Poncho Sanchez with special guest Tito Puente - Chile con Soul (Concord Picante, 1990)

This post is by Scott and Dan

Poncho Sánchez (cga, batá, vo); Tito Puente (tim); Gene Burkert (ts, as, fl); Sal Cracchiolo (tr, flhn); Arturo Velasco (tb, vo); Charlie Otwell (p); Tony Banda (b, vo); Ramon Banda (d, tim); Jose "Papo" Rodriguez (bgo, perc, vo)

Recorded in November 1989

Ildefonso "Pancho" Sánchez's recording career began with his "discovery" by Albert Marx on his Discovery label. Pancho (1979) and Straight Ahead (1980) were both arranged and produced by Clare Fischer for Discovery. Sánchez then signed onto Concord's Picante imprint and reeled off a new album every year for the next 20 years. This astounding pace of recording solidified Concord's place in Latin jazz and established Sánchez as a premier artist of the genre. 

Listening to Chile con Soul reveals all of the attractive features of Sánchez's artistry and that of the genre as a whole. There are "hot" tunes, jazz standards, ballads and blues, funk, and original compositions from pianist Charlie Otwell. There are also plenty of features for the brass section and guest Tito Puente's timbales, for instance on "Ti-Pon-Pa." Throughout this joyful album, Sánchez's conga and batá provide a colorful pulse. He also joins the vocal chorus that is characteristic of Latin popular music. On the final track, he rips into a medley of James Brown's "Cold Sweat" and Lester Christian's classic "Funky Broadway."

With jazz this appealing, it's no wonder that Sánchez returned to the studio frequently. Even if your tastes do not naturally extend to Latin music, this wonderful album should not be missed.