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LP
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VAMPI 180LP
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Vampisoul present the first reissue of Los Chicos Malos' self-titled album, originally released in 1980. Remastered sound from original tapes. Presented in facsimile artwork; 180 gram vinyl.
"Los Chicos Malos was a short-lived Colombian 'super group' of sorts from Cartagena with acclaimed pianist and composer Víctor M 'El Nene' del Real as orchestra director and arranger. Vocals were shared by John Jairo Murillo and Víctor Meléndez, both known for their work with The Latin Brothers, a popular Discos Fuentes band that El Nene had collaborated with previously as well. The three also worked with Víctor del Real's close childhood friend Joe Arroyo and his orchestra La Verdad during the 1980s, while El Nene had written and arranged for Michi Sarmiento in the 1970s and Adolfo Echeverría in the early '80s, later going on to found El Nene y Sus Traviesos in the 1990s. . . . The sole Los Chicos Malos long-playing album was produced by the legendary Mario Rincón and released in March 1980. The record features a range of tropical dancefloor bangers that include fan favorites like 'Los Chicos En Salsa' and 'Con Gusto Y Con Gana' plus the killer cut 'Pobre Soy Yo' with a smoking piano solo by El Nene. Four earlier Chicos Malos recordings came out on a various artists compilation, Guerra De Ritmos, on the Fuentes subsidiary imprint De Lujo. These tracks are equally impressive but were a lot less polished, being produced by pianist Roberto de la Barrera and featuring a different singer, 'El Guachi' Meléndez, while El Nene played electric piano for the recording date. The style heard on the later Los Chicos Malos long play was not much different than The Latin Brothers in that it deployed an irresistible mix of uncompromisingly hard salsa and cumbia infused with infectiously happy melodies punctuated by a distinctive double-trombone attack inspired by the Nuyorican street sound of Willie Colón. The record also aimed its sights at the Venezuelan market with the tune 'Viajera' and the costeño home crowd with the two merengue colombianas 'La Carestía' and 'Ritmo Con La Punta Del Pie' plus the cumbelé 'El Hombre Aquel' and the cumbia anthem 'Cumbia Y mechones'. . . . Just as uncompromisingly hard sounding as Fruko y sus Tesos and The Latin Brothers' recorded output, it is stuffed with lots of mid-tempo numbers propelled by a stripped down sound." Pablo Yglesias, aka DJ Bongohead
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