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LP
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VAMPI 209LP
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Reissue, first reissue on vinyl. ¡Así es... Con salsa!, by Colombia's Alfredo Gutiérrez y Los Caporales del Magdalena, is a legendary collector's album, yet still undeservedly obscure. It's an experimental mash-up of seemingly disparate genres from different origins that on paper would seem to be at cross purposes. Yet at the same time the release is a masterpiece of raw pan-Latin fusion from the dawn of Colombian salsa that holds its own as a bonafide heavy duty pioneering record of the genre. Probably the most shocking musical element is Alfredo Gutiérrez's fiery accordion, an unexpected instrument in the idiom of salsa, as it's usually associated with the tropical music of Gutiérrez's Caribbean home region of Sucre. Gutiérrez has always been a provocateur which has earned him the richly deserved sobriquet, "El Rebelde Del Acordeón" (the rebel of the accordion). Gutiérrez started Los Caporales in 1968 as a rival to Discos Fuentes supergroup Los Corraleros de Majagual, and the band had made three popular albums prior to ¡Así es... Con salsa!, yet most of the repertoire on those records consisted of typical Colombian tropical and coastal rhythms and genres, none were devoted to salsa. From the start, Gutiérrez lays down a salsa manifesto when the album kicks off with "Guadelupe no va", a four-minute workout with pile-driving force that demonstrates the uncompromising power of this 14-piece orchestra. Gutiérrez was given the green light by Codiscos A&R head Humberto Moreno to dedicate an album to New York style salsa, giving more prominence to the voice and compositions of Lucho Pérez, a proven expert in Cuban genres and one of many vocalists in the band. Several tunes on the record are remakes of older compositions by Lucho Pérez from his early tenure with Discos Fuentes group La Sonora Dinamita, the new versions are much more raw and menacing, as if put through a Bronx filter. The band was made up of Codiscos' regular stable of ace studio musicians from Medellín for the recording date. The album was both a success and also not abnormal in its mixing of salsa and costeño Colombian sounds, as there were several other similar hybrid records by other artists at the time. Both the desperation of the lyrics (about not being able to afford anything) and Lucho Pérez's forceful delivery leave an indelible impression of street-wise authenticity, which is backed up by the fact that both band members grew up poor. Includes three tracks from other Caporales albums. Includes insert with liner notes.
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