Critic's Review
Tony Wilds, All Music Guide
Latin Bugalu suffers from the usual affliction of New York Latin albums. By the time the recording is made, times have changed and the artist has moved on to something new. The boogaloos here are better than average, and even first-rate in the case of Frank Ross' "Bugalu." But the star tracks, at least at a distance safe from the boogaloo fad, are the several Latin jazz instrumentals. The best of these all-out jams are mambos played at a frenetic pace. It is a top album, even by Palmieri and Ramirez standards, but one wishes there had been separate issues for both the boogaloos and the jams. "A Night to Remember," a vocal ballad, really does not fit. But these are eight impressive tracks, and Charlie Palmieri is about as loose as he gets.
