1. Betece - Balake, Amadou
2. Ritmo Con Aché (Rhythm With Aché) - Mangual, Jose [2] J
3. Cuéntame Que Te Pasó - Castellanos, Al
4. Babalu - Lecuona, Margarita
5. Mandali - Touray, Ebrina
6. Morenita - Bruck, Gunther
7. Demal (To Leave) - Menheim, Nicholas
8. Cégele el Gusto (Catch the Flavor) - Ortega, Santiago
9. La Grev' Bare Mwen (La Huelga Me Paró) - Public Domain
10. Samba Luku Samba (Pay, You Must Pay) - Lemvo, Ricardo
Amazon.com
There's plenty of food for thought in Putumayo's delicious new Afro-Latin Party. Like the previous Putumayo compilations Afro-Latino and From Congo to Cuba, the 10 tracks here document the fascinating musical marriage between Africa and Cuba that has seen the original African rhythms brought to Cuba by slaves evolve and migrate back east across the ocean to influence a new generation of African music (and in the process produce offspring everywhere from Croatia to Portland, Oregon). But that almost implies that the disc is of interest to musicologists only, when quite the opposite is true. Afro-Latin Party is anchored by three tracks from Africando, the Cuban supergroup that records with different African lead singers, and their seamless blend of African and Carribbean spices nicely sets the tone for the disc. With Pepe and the Bottle Blondes' wry take on classic cha-cha, "Cuentame Que Te Paso" (featuring a former lead singer for Pink Martini) rubbing shoulders with classic-style salsa from Croatia's Cubismo ("Morenita") and Puerto Rico's Jose Mangual Jr. (the white-hot "Ritmo Con Ache"), the disc is an excellent primer on the global reach of salsa music, but more importantly one that sounds best blasting out of speakers that aren't too far from the dance floor. --Ezra Gale
Album Description
Croatian salsa, Cuban ska, and Oregonian mambo!?!? These are three of the unlikely gems listeners will find on Afro-Latin Party. What started out as an effort to provide the perfect soundtrack to a Latin dance party became a tribute to the global appreciation and realization of the musical ricochet between Cuba and Africa. Central to the Afro-Latin phenomenon is Africando, who provide three songs on Afro-Latin Party, each with a different African lead singer. In the 1960s and 1970s, the biggest names in African music—including such heavyweights as Youssou N'Dour and Salif Keita—were performing Latin music, thanks to recordings that came over from abroad. Cultural exchange between Cuba and the socialist governments in Mali and other parts of West Africa was a regular phenomenon. Performers like the Fania All Stars and Celia Cruz toured Africa and became musical icons. In 1992, legendary Africando founders Ibrahim Sylla and Boncana Maïga traveled to New York to record with top local salsa musicians, many who were taken by surprise by these Africans performing and their phonetically learned Spanish lyrics. Interestingly, many of the band members on the three Africando tracks here, also play on other tracks on Afro-Latin Party.
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Putumayo Presents: Afro-Latin Party
- Audio CD: 0 pages (2005-03-22)
- Publisher: Putumayo World Music
- Label: Putumayo World Music
- Studio: Putumayo World Music
- Average Customer Review:
 based on 6 reviews
- Sales Rank in Music: #36201
Avg. Customer Review:
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Makes everyone happy 2008-04-21
Comment: Even at a luncheon at work... got compliments from the most interesting places for this happy, danceable music
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating:
Summary: Great Exercise - DANCE - Puts me in a good mood 2008-03-07
Comment: I LOVE this CD. I play it about every day, especially when I am working in the kitchen, cooking & cleaning or doing housework. It has a dance beat that you can't help but start shaking your hips. It is great exercise to dance to it. I can feel stomache muscles that I have not felt in years. Maybe it will help me to lose weight? I also bought a beginners Salsa DVD I like to dance to. My husband and kids join in to dancing around the house, too. If I am feeling bad, this music peps me up. Highly recommend.
4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating: 
Summary: A musical history passport 2007-06-27
Comment: It's a shame that the strong, native culture of African slaves was broken, beaten, dissolved, dissoluted when they arrived in the US. This is a CD that works both in and out of the classroom. The music is amazing, and it makes you want to take an historical tour.
0 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating:
Summary: Good, but not great 2007-03-24
Comment: I am enjoying this disk, but it is not one of my favorite Putumayo collections
16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating:
Summary: DOESNT GET ANY BETTER 2006-05-22
Comment: This CD is amazing! i cannot stop listening to it, and when i do, i just want to get up and DANCE! this truly a work of art, and if you don't have this cd go and get it, because you have no idea what you are missing
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Putumayo Presents: Afro-Latin Party
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