Latin | Brazil Vinyl 165 Items

After moving to New York City in 1978, Mikio Masuda crafted "Corazón" alongside composer / pianist Dave Matthews, notable collaborator of the likes of Nina Simone, Idris Muhammad, Yusef Lateef and Buddy Rich. Originally released on the japanese fusion jazz label Electric Bird in 1979, this also represents his first recording outside of Japan, at the famous Electric Lady studios in New York. The album features a cover of Carole King's "Corazón", Sadao Watanabe's tune "Samba Em Praia", the caribbean vibe "Ride On The Donkey", "Another Rainy Day In New York City"/"Love Talkin" played in the pure Bob James style, as well as a variation of Masuda's classic "Let's Get Together". Now available on vinyl for the first time since its original release as a limited edition of 500 copies with japanese OBI strip.

Originally released in 1970 this was the third album from Os Mutantes, the geniuses of wacked out Brazilian psychedelic rock. They may have been trying to pay homage to their better known icons back in the States, but in doing so they created something that went beyond all that until, 30 years later, they became the ones that everyone was trying to imitate. This album, further testimony to their limitless creativity and considered by many to be their best, was recorded during the height of the Brazilian military regimes crack down on artists, and fellow members of the Tropicalia movement, Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil had already been sent into exile in the UK.

Considered one of the masterpieces of seventies psychedelic, his second album, released in 1973, is the result of a partnership with Tibério Gaspar (author of: "Sá Marina", "br-3" and "Teletema"). The album was recorded at Rádio Gazeta Studios in São Paulo, with the participation of musicians already known as: Wagner Tiso on synthesizer, Luiz Claudio Ramos on arrangements and conducting, Lanny Gordin on guitar, Oberdan Magalhães on flute and Guilherme himself playing guitar and piano. Guilherme died on August 7, 2018, at the age of 67, due to health complications. But the timelessness of his work has been revisited by the new generation of artists and audiences.

Everaldo Marcial aka Évé, born in 1951 and raised in Sao Paulo, fled the Brasilian dictatorship in 1974 to settle in France. Canto Aberto, originally released on the Free Lance label in 1979, is his one and only sought-after recording, made before he moved to the US in the early 80s and decided to quit music. Recorded with Parisian musicians, noteworthy fellow expatriate Manduka on one song and the African American saxophonist Bruce Tobe Grant as musical director, the music of Évé will please fans of Egberto Gismonti, Nana Vasconselos, Milton Nascimento, Edu Lobo... This first vinyl reissue is remastered from the original master tapes by Frank Merritt at The Carvery

In Summer 1977, Syndicate band from Las Cruces, New Mexico, recorded and released this album "Conveyance". It is the only recording the band ever released. Super rare Latin Funk album from New Mexico with a killer cover of Curtis Mayfield and the Sisters Love masterpiece "Give Me Your Love".

Favorite Recordings proudly presents a reissue of the first and eponymous LP by Esperanto, a Venezuelan JazzFusion masterpiece originally released in 1980. This rare and sought-after album recorded in Caracas by talented musicians could be likened to the best of the South American scene with strong Funk & Latin influences. Following the recent reissue of Sacbé, this one is a little wonder and a must-have for anyone interested in Latin Jazz-Funk & Fusion. Fully remastered and available as Gatefold Tip-On Vinyl LP and CD. Like most bands, the story first started as a series of jam sessions. Multi-instrumentist Jorge Aguilar and his drummer Pablo Matarazzo were playing in a band, covering a various number of Latin genres from Merengue to Salsa and playing at parties, even though they were mostly influenced by Jazz or Funk, but also British Rock or Brazilian music. Still, they were dreaming about a real band. Thus, while some of their friends were on vacations in Venezuela during their studies at Music school in Boston and New York, they immediately organized jam sessions. First impros luickly became songs and Pablo and Jorge were finally joined by Roldan Peña, Gustavo Arranguren, Ezequiel Serrano, Marcus Vinicius and Nenè Quintero. With the help of a friend, they recorded songs and brought those tracks to radio stations. Without realizing it, the group gained a certain notoriety in Caracas and began to give shows that became quite famous. Sometimes, they had to play two times in the same night with people still waiting outside! With the money earned, they kept recording their songs but now in a quite better studio. The album was taking its final shape, with an exciting blend of Funk, Fusion and Jazz-Rock elements, all mixed with Latin music influences. With an extensive use of synthesizers, the tracks sounded like a fresh wind blowing over the city of Caracas. After bringing a few friends to record their parts, the album was then offered to CBS for distribution – some of their executives had just become fans after experiencing one of their amazing gigs! But in exchange, they also had to record two more commercial songs, a cover of "Ticket To Ride" by The Beatles, and “Vereda Tropical", a classic in the Latin market. Jorge reminds: "The rest of the songs were compositions by myself and by other members of the band. The album was recorded in its entirety almost live, that is, all of us playing together and without many overdubs because we did not have many tracks nor money to pay studio time. Certainly, we were one of the bands that started the Fusion jazz movement in Venezuela and the most recognized because we managed to be played a lot on the radios and we filled the largest number of concerts as well as obtained the largest number of sales". The band kept recording other albums, notably with Warner Bros after the label was again really impressed by their opening show for Peter Frampton Comes Alive Tour one night in Caracas. Jorge adds: "Today if you ask people around 60 years old in Venezuela about a Fusion group, they will tell you that Esperanto is the band they remember! I think the most significant thing about the Esperanto band is that it was quite naïve since we were all in our early 20s and we did everything just for the pleasure of playing without thinking about the conomic aspects of the industry".

