We are on the tenth leg of the tour and we have arrived in the smallest and most densely populated country in continental America. I refer of course to El Salvador, famed for having fought a war over a football match, having the highest crime rate in the world and being the only country to date to recognise Bitcoin as legal tender. Crazy guys!
It's not all dodgy though. El Salvador is also packed to the rafters with forests, volcanos and beaches and the local cuisine is widely admired. The national food is the pupusa, a flatbread that gets its name from the language of the indigenous Pipil people.
There is a myth about a monster that used to eat them (the Pipil not the pupusa) - you can learn more about it here. As for the pupusas, there is no bigger fan than Rene Alonso so we have shared his tribute to them below.
Rene is followed by Lito Barrientos and his pals. Lito headed south to Colombia way back in the mid 1960s where he enjoyed much success in the local cumbia scene. Today's choice comes from his 1965 debut album "Very Very Well".
One of the biggest bargains on Bandcamp must be a compilation called "Sonidos Perdidos de Centroamérica", released on the Tujaal Sounds label from Guatemala. It contains 45 vintage tunes from across Central America all available on a 'name your own price' basis. This will not be the only time I will be referring to it during this series.
For this episode the third and fourth selections both come from "Sonidos Perdidos de Centroamérica". I have not been able to find biographical details for either La Organizacion or Chando Orellana I'm afraid, but Chando churned out lorryloads of organ-led flute-infused funk in the 1970s, including this take on a Deodato tune.
Also emerging in the 1970s were one of El Salvador's biggest ever bands who enjoyed huge success for over twenty years and seem to still be going strong today - Fiebre Amarilla. The track I've chosen was first released as the B-side to their debut single in 1971, but I found it on a compilation called "Desde el Salvador... Unidad".
We leap forward in time for the last three songs, starting off with The Vibes. You may be familiar with them already as George featured them in a guest post for Rol's 'Namesakes' series earlier this year. This song comes from their 2016 album "F*** The Vibes" and I suspect it might be about a certain American politician.
Gabriela Triste is up next. According to the blurb "her unique brand of Latin Pop has been prominently showcased on respected platforms like KEXP, KCRW, Dublab, Remezcla, and numerous others worldwide". I was under the impression Remezcla was an eczema cream and I've never heard of any of the others, but never mind. What I do know is that this single from last year is a cracking little pop song.
Which brings us to the MAR slot. It would probably be more accurately described as MAS (Mandatory American Ska) and will hopefully leave you all wanting mas. Here are Blue Beat Makers with the title track from their 2019 album "Enamorado De Ti".
"Las Pupusas" - Rene Alonso y Su Banda Lasser
"Cumbia En Do Menor" - Lito Barrientos y Su Orquesta
"Quien Esta Aqui" - La Organizacion
"Super Sould" - Chando Orellana
"Nada Tienes Que Hacer" - Fiebre Amarilla
"Señor Naranja" - The Vibes
"Venus" - Gabriela Triste
"Enamorado De Ti" - Blue Beat Makers
We have a truly splendid set of videos for you this time out, starting with a remake of the Rene Alonso tribute to pupusas that features a nifty dance routine and one of the finest pairs of eyebrows you could hope the see.
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