Afrosound — Tiro al Blanco

from Tiro al Blanco (1981)

The second track in today’s double feature: Massara’s ‘Margherita’ redone by Colombian psychedelic cumbia group Afrosound. It’s an absolute masterpiece of jungle dance music. If the song sounds familiar, it’s probably because Manu Chao sampled or copied the riff in a number of his hits.

Regarding the racy cover art—Afrosound was incapable of releasing an album without a partially naked lady on it. See for yourself at Super Sonido, one of my favorite blogs and the #1 spot for rare and obscure Central and South American 45s. (Thanks to Sonido Franko for this track!) Go give it a spin…

Ernesto Torrealba y su Conjunto los Araucanos — Teresita

from Ensueño Larense (1960s?)

A sweet set of harp-led ballads by bandleader Ernesto Torrealba, in tribute to Venezuela’s Lara state and the Venezuelan bandleader Antonio Carillo, by whom all these songs were written. The harp is an essential element of bands playing joropo or música llanera, the music of the grasslands of Colombia and Venezuela.

For something a little bouncier, check out Torrealba’s ‘Cumbia Sobre El Llano.’ Harp + cumbia = delectable.

Los York’s — Abrázame Baby (1967)

Demented garage from Peruvian psych-rockers Los Yorks. The lead singer, Pablo Luna, has a delightful meltdown on this tune, and the band just falls to pieces behind him.

This is actually a reworking of the Rolling Stones’ 1965 version of ‘Mercy Mercy,’ which was in turn a track originally written and performed in 1964 by soul/R&B singer Don Covay and the Goodtimers, with sublime guitar backing by a very young Jimi Hendrix.

To really bring things full circle, my favorite audio weirdos Lucky Dragons sampled the Don Covay version on their tooth-chattering 2002 track ‘Mercy.’ Oh, the journeys a song makes…

This and other Los York’s tracks at the definitive library of garage, Garage Hangover.