Manfredo Fest who is a blind genius pianist, and pop bossa evangelist alongside Sergio Mendes. Brazilian Fusion Classic "Who Needs It" and "Jungle Kitten" from "Manifestations" in 1979 is released 7inch for the first time!

After NEF's album in 2019, Ici Bientôt is happy to present today the reissue of Comme Au Moulin by Nyssa Musique. Paris 1985... ‘Extra-European’ Traditions meet Jazz and Minimal Music. An unusual array of instruments turn music into a dialogue. For a unique record ... vivid, full of texture, somewhere between Midori Takada, Don Cherry and Jon Hassell. Beginning of the eighties, 5 musicians rehearse in a contemporary dance class hall, upstairs from the ‘’New Morning", renowned Music venue in Paris. Nyssa Musique is born. Passionate for a long time about traditional music, like those of the Middle East, India and East Asia, but also about African traditions, they throw a bridge between Jazz and ‘Extra-European’ traditions, resulting in what would be called "Spiritual Jazz" today, a little bit in the style of Don Cherry's Organic Music or Pharoah Sanders. With the notable difference, however, that their creations are strongly infused by contemporary classical and repetitive music, notably Steve Reich's work with whom they share a great interest for the traditional cultures of Southeast Asia, particularly Indonesia and its gamelans. In the original group we have Armand Amar, Ballet Music composer and John Boswell. Both specialists of traditional hand percussion which they had been studying for a long time in India and the Middle East, they are also very fond of synthesizers. Three other talented musicians quickly join them: Jean-François Roger, percussionist, marimba and vibraphone specialist, Henri Tournier, multi-flutist and Renaud Garcia-Fons, double bass player, who has a passion for the Middle East and has developed a virtuosic play of the bow, reminding that of Cecil Mc Bee. Each of them enriches the ensemble with their personality, originality and musical generosity. The rehearsal hall is rapidly invaded by the phenomenal instrumentarium put together by Armand Amar. A great opportunity for the musicians, for the dancers, to have access to an endless choice of instruments, offering infinite possibilities for mixing different colors and timbres. Their sense for being a group and their great capacity for improvising culminates, in 1985, in the composition of their first and only album Comme au Moulin (« As by the windmill"), testimony of years of creating without hidden agenda. Authentic, free and vibrant, still today, this album has no real equivalent. Even though it recalls the Fourth World current by its combination of traditional instruments with a subtle use of synthesizers, Comme au moulin gives more space to improvisation. It may also recall those of Midori Takada, less the New Age esthetics. An album that should delight as well lovers of "Love Supreme" by John Coltrane, of "Vernal Equinox" by Jon Hassell, as those of Moondog, an artist who, like them, invented a music based on the use of untypical percussions, at the confluence of 'Extra-European' traditions, Jazz and Classical, all together complex and hypnotic.

Favorite Recordings proudly presents an exclusive eponymous LP by Brazilian singer and composer George Sauma Jr., originally produced in 1985. Imagine a never-marketed release on which you’d hear not only the beautiful and genuine George’s songs but also the work from two figures of the Brazilian Music Golden Age: Arthur Verocai and Junior Mendes! A much-needed album for all Brazilian connoisseurs. Back in the days, George Sauma Jr. was a young artist from Rio de Janeiro, learning on his side how to play chords and compose songs since he was 10. Still at the university, he’s influenced by Brazilian artists like Cassiano or Tim Maia, deeply fascinated by the arrangements and the “levada” (the groove) of all these new Brazilian songs. Simple and romantic music that resonated to his soul and creativity. Around 1985, the story took an unexpected turn. George tells: “Dna Deyse Lucidy, the mother of Junior Mendes was a candidate for deputy and went to my father’s company to advertise. When I saw her, I shouted, “I’m a big fan of your son!” ” Of course, she could not praise more the work of her son. On her advises, George went to his studio on Rua Siqueria Campos at Copacabana. Junior loved the project and sent him to Arthur Verocai to improve the arrangements. Without money, the decision was taken to record everything at Junior Mendes’ studio on an 8-channel mixer. It was a small set-up but the emotions were there! George surely had other plans for some of his songs but without the budget, they ended up doing everything the best they could. And they did very fine with a top-notch team of musicians: Paulo Black on Drums, Arthur Verocai on Guitar, Ricardo Do Canto on Bass and Helvius Vilela on Keyboards. Leaving the studio with the tapes, George tried to knock doors of international labels, but none did even dare to give him an answer. With less than 1000 copies pressed back in the days and without any distributor or label behind him, he went with proud to record stores, but received nothing than a strong reality check regarding the difficulties for a young Brazilian artist to achieve something on the saturated market of the 80s. Even for free, record stores didn’t want it. In the end, he ended up giving copies to friends and families, knowing deep inside that the songs were good! George tells: “I decided to leave, calm and conscious. I’ve still made three more albums, however on tapes, as it was more affordable. This time, just for my pleasure…”. Thirty-five years after, it’s with great emotion that this first album by George Sauma Jr. is now made available as Vinyl LP with its original offset printed innersleeve & CD.

