A Bombazo...Si!
Artist: Grupo Mania
Historia de Una Vida
Artist: Fernando Villalona
Community Score: 10.00

Historia de Una Vida is a double-disc that features 18 of Fernando Villalona's biggest hits, newly recorded for the Polygram label. Although the set could have been condensed to a single disc with just minor trimming, the album remains a good summation of his finest moments, featuring such hits as "Me Muero Por Ti," "Penelope," "No Podras,"... Read More

Con La Salsa Formell
Artist: Los Van Van
Community Score: 10.00

From Celia Cruz to former Irakere members Arturo Sandoval and Paquito D'Rivera, many of Cuba's musical greats fled to the U.S. in order to get out from under the iron boot of Fidel Castro's Stalinist regime. But however repressive life in Cuba was under Castro, the island continued to provide its share of gifted artists. Formed in Cuba in 1970,... Read More

Contra la Corriente
Artist: Marc Anthony
Community Score: 8.75

While it doesn't quite match the dizzying heights of his breakthrough Todo a Su Tiempo, Marc Anthony's third album Contra La Corriente is nevertheless a barnstormer of a record. Anthony is no typical salsa singer -- he's a powerful, bold singer who doesn't follow the genre's traditions. He ignores improvisation and concentrates on love songs,... Read More

100% Azucar!: The Best of Celia Cruz con la Sonora Matancera
Artist: Celia Cruz & la Sonora Matancera
Community Score: 9.50

Female singers are abundant in Latin pop, but for whatever reason, salsa has remained a male-dominated idiom. From the 1950s to the mid-'90s, salsa's most prominent female vocalist has been Celia Cruz, a pearl of a singer rightly exalted as "the Queen of Salsa." This excellent CD focuses largely on the recordings she made with la Sonora... Read More

Brillantes
Artist: Grupo Niche

Grupo Niche's Brillantes is a good sampler of the group's best material, highlighted by the opening track "Una Aventura" and "Mi Hijo y You." ~ Terry Jenkins, All Music Guide Read More