Next up in our Cuban Classics series, one of the jewels of record label Areito\u2019s extensive and sought-after catalogue. Ricardo Eddy Martinez\u2019s Expreso Ritmico from 1978 is a prized album fusing funk, disco, and orchestrated influences with Afro-Cuban percussion, Latin breaks, and lush vocal harmonies.<\/p>\n
Whilst maintaining its distinctive Cuban identity, Expreso Ritmico is one of the more American \/ Western-influenced Cuban titles of the time drawing inspiration from jazz funk, disco, and library music. The album was directed, written, and orchestrated by keyboardist and drummer Ricardo Eddy Martinez, who was also the mastermind behind the orchestration of the Los Reyes 73 album (that was recently reissued by Mr Bongo). Martinez would later go on to work with international musicians and singers such as Gloria Estefan, Jos\u00e9 Feliciano, Chick Corea, and many more, whilst also working as a sound engineer in the US.<\/p>\n
Produced by Adolfo Pichardo, who worked on much of Areito\u2019s output, Expreso Ritmico is packed with gold. The opening title track carries a loose, breezy Latin-disco-funk vibe that breaks into a brilliant Afro-Cuban workout. \u2018Que La Tristeza Se Fue\u2019 was expertly sampled and looped by Jazzanova on their 2008 song \u2018Look What You Are Doing To Me, featuring Phonte from the hip hop group Little Brother. Elsewhere, \u2018Tambo Iya\u2019 has an Afro-funk, Soul Makossa-esque groove, while tracks such as \u2018Te Quedas\u2019, \u2018Mi Conga Es La Que Es\u2019 and \u2018La 132\u2019 run with a heavy pulsating Latin-funk sound. Head to the sultry psych funk of \u2018Este Tumbao\u2019 for a spacey journey that blends and morphs through genres.<\/p>\n
A record that was ahead of its time, Expreso Ritmico is a superb and unique album that merges western influence with Cuban flair. It comes housed in a replica of its original Cuban sleeve design.<\/p>\n
A1 Expreso Ritmico 4:11
\nA2 Mi Conga Es La Que Es 3:34
\nA3 Tambo Iya 3:35
\nA4 Yeya Son 3:10
\nA5 De Mis Razones 4:04
\nB1 La 132 4:24
\nB2 Este Tumbao 3:42
\nB3 Mas No Me Falta Fe 3:35
\nB4 Que La Tristeza Se Fue 3:40
\nB5 Te Quedas 4:21<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":61161,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"product_brand":[],"product_cat":[107,132,137],"product_tag":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-64549","1":"product","2":"type-product","3":"status-publish","4":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"product_cat-new","7":"product_cat-soul-funk-disco-rnb-en","8":"product_cat-world-music-traditional-ethnic-en","9":"pa_formaatti-lp-en","10":"pa_kaytetty-uusi-new","12":"first","13":"instock","14":"taxable","15":"shipping-taxable","16":"purchasable","17":"product-type-simple"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/freshgarbage.fi\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product\/64549","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/freshgarbage.fi\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/freshgarbage.fi\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/product"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freshgarbage.fi\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/61161"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/freshgarbage.fi\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64549"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"product_brand","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freshgarbage.fi\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_brand?post=64549"},{"taxonomy":"product_cat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freshgarbage.fi\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_cat?post=64549"},{"taxonomy":"product_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freshgarbage.fi\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_tag?post=64549"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}