Gerardo Manuel left behind his deepest beat days with The Dolton’s and the Shain’s, plus his garage psych stage with St Thomas Pepper Smelter. At the beginning of the seventies he was joined by a new band formed by other illustrious Peruvian musicians, called El Humo because, according to Ernesto Samamé (We All Together) they met to play unpretentiously, to test the new sound equipment of the Virrey label. The first of the albums was "Apocallipsis" (1970). It was followed in 1971 by the conceptual "Machu Picchu 2000" in which he used all his imagination to tell us about the resurgence of the Inca empire after the third world war that broke out at half past five on December 31, 1999. Songs of lysergic melodies, with Latin touches, give life to this album that looks for peace in the world. Unique and memorable albums, essential for any discography with the best of South American music from the sixties.

Debut album by the influential gaucho musician Gelson Oliveira, in partnership with the drummer Luiz Ewerling, released independently in 1983, with minimal resources. In spite of all this, they made a unique and very beautiful album, with a spectacular musicality, a mix of sounds, ranging from jazz, funk and fusion.

Mandala made only one eponymous album, recorded in 1971 but released only in 1976. A very rare and influential album, featuring future members of Grupo Um (Nazário and Zeca Assumpção who also played with Hermeto and Egberto Gismonti) and Pau Brasil (Nelson Ayres) - two seminal bands from the Brazilian instrumental scene of the 80s. The sound is a mix of Jazz Fusion with a Brazilian footprint - with a dash of psychedelic atmosphere and the spiced influence of oriental music.

The third installment of this reissue series brings us the dreamy sounds of Kip Carmen & Danny Horton, two seasoned musicians telling us the story about a very special island. At the time of recording in 1980, Kip had already enjoyed a successful career in the entertainment industry after getting signed to Hi Records in Memphis and working together with artists such as Al Green and Jimmy Allen Smith. He then teamed up with Danny and a few other musicians starting a residency at the Long Island night club 'The Lion's Cage' where they played every Sunday night. Originally released on 7" only, the two songs have now been restored from the original master tapes and are pressed on a 12" including a previously unreleased extended version containing a part that was originally left out.

Deluxe Edition pressed on 180 grams vinyl. Iconic and much sough after self titled LP by Piry Reis now re-issued as a deluxe edition containing an extra bonus track (spaced out Jazz interpretation of No Risco Do Relâmpago). After playing for several years with Egberto Gismonti group and other prominent Brazilian acts, Piry decided to record this album which was originally released in 1980 featuring a special guest appearance by Egberto Gismonti.

Les Ya Toupas is a band formed in 1976 by Bopol Mansiamina (Bass - Success Mode, 4 Stars ..), Manuaku Waku (aka Grand Zaiko Wawa) and Ray Lema (Piano, Organ and Guitar) Between 1976 and 1978, they recorded several 7inches including the famous title “Je ne bois pas beaucoup” (1976) compiled on the series of Sofrito (Tropical Discotheque ) in 2011. In 1978, they recorded this unique and unclassifiable instrumental album, Les Ya Toupas du Zaïre, produced by Gérard Akueson (founder of Akue Records and Abeti's producer). The LP is composed of minimalist Afro Jazz rhythms and Deep Funk grooves that are close at times to a tropical trance, all played by musicians who used to offer more classic Rumba rhythms. It is their only album before the departure in 1979 of Ray Lema for the United States and then France. Ray Lema's departure follows a violent disagreement which opposed him to the dictator Mobutu then in place in Zaïre. Let's not forget that the album was released in 1978 and can be seen as their last musicial project.

Record Store Day 2020 Release.
Limitation: 1000 copies.

180g vinyl reissue of the mega rare Mexican-only Luiz Eτa album from 1970 in facsimile artwork and remastered sound.The Brazilian pianist and founder member of Tamba Trio is accompanied here by a large group of top-notchBrazilian musicians.

