¡Salsa! Mi Hermana

When this album was released in 1968, salsa was the soundtrack of a new Latin consciousness. If New York was the cradle, kids all over South America were soon cutting shapes to pachanga, guaguancó and guaracha rhythms that filled dance floors and usurped the cumbias and tangos of their parents' generation. Here was a cool Creole sound unswayed by Vietnam, the Cuban revolution or Beatlemania. Medellín's Sexteto Miramar started as a teen band, progressed to become a well-liked folksy conjunto and then, after hearing the likes of Joe Cuba's New York sextet, swung towards a contemporary, transnational sound – recording with legendary label Discos Fuentes, they were probably the first Colombians to use the word ‘salsa’ in a title.

The 12 tracks are a mixed bag of originals and covers, with the emphasis on juicy marimba rhythms and joyous vocal refrains, from riotous free-rolling opener, ‘Mi Hermana’ to the smooth yet plangent ‘Cuando Salí de Cuba’ to the smoochy ‘Dónde Estás Yolanda?’. ‘Salsa Boogaloo’ references Venezuela and the Bronx – that is, a cultural bridge from Nuyorican-loving Manhattan to Caracas and Bogotá. Like the pink tuxedos and retro fonts on the cover of this release, those days are long gone.