Best of
The great Cuban band Irakere has been  underrecognized  only because the United States' trade embargo on Cuba kept the  mainstream jazz audience unaware of  their existence until 1977.  Members of Cuba's reigning big band, the Orquesta Cubana de   Mésica Moderna, formed Irakere in 1971. The new group's  leaders were virtuosic  pianist Chucho Valdés, trumpeter Arturo  Sandoval, and  saxophonist Paquito d'Rivera. After the '77  diplomatic thaw, the band played a U.S. tour and signed with  Columbia  records. The material here is from the Columbia period,  the  bulk of which was recorded live in New York in 1979. The   band's ability to play complex jazz arrangements with salsa   rhythms is a revelation.--John Swenson