Due to the independent nature and limited run of the original release, Brazilian Dorian Dream has to this day remained almost impossible to find on vinyl.Far Out Recordings is proud to make this masterpiece available to new audiences with a remastered vinyl, CD and digital reissue in 2020.

We have the great honour of presenting to you the first official reissue of the last project of Gerardo Manuel´s trilogy with Humo . Recorded in 1973 in the style of his previous two albums, although this is the most progressive. As the lyrics leant toward social protest, the military in power didn´t want this music to be popular and as a result of this most of the copies were destroyed. This has made the album extremely rare and an authentic lost jewel of South America Rock.

180 gram pressing. Great pearl of brazilian rock, Pao com Manteiga (Bread and Butter) was a group from Sao Paulo that was formed in the mid 70’s and released only one album in 1976.

Impressive jazz-rock-fusion with progressive, funk, afro-caribbean and Zeuhl elements courtesy of multi-cultural French band SYNCHRO, featuring 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)…

First ever vinyl reissue of this fabulous French / West Indies afro-jazz-funk-caribbean-fusion album from 1976, originally released on the Moshé-Naïm label by poet-singer-painter FRANCK VALMONT, accompanied by multicultural progressive jazz-rock band SYNCHRO.

Featuring JO MAKA (Intercommunal Free Dance Music Orchestra) on sax, LOUIS XAVIER on bass & fuzz-bass, GEORGES NOUEL on electric piano and organ, GERARD CURBILLON from Magma related prog-fusion band SPEED LIMIT on electric guitar, YVES DOLPHIN on drums…

This is a 180 gram pressing. Polysom re-issue of Legiao Urbana S/T debut album from 1985 to get first ever vinyl release.

AN HISTORIC NIGHT FOR LATIN MUSIC AS 40,000 FANS POURED INTO THE YANKEE STADIUM IN NEW YORK. TWO SETS WERE PLANNED, THE FIRST BEING A TRADITIONAL ONE, THE SECOND WAS NEVER COMPLETED AS A FRENZIED CROWD RUSHED THE PLAYING FIELD AND THE STAGE, ENDING THE NIGHT. LEGENDARY!

Polysom official reissue and 180 gram pressing.

1970’s best-kept Bossa Nova secret. Surrounded by mystery for nearly 50 years due to its obscurity, this is one of the most honest, personal and unpretentious albums of its genre. A selection of 12 exquisitely crafted songs supported by measured, subtle arrangements.
The list of musicians born or raised in the Tijuca district of Rio de Janeiro is long and illustrious and includes names that have shaped Brazilian music: Tom Jobim, Roberto Carlos, Tim Maia, Milton Nascimento, Jorge Ben or Erasmo Carlos – to mention but a few. We can now add to that list another name: Werther. In 1970, a man by that name recorded an album unique in its personality, its honesty, and its lack of pretense. In a time when Bossa Nova had become a global phenomenon and its main characters were already household names in Brazil, Werther assembled a collection of songs that uncannily – almost naively – remind us of the time when Bossa Nova was just a group of youngsters making music. His songs are about simple things: bohemian life, the sea, love.
Despite Werther and his friends being only in their teens, without any previous experience recording music, those working behind the scenes were not equally amateur. Producer Peter Keller had already worked with Aloysio De Oliveira in the quintessential Bossa Nova label Elenco, and was also an initial partner in Roberto Quartin’s cult label Forma. Studio owner Bill Horne was a very loved character in the Rio jazz scene who had regularly taken part in the legendary meetings in Nara Leão’s apartment and befriended some of Brazil’s most respected musicians. Some of these musicians were, for example, Naná Vasconcelos and Edison Machado, who provided small contributions to Werther’s album.
It was only in the 1990’s that Werther’s album was rediscovered by a handful of collectors and Brazilian music enthusiasts, who recognised in it a purity that had already vanished from the mainstream Bossa Nova recordings. But due to the haziness around the original release and the relative anonymity of its instigators, many questions surrounding these recordings were left unanswered. Today we are finally able to disclose the full story behind Werther’s short-lived contribution to Brazilian music.

Soundway Records presents the official vinyl release of George & Glen Miller’s 1979 hit “Easing” - encapsulating late 70s New York in its blend of disco, soul and Caribbean soca.
Restored, remastered and cut loud for the dancefloor, the 12” single features the original vocal on the A-side and the essential instrumental on the flip.
The Miller brothers’ musical journey began in Trinidad and Tobago in the early 70s. During their teenage years they formed The Groovy Millers - a five piece band made up of George, Glen and their three siblings. After a chance meeting with Lord Shorty, they went on to collaborate with one of the Soca stars of the time and firmly plant their feet in the Soca scene of the musically rich Caribbean island.
Of the five siblings it was George and Glen that pursued a career in music, and in the late 70s the two brothers made the move to North America to develop their music style. Disco dominated the airwaves at the time and a studio session with the prolific Frankie McIntosh resulted in the masterpiece that is Easing. Drawing influence from the blossoming disco and soul scene, George and Glen added Caribbean flavour to the New York sound to startling effect. Soft, subtle keys and guitars are punctuated with layered trumpet and violin riffs, complimenting George’s silken, restrained vocal. Frankie McIntosh’s arrangement shines through with what might be his finest work, placing this track on the mantle with other New York classics of the time.

