Musica Infinita
Los Kenya - Siempre Afro-Latino
Regular price £26.00 Save £-26.00Product Description
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Música
Infinita
presents
the
raw
and
uncompromising
Afro
Latin
sound
of
Ray
Perez
and
Los
Kenya,
one
of
the
most
interesting
groups
to
spring
out
of
the
Venezuelan
salsa
scene
in
the
late
sixties.
The
late
60s
was
a
prolific
period
for
outstanding
Afro-Latin
music
in
Venezuela,
with
multiple
local
labels
releasing
and
distributing
records
by
a
myriad
of
homegrown
talent.
Pianist
and
bandleader,
Ray
Perez,
recorded
and
released
seven
LPs
between
67
&
68
with
Los
Dementes,
one
of
the
best-known
salsa
bands
in
the
country
at
the
time.
Following
a
brief
stint
in
New
York,
where
he
shared
the
stage
with
Kako’s
orchestra,
Perez
returned
to
Venezuela
and
under
the
influence
of
bandmates
Luis
Arias
and
Alfredo
Naranjo
formed
Los
Kenya.
The
core
of
this
compact
group
was
made
up
of
two
trumpets
and
a
drum
set,
uncommon
at
a
time
when
big
bands
were
the
norm.
With
the
addition
of
an
accomplished
and
unique
pair
of
vocalists
in
Calaven
and
Carlin
Rodriguez,
Los
Kenya
cooked
up
a
stew
of
raw,
groovy,
and
uncompromising
tunes
for
their
debut
LP
on
Velvet,
later
re-released
by
Ray
himself
under
his
own
Pyraphon
label,
and
presented
here
in
a
limited
and
re-mastered
edition.
Having
recently
left
his
previous
band
Los
Dementes,
Ray
and
Los
Kenya
debuted
with
a
live
performance
in
September
of
1968
at
Sunday
Party
Group
to
present
their
7
inch
single
featuring
“Hoculele”
and
“Omelembe”.
Soon
after,
their
debut
album
was
released
by
the
label
Velvet.
Due
to
a
combination
of
original
compositions,
most
of
them
written
and
arranged
by
Ray;
a
killer
lineup
of
musicians;
and
an
uncompromising
and
raw
approach
to
their
music,
Los
Kenya
became
one
of
the
most
interesting
new
groups
in
the
Venezuelan
salsa
scene.
In
Ray’s
own
words:
“each
of
my
bands
had
a
distinct
sound.
For
example,
Los
Dementes
had
a
different
sound
to
Eddie
Palmieri’s
band
even
though
we
shared
a
similar
configuration.
The
same
happens
with
Los
Kenya
and
another
of
my
band’s
Los
Calvos,
both
of
which
had
a
very
similar
lineup
of
musicians.
One
time,
when
Tito
Puente
heard
us
play
he
was
surprised
by
our
sound
and
said
“even
though
you
have
two
trumpet
players,
you
don’t
sound
like
Sonora
Matancera
or
Ricardo
Ray,
there’s
nothing
like
it!”
I
truly
believe
the
difference
comes
from
the
writing,
as
well
as
the
feeling
that
the
musicians
inject
on
the
music
when
you’re
recording”.
TRACKLIST:
A1
Hoculele,
A2
Opus
"120",
A3
Te
Pongo
A
Valer,
A4
Santa
Elena,
A5
Record
En
T.V.,
B1
Hoculele
No.
2,
B2
Omelembe,
B3
Sonero
Soy,
B4
Cambiame
El
Plato,
B5
Descargan
Los
Timbales.
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