Ritchie Valens - Ritchie Valens + Ritchie (Bonus Track Version) (2016)

Tracklist

01. That's My Little Suzie
02. In a Turkish Town
03. Come on, Let's Go
04. Donna
05. Bony-Moronie
06. Ooh My Head
07. La Bamba
08. Bluebirds over the Mountain
09. Hi-Tone
10. Framed
11. We Belong Together
12. Dooby-Dooby-Wah
13. Stay Beside Me
14. Cry, Cry, Cry
15. Big Baby Blues
16. Paddiwack Song
17. My Darling Is Gone
18. Hurry Up
19. Little Girl
20. Now You're Gone
21. Fast Freight
22. Ritchie's Blues
23. Rockin' All Night
24. Rock Little Darling (Demo) [Bonus Track]
25. Rhythm Song (Demo) [Bonus Track]
26. Summertime Blues (Live) [Bonus Track]
27. From Beyond (Live) [Bonus Track]
28. Malagueña (Instrumental Outtake) [Bonus Track]
29. Come on, Let's Go (Live) [Bonus Track]
30. La Bamba (Live) [Bonus Track]
31. Let's Rock and Roll (Demo) [Bonus Track]

During the course of his brief life, the legendary Ritchie Valens fused numerous musical genres together to form his own remarkable style. He left a lasting impact on rock & roll with his classic rocker “La Bamba” – a highenergy reworking of an old Mexican wedding song that Valens learned from his cousin. Ritchie put a rock & roll spin on this spirited folk tune, juicing it up with garage-rock riffing and a raw, enthusiastic solo. In essence, he invented Latino rock with this two-minute rock & roll classic. Its driving simplicity foreshadowed garage-rock, frat-rock and punk-rock. Ironically, “La Bamba” was the B-side of “Donna”, a dedication to Valens’ girlfriend that rose to number 2 on Billboard’s singles chart. “La Bamba” also charted, but only climbed as high as number 22. This double-sided smash marks one of the greatest rock & roll singles of the Fifties.

Long unavailable on vinyl, this quintessential collector’s edition presents his classic self-titled debut album, Ritchie Valens, originally released by Del-fi Records in March 1959. It contains the only truly finished work that Valens recorded at Gold Star Studio in L.A. His adolescent longing and playful, exuberant energy can be felt on such songs as “Come on, Let’s Go” and his big hit, “La Bamba”, as well as its flip side, “Donna” (which was actually the A-side of the single even though “La Bamba” has emerged over time as Valens’ signature tune). The album also includes a halting, beautiful version of “Bluebirds over the Mountain”, and the oddly haunting “In a Turkish Town”. In addition, this quintessential LP release includes 4 bonus tracks from the same recording sessions.

DOWNLOAD ALBUM [flac]