MRBLP188 Beautiful debut album from the incredible, Célia. Conducted & arranged by Arthur Verocai and Rogério Duprat; featuring songs by Lo Borges, Antonio Adolfo and Joyce amongst others. Célia recorded four self-titled albums for Continental between 1971 and 1977, ‘Amor’ in 1982 plus several more before she sadly passed away late in 2017, aged 70. This is her debut album from 1970. Célia was a Brazilian vocalist who worked frequently with master arranger-composer Arthur Verocai in her early years and many other heavyweights over the course of her extensive career. Joyce was particularly supportive in the making of this album, writing the beautiful “Abrace Paul McCartney” and her husband at the time, Nelson Ângelo, recorded some of the songs.
Features an exclusive insert of a translated interview with Celia, completed in 2011 in her hometown of São Paulo. Focusing, in particular on her recording work with Arthur Verocai, it showcases her wonderful sense of humour and how she was embracing her new legion of fans, particularly in the world of hip hop. Official Mr Bongo reissue. Licensed from Warner Music.

The release comes on 180g vinyl. Brazilian singer, guitarist, teacher and composer Célia recorded four self-titled albums for Continental between 1971 and 1977, 'Amor' in 1982 plus several more before.This, her first self-titled LP from 1970, feature arrangements by Rogério Duprat, Pocho Perez, Arthur Verocai & José Briamonte.

Continuing the Cape Verde series Mar & Sol bring this fantastic masterpiece of an LP ”Nha D’stine” from the legendary singer Américo Brito and his band Djarama. Includes insert. TIP! Originally recorded in 1983 on a private press by Américo Brito , and now in 2018 we bring it back to life with the stamp of our label, from Mar & Sol records to all the world.

First ever reissue of the sixth album by Michi Sarmiento y sus Bravos, originally
released by Discos Fuentes in 1973. The LP includes several brilliant original songs
plus a number of excellent cover tunes, and a dizzyingly diverse mix of genres:
guanguancó, cumbelé, calypso, cumbión, rumba, paseo, gaita, merengue_ A tropical
Latin dance party! Presented in facsimile artwork and pressed on 180g vinyl.

This 180g LP is a Vinyl only release. Baiano & Os Novos Caetanos was a band formed by prolific and multi-talented Brazilian comedians Chico Anysio and Arnaud Rodrigues. Azymuth’s free and funky psych sounds combine with accordion, harmonica, brass and plenty of rural Brazilian rhythms, for a hugely varied album drawing on MPB, funk and soulful samba rock. The album also features Orlandivo who co-wrote many of the songs, and renowned multi-instrumentalist and producer Durval Ferreira.

Following the recent reissues of Jose Mauro's Obnoxius, Piri's Voces Querem Mate? and Victor Assis Brasil's Toca Antonio Carlos Jobim, Far Out Recordings presents a second album from Victor Assis Brasil from the treasure trove of the Quartin Records catalogue, Esperanto.

Nigeria’s Kingsley Bucknor’s ‘Just U and Me’ LP gets the long-awaited reissue treatment from Melbourne’s Left Ear Records. After cutting his teeth playing with Fela in the 70’s and releasing two afrobeat LP’s Kingsley travelled the globe before finding himself in London, it’s here that he laid down 6 distinctive electro-funk tunes inspired by African rhythms and music he’d heard through his travels in the States and in Europe. Originally issued on Kinglsley’s own KAB records in ’85 and according to Kingsley the release was well received at the time, but due to constraints of international marketing the record remained mostly unknown outside of his homeland. Fast-forward to 2017 and the stage is set for a new global audience to appreciate the distinct sound of KB.

Sought-after Brazilian LP from 1974 that touches on MPB, soul, jazz, disco and boogie. Official Mr Bongo reissue. Replica original artwork. Extremely expensive theses days, this one has been on our list for a while. As
sampled by Andres on his ‘Sing About It’ collaboration with Kenny Dixon Junior aka Moodymann and on Kaytranada’s Janet Jackson flip, ‘Alright’. Championed by the likes of Jazzanova, Floating Points, Hunnee and co.
The record features Arthur Verocai and Luis Bonfa (composer Octavio Burnier’s uncle) on production/arrangement.

