Trio Select in Action (Haiti, 1971)

(Marc Records MDVG-219).

Haitian music can be very good setting fire to the dancefloor, but can also be very fresh and sweet to your ears. Here's a beautiful example with a song from Trio Select vol. 2, led by guitarist and popular singer Henry Gesner (1925-1998), very famous under his surname "Coupé Cloué".

Laba Sosseh y su Conjunto - Seyni (Afrolatin from Senegal, 1969)

(N'DARDISC 45-15).

Laba Sosseh (1943-2007) had a 40 years long african salsero carreer, singing pachanga, bolero, guajira, son cubano... He's originally from Gambia, and played during the 60s at Club Miami (Dakar, with Star Band & Ibra Kasse), at Club Sangomar (Thies, with engineer Moussa Diallo). He founded with nigerian sax player Dexter Johnson the Super Star Orchestra de Dakar and recorded for N'Dardisc (Label from Louis Fourment, Radio Africaine director).

Danson & Charanga Night, Dakar

Great party flyer, with DJs from the 60s-70s period in Dakar... latin records all night long! Probably the best place to perceive how much music from the other side of the atlantic ocean was (omni)present in urban Senegal.  At this time, big part of DJs selections was cuban music arrived from the 50s through sailors. (It remains easier to dig latin records than african records in Dakar now). Dakar danced deacades to this latin (and caribbean) rhythms, which influenced deeply local musicians and productions. 

Big up to Duo Los Compadres...

Orchestre Los Commandos - Errante (Afrolatin from Benin, 60s)

(Albarika Store AS 5010).

Here's an african version of a latin track i love (Arsenio Rodriguez - "Errante y Bohemio").

Orchestre Los Commandos is from Cotonou, and played with El Rego up to 1966 (using different band names).

Gnonnas Pedro & his Dadjes Band - vol. 1 (Afrolatin from Benin, 1975)

(African Songs Ltd, Lagos - AS 42-L).

Here comes the real Africa Latina!