Adolfo Echeverria Y Su Orquesta 'Sabroso Bacalao' (Mukatsuku)

Adolfo Echeverria Y Su Orquesta / Fruko Y Sus Tesos
'Sabroso Bacalao' / 'Mi Verdadero Son'
(Mukatsuku)

When I think back to the mid-80s as I was beginning my journey into music as a percussionist, there were some Latin cuts we'd play amongst the predominant funk and soul, but at this stage, it wasn't a genre I was exploring with any great intensity. That came in the early 90s as I started DJing and seriously collecting funk/soul/jazz, and eventually Latin. Funk and soul was a relatively easy landscape to dig in, there were some big and well-known names to start you off, James Brown for example, and then you were in connecting the dots and expanding your record collection.

But Latin music was a different beast entirely. It wasn't very visible at all back then, at least to me far down in the SW of England. Yet through a combination of trips to London to shops like Mr Bongo, DJs coming through the club I was working at the time, my DJ partner DJ Griff and probably most importantly, compilation albums, one started to navigate what was once unfathomable names and obscure labels to get to grips with what was made when, where and who by. And that is a process still very much in progress, and unlikely to ever end.

So I must pay homage to the diggers and labels that expose the exotic sounds of far-flung places, and whether through placing it within the context of UK club culture or revealing a complete retrospective of a particular artist, it is these people and endeavours that bring wonderful sounds to new ears. Shouts to Baz Fe Jazz, Dean Rudland, Gilles, Russ Dewbury, Soul Jazz, Harmless, Soundway, Vampisoul and everyone else putting in the groundwork over the years.

We can also squarely add Nik at Mukatsuku to that list, a veteran of the scene and a rabid releaser of seriously good music. His forages into the deep sounds of South America, Africa and beyond and resulted in many an essential reissue over the years.

This brings us to this new Mukatsulku 45, and boy oh boy, what a belter! True to my ramblings above, the name Adolfo Echeverria Y Su Orquesta is a new one on me, so Nik's curation of music is doing its job perfectly. The A side's 'Sabroso Bacalao' is a straight-up salsa banger with super slick sonics and exactly the kind of arrangement that will see the dancefloor swinging, guaranteed. Flip over for a name that is arguably much more well known, that being Fruko Y Sus Tesos. His many gems have been comped and re-released on various labels over the years, with the fabulous salsa cut 'Mi Verdadero Son' getting its first-ever 45 vinyl pressing.

If you're new to collecting Latin 45s, or indeed many years deep in the game, releases like this are plain essential. Two slices of dancefloor gold, both wonderful examples of the genre too, what are you waiting for?

Buy: Juno