After Sweet Sweet Dreams album, Jamwax is very proud to finally release D'Hardest on its original maxi 12'' format.
“D'Hardest” was recorded at K.H. studios in Trinidad in 1980 and another version/mix was released on the Wake Up album. This song is everything, thanks to Winston Bailey aka Shadow and all his team.

This late '60s Colombian cult-LP (originally on Discos Fuentes) with a really raw and hard sound sees a welcome reissue on 180-gram vinyl. 'Canabrava' is a collection of cover tunes in the guaguanco, son, guajira, descarga and cha-cha-cha rhythms.

Limited edition for Record Store Day 2017!

The release is on 180g vinyl and in a gatefold cover. Milton's second volume of tracks cut with his legendary "corner club" – with a very similar approach to the landmark first volume! Loads of great artists make guest appearances on here, like Lo Borges, Wagner Tiso, Toninho Horta, and Chico Buarque – and the production has haunting blend of baroque, jazz, and soul that we can only define as "Nascimento like"! A really fitting companion to the first volume, and a double-length set with tracks that include "E Dai", "Pao E Agua", "Canoa, Canoa", "Credo", "Nascente", "Meu Menino", "Que Bom, Amigo",

180g vinyl. Incredible stuff – the kind of obscure Brazilian 70s album that first got us into the music in the first place, and which keeps us digging through the racks for more and more over the years!

This release comes on 180g vinyl and is a totally great album from Novos Baianos; the earliest one we've ever seen by the group, and a session that has them sounding a fair bit like Os Mutantes.

Polysom Brazil vinyl LP repress import, released in 1973. Crazy stuff! This record is incredible, with a mix of amazing songs that piece together hard percussion, spare production and some of the strangest vocals ever recorded in Brazil.

Polysom Brazil vinyl LP repress import, released in 1973. Definitive Brazil 70s album, featuring the charasmatic and high pitched vocalist Ney Matogrosso. 180gram vinyl

180g Vinyl Edition

Altercat proudly presents the definitive reissue of one of the crown jewels of South American jazz. Essentially the brainchild of Argentinian jazz's leading figure Jorge López Ruiz, the project Viejas Raíces marked Lopez Ruiz's departure from the traditional forms of jazz. The trio that recorded this album, consisting of López Ruiz joined by his life-long friend drummer Pocho Lapouble and gifted Chilean pianist Matías Pizarro, created a thrilling blend of jazz and Uruguayan candombe, surrounded by an undeniable cinematic feel spurred by López Ruiz's long experience in the soundtrack field. When read as one element, the cleverly chosen combination of group name and album title (in English: 'Old Roots of the Colonies of the River Plate') readily hints at the kind of sounds the listener will be challenged with when diving into this LP.

In the 80s, Dimas “Sam Dimas” Pedroza was encouraged with two atypical projects. One in partnership with the great Larry Francia, another artist released by El Palmas Music, and titled La salsa es con Dimas y Larry. And the other with an orchestra of great artists of the time that El Palmas also proudly relaunches in 2024: Sam Dimas and La Diferente’s El Tumbao…, with songs by prestigious authors such as Joseíto Fernández and José González Giralt and arrangements by the renowned trombonist Rafael Silva.

It is worth mentioning the great musicians that Dimas Pedroza summoned for this album: Rafael Araujo, Lewis Vargas and Gustavo Aranguren (trumpets), Carlos Espinoza and Rafael Silva (trombones), José Ávila (piano), Rafael Prado (bass), Pedro Viloria (timbales, güiro), Williams (congas), Nene Pacheco (bongo, drum), Leo Pacheco, Rafael Silva and Rafael Prado (choirs). There were also some special guests: Alfredo Pollo Gil and Manuel Icazas (trumpets), Oscar Mendoza (trombone), Joe Santamaría and Chucho Chuchochi (timbal) and Edwin Infante (maracas). Sam Dimas y La Diferente’s El Tumbao… is an album that Dimas - who is 80 years old today and still lives in Caracas - never presented live. One of those hidden gems in the history of salsa that El Palmas is dedicated to rescuing to continue reconstructing the memory of Venezuelan popular music, one of its main objectives. At the time of its appearance it did not receive the attention it deserved, perhaps because at first glance you can only see the surface. “I met Dimas through Roberto Monserrat on Radio Emisora Venezuela. He was from La Pastora, San José, and worked in a hospital - says Federico Betancourt in the book La salsa de Federico Betancourt y su Combo Latino, published by the Editorial Foundation El perro y la rana -. They invited him to one of the Combo Latino rehearsals and he came. Honestly, at first I was very impressed by the timbre and the way he sang, but Monserrat and the other members of Combo Latino thought it was good and they convinced me to leave him in the group. The day of recording our first LP arrived and I listened to Dimas again and then I said to myself: “Damn, this dude really sings well! You should never get carried away by your first impression.”

