Over the past 15 years, I’ve grown more serious about exploring that broad umbrella genre known as “Latin music,” focusing more recently on several key subcategories. The richly innovative, modernized salsa sound emanating out of New York in the late 1960s and beyond, largely influenced by Fania Records, is one such arena. Fania was one of the first labels dedicated to this regional sensation, and Concord now owns its catalog and has been doing tremendous work reissuing rare, in-demand gems on vinyl.
Like vintage jazz, I’ve learned to trust my gut when something sounds good. This new 180-gram, all-analog remastered reissue of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly — a collaboration between three superstars of the era, Héctor Lavoe, Willie Colón, and Yomo Toro — is one such release. In fact, it took my ear (and brain) so much by surprise that I reached out to one of my Latin music expert friends, who confirmed that this album was, in a word, “fire.”
I was already familiar with the two Fania superstars, Lavoe and Colón, as well as acclaimed cuatro master Yomo Toro. The cuatro, a lute-like Puerto Rican instrument, adds an almost harp-like sparkle to the pulsing blend. What I wasn’t prepared for was how the music on The Good, the Bad and the Ugly took me on a deep dive into progressive rock, jazz fusion, funk, and Brazilian music, all while retaining a strong Afro-Cuban perspective.
“I Feel Campesino (Theme Realidades)” and “MC2 (Theme Realidades)” feature some especially ripping electric guitar solos from none other than the brilliant session musician Elliott Randall. This elevates the underlying feel of the album to a magical hyperspace somewhere between the stars of early Parliament-Funkadelic and Shaft-era Isaac Hayes. These two tracks were created for the pioneering bilingual PBS television series Realidades, which employed Colón as its musical director.
Other tracks here blend Puerto Rican and Cuban influences into something fresh and new. For example, “El Cazanguero,” written and sung by a young Rubén Blades, blends Brazilian influences with pure New York salsa. And so it goes on throughout The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. And just try to deny yourself the joy of singing along with the almost bubblegum-like chorus hook of “Cuacuara Cua Cua.”
The vinyl pressing on this reissue sounds excellent, and Craft even reproduced the original mid-1970s Fania Records label (for period accuracy!). This is an excellent, affordable reissue, which is handy, as there aren’t many mint or near-mint condition originals showing up on Discogs or eBay.
You can get The Good, The Bad and The Ugly on Amazon for just $29.98. This is the good stuff, folks.
Our Ratings
★★★★★★★★★★ Music
★★★★★★★★★★ Sound
★★★★★★★★★★ Packaging
Where to Buy:
Mark Smotroff is a deep music enthusiast / collector who has also worked in entertainment oriented marketing communications for decades supporting the likes of DTS, Sega and many others. He reviews vinyl for Analog Planet and has written for Audiophile Review, Sound+Vision, Mix, EQ, etc. You can learn more about him at LinkedIn.
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- Craft Recordings Reissues Rare Latin Vinyl
- Craft Recordings Reissues Classic Tico And Vaya Latin Albums From Celia Cruz And Johnny Pacheco On 180g Vinyl
