Babalu Ayé (1999)

About this title: Irakere came on the scene in the late '70s with a style of Latin jazz that incorporated soaring jazz brass with quite traditional Cuban rhythms, and punctuated by electric guitars and a funky bass. In the years since, Irakere music has been characterized by a hot jazz sound with a very danceable beat. Babalu Ayé closes a circle of sorts for Irakere. Most of the songs on this album are salsa Cubana, some sounding very much like the original New York salsa of years past. But of course, it's salsa with the Irakere flair: electric guitars with the distortion cranked up come in and out; the horn ... read more

Tracks:

1. Solo Te Echaron un Medio [Melendez]
2. Por Romper el Coco [Batle Gregorio]
3. Feliz Cumpleaños [Valdes]
4. Esta Noche [Márquez]
5. Tres Dias [Valdes]
6. La Xomparsa [Lecuona]
7. Babalu Ayé

Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is further described below.