Grupo Irakere: "Grupo Irakere"

So, there’s rare records, and then there’s Cuban rare records.  You think it’s hard to find a record that was made in this country?  Try finding one from a country whose product was illegal in the United States!  Couldn’t believe I came across this, bought it at a record show from a dealer who specialized in Latin funk, and the whole rest of the show I was kind of just walking around in a daze, I kept looking at it to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.  Irakere is among my favorite groups of any genre; the first time I heard them, I was radicalized by their boldness, their utterly fearless blending of music from the past, present and future.  This is their very first LP, opening with the game-changing Afro-Cuban-jazz-funk cut “Bacalao Con Pan,” then moving into other territories, like the almost Beatles-y “Danza De Los Nanigos,” the rhythmic exercise “Taka Taka Ta,” the knotty, horn-driven “Luisa,” the garage-fusion-Cuban “Quindiambo,” and the percussion-led “Misaluba.”  Group leader Chucho Valdes is brilliant; his arrangements, songwriting and keyboard playing are of an extremely high standard, equaling the work of other genre-mashing contemporaries like Miles, Zawinul, Corea, etc., while at the same time remaining more rooted in concise song structures, not letting the chops of the band (which also included jazz luminaries Paquito D’Rivera and Arturo Sandoval at this time) wander off into aimless jamming.  It’s not likely you’re going to find this album lingering in the bins at your local record store, but if you’re lucky enough to spot it, cop it.