The rescue of the only album by the La Solvencia Orquesta symbolizes very well the full meaning of the mission of the El Palmas label, stubborn in keeping the history of salsa alive in Venezuela, recovering the intrepid and genuine music with which the pillars of the salsa genre were built.

At the time this album appeared, originally released by the Corpodisco label in 1980, “guaguancó, guaracha, son and merengue were played, but Latin rhythms were not yet definitively labeled as salsa” says Felipe Díaz, singer of La Solvencia.

There were many orchestras of this type in Venezuela. Every season they used to visit dozens and dozens of towns to celebrate the festivities of different patron saints, popular celebrations in which people gave themselves up to dancing in an atmosphere of collective trance.

The combination of the natural and contagious groove of La Solvencia's songs with lyrics that paint with strokes as simple as they are accurate the daily life of ordinary people, their joys and disappointments, their urgencies and troubles, transformed the group into one of the favorites of the Venezuelan salsa public.

For the first time reissued, with the great contribution of Miguel de Deus's family in São Paulo, that supplied the amazing collection of photos for the 4 pages inner, inside the LP. This limited edition is a highly collectable for fans of brazilian soul, groove and psychedelia. It's our contribution to pay respect to one of the most important brazilian musicians of the late 60's and early 70's. Main brain of bands like OS Brazões and Assim Assado, he let us an amazing legacy for new generations. This is a small, but more than deserved homage to him, finally. Miguel de Deus was the protagonist of this amazing Afro-Funk movement, together with a group of “heavy” musicians, as they were called in those days of consolidation of a strong Black Power scene, mainly composed of black youth from the outskirts of the suburbs of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, where the movement took the name of Black Rio. Its raw Rock-Funk-Psychedelic-Tropicalia.

The name of the band and the cover of the disc explicitly reveal the influence: Secos&Molhados. Investing in androgenia, progressive rock and samba-soul, Assim Assado tried to be a response of the small CID label to the enormous success that the Secos&Molhados did to the young public.

Led by Miguel de Deus (formerly Os Brazões), who signed most of the compositions and assumed the guitar and vocals, the group never took off, leaving only this LP, now almost forgotten. Curiosity: in 1977 Miguel de Deus falls headlong into funk, casting the rather interesting (and rare) "Black Soul Brothers" Also repressed on Groovie Records.

Band formed by Miguel de Deus in 1974, inspired by the Secos&Molhados and making clear both in the name, which is copied from a song of Secos&Molhados, both on the cover of the band's only album. Also the visual was well androgen but the music, a mixture of psychedelic, Progressive and a strong touch of Brazilian Soul music. The only album that had the same name as the band, did not get repercussion despite presenting a lot of quality.

Now the repress of this rare pearl brings to the light the huge talent of Miguel De Deus.

El Palmas Music rescues a hidden gem of Venezuelan salsa

With the vinyl reissue of En La Conquista del Mundo Latino (1979), by the Salsa Suprema Orchestra, it pays a fair tribute to Larry Francia.

“Larry Francia's work deserves nothing less than transcendence,” says Miguel Álvarez, the Venezuelan musical collector and archaeologist who one day came across with this Salsa legend from his country without planning it and knew it was fair and necessary to spread this magnificent work.

Born in Barlovento, an Afro area of Venezuela where the drum rules, Larry Francia grew up in San Agustín del Sur, a Caracas neighborhood that is salsa territory par excellence. When he was barely 12 years old, Víctor Piñero, one of the most popular orchestra singers in Venezuela in the 60s, summoned him to record choirs. An early initiation that marked Larry forever and at the same time revealed his indisputable talent.

“His driving force is singing. If you're talking to him, he often stops talking to sing" says Álvarez. “He was a man who never stopped being a musician, even though his living conditions were never the best. And the legacy of Salsa Suprema is key to Venezuelan popular music.”

When that orchestra stopped working (there were no producers who supported their tours, their records were pirated in Spain in the 80s), Larry suffered an emotional breakdown and even gave up devoting himself to music for a few years. He was someone who undoubtedly lived for and through music.

Larry Francia left this world in 2023, but we are left with a fabulous album like En La Conquista del Mundo Latino, recovered from the chest of memories by Álvarez and the Suicide Diggerz collective, specialists in rescuing hidden gems. “It’s a collector's item of the most exquisite and least known Venezuelan salsa” he defines.

The El Palmas Music label - created by musician, DJ, designer and cultural agitator Maurice Aymard, whose base of operations is in Barcelona - has been committed since 2020 to making known the best and least visible of the rich heritage of the popular music from Venezuela. Now he is pleased to present the reissue of this fundamental album as a posthumous tribute to an artist with capital letters: the great Larry Francia.

