Perez Prado - Best Mambos (2017)

Universally known as the King of the Mambo, Pérez Prado was the single most important musician involved in the hugely popular Latin dance craze. Whether he actually created the rhythm is somewhat disputed, but it's abundantly clear that Prado developed it into a bright, swinging style with massive appeal for dancers of all backgrounds and classes. Prado's mambo was filled with piercing high-register trumpets, undulating saxophone counterpoint, atmospheric organ (later on), and harmonic ideas borrowed from jazz. While his tight percussion arrangements allowed for little improvisation, they were dense and sharply focused, keeping the underlying syncopations easy for dancers to follow. Prado played the piano, but was often more in his element as the focal point of the audience's excitement; he leaped, kicked, danced, shouted, grunted, and exhorted his musicians with a dynamic stage presence that put many more sedate conductors and bandleaders to shame. With this blueprint, Prado brought mambo all the way into the pop mainstream, inspiring countless imitators and scoring two number one singles on the pop charts (albeit in a smoother vein than the fare that first made his name) as the fad snowballed. He was a star throughout most of the Western Hemisphere during the '50s, and even after his popularity waned in the United States, he remained a widely respected figure in many Latin countries, especially his adopted home of Mexico. Prado is often best remembered for his softer, more commercial work, which has an undeniable kitschiness that plays well with modern-day lounge-revival hipsters. Unfortunately, that has served to obscure his very real credentials in the realm of authentic, unadulterated Latin dance music, and to this day he remains somewhat underappreciated.

TRACKLIST

01. Ole Mambo
02. Al Compas Del Mambo
03. Bombokolea
04. Mambo Del Papelero
05. Cerezo Rosa
06. Mambo No. 5
07. Jumbo Jumbo
08. Asi, Asi
09. Elsi Mambo
10. Enamorado
11. Lupita
12. Martinica
13. Muchachita
14. Jing A Ling, Jing A Ling
15. Rosina
16. Go Go Mambo
17. La Nina Popof
18. Ni Hablar
19. Perdido
20. Mambo En Sax
21. Guao
22. Cuban Mambo
23. El Bombero
24. Jose
25. Kandela
26. Mambo No. 8
27. Latino
28. Mambo Del Rutero
29. Pianolo
30. Rica