Music » Latin Box Set Music

Release Date: 1998-08-11, Audio CD, Warner Music Latina

For more than 50 years, Tito Puente, the great bandleader and master of the timbales, was among the most important figures in Latin dance and Latin jazz. By the time he died, on May 31, 2000, he'd made more than 130 recordings, the greatest of them cut during the 1940s, '50s, and '60s for RCA. This set features the 108 tracks Puente cut for the label from 1949 to 1960, and it shows how he skillfully crossed the boundaries between Latin, jazz, and popular genres. All the founding fathers of Latin music are here: percussionists Mongo Santamaria, Ray Barretto, and Willie Bobo, as well as composer-arranger Chico O'Farrill and Dominican flutist Johnny Pacheco. The heart of this affordable, six-CD collection is the mambo, the Afro-Cuban dance Puente spread throughout the world--from New York's famed Palladium to Paris--with classics such as "Ran Kan Kan," "Picadillo," and "Hong Kong Mambo" (the lattermost with Puente on marimba). Another Cuban dance rhythm, the cha-cha, was prominent in Puente's book. His rendition of bassist Cachao's catchy "Chanchullo" may have been the model for Puente's megahit, "Oye Como Va," taken subsequently to greater heights as a Latin rock classic by Carlos Santana. Puente grew up in Harlem, and his jazz chops are in full effect on his vintage, cornerstone Afro-Cubop takes on Billy Strayhorn's "Take the A Train," "Tuxedo Junction," and "That Old Devil Moon." --Eugene Holley Jr.

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Release Date: 1999-02-09, Audio CD, Thump Records

Tejano star Selena's death hasn't stopped label executives from releasing material or fans from snapping it up. According to the EMI Latin label, 1996's Siempre Selena features the last of her previously unreleased songs, "Siempre Hace Frio." The lavish, three-disc Anthology, however, is a must-have for its glimpses of Selena honing her vocal skills and sharpening her talent. Divided under the headers "Pop/English," "Mariachi," and "Cumbia," the set showcases hard-to-find early material and hits, including a club remix of the Diane Warren-penned "I'm Getting Used to You" and a disco-flavored take on "La Bamba." The liner notes offer background information on every song, and these discs also underscore the talents of Selena's brother, A.B. Quintanilla III. He gives many of the older tracks ("Dame Tu Amo," "Salta la Ranita") fresh arrangements that match the energy of Selena's more recent material. --Joey Guerra

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Release Date: 2002-07-23, Audio CD, Ondine

Release Date: 1995-11-21, Audio CD, Polygram Records

Release Date: 1995-10-17, Audio CD, Blue Jackel Ent.

Release Date: 1996-04-30, Audio CD, Sony International