. Most prolific in the mid 70s, these cuts are taken from the band's prime; "El Preso" is a firing mambo that dynamically strips back to just a raw piano backbone before building up with its overwhelmingly tight horns. Things get a little strange on the B as the band over Swing Sextet's "Bang Bang" with warped, wonderful and ultimately psychedelic results. Stunning.

Review: Monster reissue from Mr Bongo off shoot label Latin 45's....Massive dance floor filler !!

Review: Wanna hear the Isley Brothers classic "It's Your Thing" given a Latin shakedown? Mr Bongos have got you covered on the latest 7" in their splendid Latin 45s series! Originally issued back in 1974 on TR Records, this Los Africanos cover is a rum heavy Nu Yorican funk-soul instrumental featuring screaming Hammond organ and FX. It's very expensive in original form now, so shout outs to Mr Bongos for pressing it up here along with an equally good 1968 cover of instrumental, boogaloo version of Eddie Floyd's all-time classic "Knock On Wood" from Machito & His Afro-Cubans.

Review: Mr Bongo have united two hugely influential cuts of pure Latin dynamite right here - neither of which have ever been pressed to 7" before. The familiar far-west-meets-north-African fusion of Sabu's "Hotel" still hits as hard now as it did in the 70s. With screaming horns and emphatic Q&A vocals, there's still nothing else out there that sounds anything like this. For the B we head back to the 50s for a bone fide Cuban missile; "Babarabatiri". A firing jazz document that's been covered by the likes of Tito Puente, Quantic and many more, those spiralling horns will arrest you the second the needle hits the wax.

Review: Two concentrated slabs of Latin funk fusion from the king... "Black Brothers" first landed on Tito's eponymous Fania-released album in 1973 and has never been released on 45". With warm, smiling sonics and tale-telling drama composed throughout, it sums up Tito's influence and character succinctly. "Hit The Bongo" came our way three years earlier. Driven by a snake-like conga and tight orchestration, it also comes complete with one of Tito's neatest naked drum breaks ever recorded.

Review: First up: Tito Puente (AKA The Musical Pope) with an epic live version of "2001 Space Odyssey". Recorded at Carnegie Hall in 1974 it's never been pressed to 45 during its highly sought-after 41 years. Flip for the hard jazz sounds of Sahib Shihab and "Om Mani Padme Hum" is riddled with thundering percussion and lightening crack pianos. It has flutes so frenetic they'd make Ian Anderson blush and takes its name from an ancient Sanskrit word. Biblical business.