Big In Barranquilla

A real treat for you today - Elia y Elizabeth, sisters from Barranquilla in Colombia who made a couple of great albums in 1972 and 1973 with ace producer Jimmy Salcedo and then stopped recording to return to their studies. I love their sound, which mixes a bit of Latin and a bit of ye-ye with a mild sprinkling of psychedelia. 

The good folks at the Vampisoul label reissued both albums a few years back along with a compilation called "La Onda de Elia y Elizabeth" which is what I bought. All the albums are still available on Bandcamp, and the compilation in particular is an absolute snip at €9 to download.

"Descripción" - Elia y Elizabeth

"Pesadilla" - Elia y Elizabeth

I spent a night in Barranquilla back in the mid 1990s when my plane from Houston to Costa Rica was rerouted there because of fog. Apart from the airport, a B&B and the bar next door I didn't see much of the place so can't say whether it is worth a longer visit. As well as Elia y Elizabeth other musical locals include Shakira and the man they call El Rey de la Guaracha, Anibal Velásquez.

Speaking of foreign travel, I'm off to Romania tomorrow for a few days. Its a work trip but if all goes well I will have a few hours spare to scour Bucharest for sonic splendour. I'll be back at the end of the week, but until then here's Craiova's very own Gil Dobrica with a tune you might recognise.