Salsa History with “Salsa de la Bahia Vol. 2”

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San Francisco continues to make history in Baseball by winning the World Series this week. The history of Latin music has a chapter written in the San Francisco Bay Area, and “Salsa de la Bahia, Vol. 2” brings it to you in a 2-CD set collection.

The good thing about this Latin music history is that it has recently recorded music along with some great older Salsa and Latin Jazz gems. That why “Salsa de la Bahia Vol. 2” is called “Hoy y Ayer”.

Read the full review below my video review:

Video Review of “Salsa de la Bahia, Vol. 2; Hoy y Ayer”

A Sequel and a Prequel to “Salsa de la Bahia, Vol. 1”

Salsa de la Bahia Vol. 2 "Hoy y Ayer" album cover
Salsa de la Bahia Vol. 2 “Hoy y Ayer” was produced by Bay Area Grammy nominated trombonist Wayne Wallace.

Yes, this double CD set is both a sequel and a prequel to Vol. 1. The latter covered the music produced in the Bay Area from 2000 to 2010. It’s a great collection of music, and you can read my review of that Vol. 1 HERE.

This Vol. 2 covers the periods from the early 1980’s to 2000, and the picks up in 2010 until 2013. Bay Area trombonist, producer, and educator Wayne Wallace produced this album. Also, the album has some known artists, some not so known artists, and even some not so know music from know artists.

“Salsa de la Bahia, Vol. 2; Hoy y Ayer” has great Salsa and Latin Jazz

Great Salsa and Latin Jazz – I love the variety of Salsa and Latin Jazz in this album. Although the album title only mentions Salsa, it also includes a good share of Latin Jazz.

Latin music popular and rare – Wayne Wallace did a fantastic job of combining Latin music from some of the better know artists from the San Francisco Bay Area, along with music from some of the lesser known artist, or lesser known recordings from the known artists. At least that was the case for me, and I feel that unless you are keenly keeping track of what goes on in the Bay Area, you will also be surprised by some of the music in this collection.

John Santos with his group and Fania All Stars Orestes Vilato
John Santos and his group with Orestes Vilato (both also formed Bay Area band Batachanga, featured in Salsa de la Bahia Vol. 2).

Great artists – the list of artists incluedes Pete Escovedo, Wayne Wallace, Azabache, Los Kimbos 90’s, Tanaora, Bobi Cespedes, Ritmo y Candela, La Mixta Criolla, Carlos Federico, Kat Parra, Orquesta Batachanga, Roger Glenn, Rico Pabon, Pacific Mambo Orchestra, and Estrellas de la Bahia.

Lots of Bands and Styles – there is a little bit of everything here. Salsa and Latin Jazz are played in a variety of styles by a variety of artists.

My Favorites – two of my favorites here were the music of Ritmo y Candela, a recording that feature 3 great Cuban percussionists (Carlos “Patato” Valdes, Jose Luis Quintana “Changuito” (one of the great innovators to help Juan Formell create Songo with Los Van Van), and Orestes Vilato. The other favorite of mine was the song from Los Kimbos 90s. The reason is because this recording of Los Kimbos was an unreleased recording and without Adalberto Santiago.

Opportunities Missed for “Salsa de la Bahia Vol. 2, Hoy y Ayer”

Cal Tjader Latin Jazz vibraphonist
Latin Jazz great Cal Tjader made a mark in San Francisco Latin music, but is missing in Salsa de la Bahia.

Cal Tjader – it left me wondering why the music of Bay Area legend Cal Tjader was not included in this collection. Tjader had a great footprint in the history of Latin music in San Francisco. He also had 4 recordings that were done in the early 80s, before passing away in 1982. One of those 4 albums was the acclaimed “Heat Wave”. Perhaps Wayne Wallace left him out since he was a very well known musician around the world, and didn’t feel there was a need to highlight him here!

My Recommendation of “Salsa de la Bahia Vol. 2, Hoy y Ayer”

“Hoy y Ayer” is a great collection of Latin music history of the San Francisco Bay Area. It goes back in time, and it also reminds us of some recent great recordings that came out of the area.

Because a significant part of this music was not widely (or commercially) known, Wayne Wallace resurfaces some of the fantastic Latin music coming out of this part of the country.

I found the liner notes just as fascinating as the music itself. “Hoy y Ayer”, along with Vol. 1 are a great set for any core Latin music fan.

 

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