Los Flamas: "Ella No Esta Ahi" (Dicesa, 1971)

I picked up this LP, La Ensalada De Los Flamas, for $12 from Josey Records. It's a little scratchy but it plays through without skips, and both of my loyal readers know I like a little crackle and pop in my vinyl.

This was put out in 1971 by El Salvadorian label Dicesa. I'm not sure if Los Flamas is from El Salvador as well. I can't find any info on them via the internerts. All of side A is the title track. I had to look up Ensalada because I was like, "Salad of the Flames?" But other than meaning salad, Ensalada is a Spanish term for a music genre of songs that are a medley of upbeat melodies in various languages.

So the first side starts with a few Spanish songs, and they're really good. I'm not sure if the songs in Spanish were written by the band or not. About halfway through the band goes into these far-out ESL versions of Proud Mary, Banana Boat Song, and The Limbo Rock. The Limbo Rock ends with a wicked organ freak-out. Then it's back into some really rockin' Spanish-language songs.

The b-side begins with a couple of excellent garage-psych Latin songs, I think they're originals, but I'm not sure. Then there's a couple of more covers: Bruce Channel's 1961 Hey Baby -- Wikipedia says Delbert McClinton played harmonica on the original track -- and Jackie Trent's 1964 Only One Such As you.

And then it comes to this Zombies cover, the climax of the entire album. So many choices these guys made on this song, all so right, all so eternal:

Ella No Esta Ahi

If the embedded player above doesn't work for you: Ella No Esta Ahi

Man, that new Kendrick Lamar album is awesome.

Alfonso Ramos Y Su Orchestre: "El Sonsonete" and Tony Hernandez and the Latin-Liners (Capri Records, 1970s)

Per the Austin Chronicle's Musicians Register:

"Alfonso is known as “El Mero Leon de la Sierra” or “the distinguished silver-headed living legend” among Tejano music fans...In 1998, Alfonso was inducted into the Tejano Music Awards Hall of Fame. In 2002, (he) was inducted into the Tejano R.O.O.T.S. Hall of Fame."

El Sonsonete was the B-side to El Silencio de la Noche. Both songs were on the 1973 Capri Records album, La Unica Mujer. This 45 is catalog #CA-265. The address on the 45 label is in McKinney, Texas. Cool.

The 45 label identifies the A-side as a Ranchera song, written by Mexican music legend José Alfredo Jiménez. El Sonsonete has the initials "D.A.R." where the songwriter credit usually is. Not sure what that means, maybe it's a traditional? The 45 label identifies El Sonsonete as cumbia.

Listen to Alfonso Ramos and His Orchestra play El Sonsonete:

Download El Sonsonete

If the embedded player above doesn't work for you, try this link: El Sonsonete

Besides the McKinney address on the label, I couldn't find any info about Capri except that they also put out some Latin psych-funk back in '72 from Tony Hernandez & The Latin Liners. The Hernandez LP is called La Voz Encantadora. Back in '12, the guys at latinfunk.org posted the track featured in the Youtube video below, as well as the song Jo Tex, plus some biographical info about Hernandez. Gotta find me some Tony Hernandez.

Raoul Martinez And His Orchestra: "Cha Cha Cha" (1960?)

No wikipedia entry on Raoul Martinez. Couldn't find any bio info through a Google search either.

This eight song (!) 45" was put out by Precision Radiation Instruments, Inc. Back in 2003, the guys over at Both Sides Now Publications wrote a great little history of PRI. According to the piece, PRI started out selling cheap geiger counters back in the 1950s when there was apparently an Alaskan "uranium rush" -- who knew? -- and then when the bottom fell out of that weird little market, the company merged with record company Tops Records.

Fascinating music history on all these Both Sides Now links, so I highly recommend a look-see at that site after you're done here. The PRI/Tops/Mayfair discographies they provide look like really cool sounds with neat cheesecake covers. I'll have to keep my eye out for the label from now on when I'm digging.

Here's the discogs entries for the coolest of the bunch -- If the Bomb Drops and Voodoo.

Meanwhile the LP (L 1659) of "Cha Cha Cha," featuring a young Mary Tyler Moore on the cover and released in 1959, is readily available on the Internet, and comes in both black and yellow vinyl. But Google couldn't help me find the EP I have (pictured in the scan above, featuring the same shot from the LP of Mary Tyler Moore as "Mary Tyler Morales"). I have this 45" in my possesion courtesy of my lovely wife's collection, and I assume she snagged it from her parents' collection when she moved to college.

The EP is not listed on discogs, on 45cat, nor in Both Sides Nows' PRI discography, which ends at a special issue SPL-1 - "8 Full Big Band Tunes," and they're not sure the date that one was put out, looks like probably 1960. This one I have is SPL-4, so I assume it was put out later, as some kind of repackaging of the full-length LP from '59.

Here's what eBay has in way of Raoul Martinez sound, just "Cha Cha Cha" along with a couple of other LPs, all put out by Tops. Interesting to note there's also a Raoul Martinez CD, a 1998 release put out by Pickwick, the company that bought out PRI/Tops/Mayfair in the 60s.

So, presented for your studied reference, three tracks from this excellent, and apparently hard to find, 45". Vamos a bailar!

Scampion Cha Cha

Download:Scampion Cha Cha

Mi Musica Es Para Ti

Download:Mi Musica Es Para Ti

Los Tamalitos De Olga

Download:Los Tamalitos De Olga

Edith Salcedo: "El Chachacha Del Arpa" (196?)

Edith Salcedo is La Negrita Cariñosa - "the Bold-Loving" - Musical Ambassador of Venezuela. She is still performing music and is still beautiful. There are many videos on Youtube of her performing.

"El Chachacha Del Arpa" is the B-side ("Lado B") of the "Felicidades" 7". Lado A is "La Cancion Del Muchachito," and it is a ballad. I could not find out when this was recorded, but a little googling led me to Senorita Salcedo's blog. I e-mailed her and asked if she remembered what year this was recorded. If she gets back to me, I'll let you know!

I feel especially lucky to own this because it happened to be signed by the Bold Loving Edith Salcedo herself, on the back cover of the 45 sleeve: "To HENRY with pleasure"! I took a picture of it with my phone but it didn't come out good. I need to get my scanner hooked up.

Download: El Chachacha Del Arpa