1998 Ad

Latin Beat Magazine, Dec, 1998 by Rudy Mangual

What a year for Latin music! We survived the madness of the previous 365 days (1997) --a period in time-- in reference to Latin music, in which we witnessed the effects of several phenomena associated with the business of the business, such as the vanishing of Latin jazz artists from some of the mayor labels; the less-than-average output of the tropical dance genre; and the poor promotion of the waiting-to-exhale rock en Español market.

This year (1998), many of these problems as weil as others not mentioned, were at least recognized and dealt with to an extent. The hard-core Latin jazzistas carne back with a vengeance as independent producers or on small indie labels, taking back most of the previous lost ground and then some. The salseros also started seeing the light and regrouped to keep from falling into the trendy fads which only results in the decay of the musical form rather than an enrichment of it. Many of the rockeros also got down to business, producing works comparable to their Northern and British mentors. If most of this analysis doesn't make any sense to you, pick up a copy of Ralph Irizarry's Timbalaye debut CD, a product he had completed several years ago and no one in the industry had the cojones to deal with. It, together with other productions recorded this year by Chucho Valdés, Poncho Sánchez, Paquito D'Rivera, and Maraca exemplifies some of the freshest Latin jazz renditions of the year.

The latest work from singer Raulin Rosendo, who on my first listen several years ago didn't quite measure up to hit potential, now proved me wrong. His strong devotion to maintaining the essence of his tropical music roots and not comforming to voguish ideals from industry wolves, finally paid off on his latest CD. The same is the case with the Los Angeles local young party warriors, Ozomatli. It took over two years to sign this band to a major label, while everyone who ever shared in the Ozomatli affair saw their inmense potential. Small independent labels like Azlan from Northern California and Grita from New York are supporting the fast growing talents of Latin rockeros nationwide who the major labels have been ignoring throughout most of the decade. To the defense of the Latin music industry, they are finally coming of age in many of these areas. New blood is constantly entering our music industry more steadily than before. Many of the old timers are stepping down fast and the entire outlook of this industry is starting re-shape to meet the new demands of the upcoming millennium. There is still a lot of work, changes, training, and leadership necessary to meet the future of our music regardless of the dominating styles or forms than may be the norm. Still, I feel that this was a good year overall and it gives me hope for better days ahead. If you are reading this editorial, you are most likely interested in Latin music and I thank you for your support to Latin music first of all and to Latin Beat Magazine. Hope all our subscribers and readers have enjoyed this 1998 volume 8 of our publication and gain some knowledge from our articles and columns on this wonderful music. To all the people of the world, Yvette, myself, and the contributors of Latin Beat Magazine wish you all a healthy and happy holiday season and a prosperous new year. ¡Que no se pare la rumba, nunca!