Now-Again Records presents catalog-wide reissues of Latin music propellant Joe Bataan’s legendary Ghetto Records. Next up in the series - Joseph “Candido” RodrÌguez - Candido was mentored by Tito Punete, and his debut features a fantastic mix of fiery Salsa, Latin Jazz and Sweet Latin Soul. Ghetto Records was Joe Bataan’s way to get over on “The Man” and out of the ‘hood, a bold move by an artist looking for independence and creative control in an industry that had exploited his talents and treated him like chattel. As Bataan puts it today, “Ghetto Records was part of my journey, a stepping stone to everything else that I’ve done. I learned enough that it enabled me to get out of the box with my thinking, it showed me how to deal with adversity.” Like many dreams and schemes born of the street, this one was audacious, perhaps even reckless to a fault. Hatched from desperation yet full of hope Ghetto Records came crashing down shortly after its inception. The seven albums in its discography languished out of print - until now. These are the definitive reissues of these albums, licensed from Joe Bataan, with his oversight and input into a 16 page oversize book by Pablo Yglesias that details Bataan’s larger-than-imagination life and his little Latin label that could.

Out of print for ages, here’s a very welcome reissue of this Brazilian classic from 1974, licensed from Warner Brazil.

For the second instalment in our Cuban Classics series, we proudly present this sought-after slice of sublime Afro-Cuban jazz from 1976. It comes courtesy of one of Cuba’s most influential acts, Grupo Irakere. Founded in 1973 by Chucho Valdés (son of the Cuban pianist and bandleader Bebo Valdés) the group was home to many of Cuba’s finest musicians over the years. With an electrifying style and sound, they mixed traditional Cuban music with jazz, funk, and rock.

This self-titled album includes the much-loved, dancefloor heavy-hitter 'Chequeré-Son’, a Latin-jazz funk masterpiece with Cubanized bebop-flavoured horn lines, lush keys, and ‘70s hip swagger. Though 'Chequeré-Son’ is the keystone of the record, the album is laced with brilliance at every turn, from the Carlos Santana-esque channelling ‘Iya’ with its percussive Latin power, to the sultry, slick and passionate '38 1/2’. Elsewhere, the absorbing, ever-building energy of 'Juana 1600’ and steamy vocal dancer ‘Xiomara’ are also highlights of this incredible album.

Pressed on Cuba’s state led Areito Records, the album was well received internationally, garnering distribution in Finland on Love Records, in Italy on Phase 6 Super Stereo, and also in the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Venezuela.

A cherished Afro-Cuban triumph, this album has been crying out for a reissue and we’re delighted to make that happen.

Mr Bongo is proud to present an official reissue of Zé Rodrix E A Agência De Mágicos ‘O Esquadrão Da Morte’. Written, arranged and composed by the genius of Zé Rodrix and performed by his band 'Agência de Mágicos’, this Brazilian library funk beauty is the soundtrack to Carlos Imperial's 1975 film of the same title. Echoing European soundtrack maestros such as Roy Budd and Ennio Morricone, but with a Brazilian swagger, Zé Rodrix's score is a sublime gem that needs rediscovery.

Rich in 70's soundtrack cool, the score is packed with orchestrated jazz, chase scene-funk, breaks, psychedelic freakouts and plenty of drama. The loose and quirky break-beat jazz-funk of 'Assalto' feels almost tailor-made for today's hip-hop production aesthetic. The opening drum break of 'Esconderijo' is a sampler’s dream and has already been reinterpreted by the Turkish Rapper Anıl Piyancı, as well as Brazil's DJ Caique.

Carlos Imperial was a jack of all trades. As a songwriter and music producer, he created a highly impressive back catalogue. It includes working with or writing songs for Tim Maia, Elza Soares, Brigitte Bardot, and Wilson Simonal. He also co-wrote the rare cult Brazilian 7" compacto 'Lindo Sonho Delirante (L. S. D') by Fábio. Carlos Imperial wrote liner notes and was an actor, filmmaker, television presenter, and media figure. His film 'O Esquadrão da Morte' is a violent heist movie starring Beto Bandeira, Claire Chevalier, and Baby Conceicao; in the vein of exploitation films and gritty, raw B-Movie cinema of the day. Both the film and album share striking, macabre artwork by artist Benicio.

The instrumentalist, arranger, and singer-songwriter Zé Rodrix has a musical achievements list that is also one to admire. He’s worked with the cream of Brazilian music, having written songs covered by the greats, including Quarteto Em Cy, Ronald Mesquita, Elis Regina, Karma, and Célia, to name just a few. His written arrangements have graced the music of Luli Lucinha E O Bando and Helio Matheus. He was a member of the iconic group Som Imaginário and played piano and synthesizer on Secos & Molhado's classic 1973 album.

We are super pleased to make this dusty treasure available again. It is a wonderful soundtrack score that more than holds its own with its European and American counterparts of the era.

Originally released in 1982, attached you can find the full press release with pictures.

500 copies limited edition, with risograph artist bio inserts in english and spanish.