Subway Salsa – The Montuno Records Story

Wander down under Times Square, deep in the New York subway system, and there it is: Record Mart. A modest music store that stubbornly bucks the 21st century vogue for downloading and file sharing; a store where Latin music spills from loudspeakers and posters proclaimed releases and re-releases by salseros both legendary and wannabe. Back in the day – the days of the 1970s and 80s – Record Mart was a Mecca for the city's Puerto Rican and Cuban populace and the home base for Montuno Records, an independent label started by proprietor and aficionado Jesse Moskowitz, who reopened his shop in 2007 after a hiatus of eight years.

‘I want to pay tribute to a label that stands out as a plucky cultural beacon from a time when Fania reigned supreme,’ declares Pablo Yglesias, aka DJ Bongohead, in the detailed booklet accompanying an album: it's as lovingly packaged as its tracks are compiled. Buoyed by boyhood memories of the store – by its sights and smells, music and voices – DJ Bongohead has put together a glorious paean to the label, the shop and the times. Here, then, are 28 recordings that Montuno issued in the heyday: NuYorican salsa; Haitian compass; Latin jazz; and traditional Cuban son. There are hybrids embracing funk, doo-wop and even Brazilian sounds – Airto Moreira is here with ‘Aqui Se Puede’, For the most part, however, Subway Salsa features the sort of scorching brass-driven numbers beloved of salsa dancers. A historical document you can dance to; stick it on the iPod and shimmy along the tube platform.