Mongo Santamaria - Mongo's Greatest Hits (1995)

This is a excellent single-disc sampler of what Mongo Santamaria was like before "Watermelon Man" catapulted him into the charts. Some of the Fantasy tracks sound like the musicians were just off the boat from Havana, and are a bit primitive in contrast to the brassy Santamaria of the mid- to late '60s, but they have overwhelming charm. The revered "Afro-Blue" can be heard in its original, spooky, stripped-down form, and it would be hard for anyone to resist the voodoo spell that the ten-plus minute "Mazacote" conveys. Besides Santamaria himself, included among the world-class percussionists on this record are Willie Bobo and Armando Peraza. The CD version adds four tracks, including "Watermelon Man" from the Battle/Riverside period and an alternate take of "Para Ti."


Tracks:

01. Afro Blue
02. Mr Novla
03. Linda Guajira
04. Pito Pito
05. Mazacote
06. Para Ti
07. Watermelon Man
08. Manteca
09. Saboso
10. Conga Pa Gozar
11. Federico
12. Mi Guaguanco
13. Para Ti
14. Las Guajiras