Search - Various Artists :: Caliente: Tango Y Mambo

I have mixed feelings.

Mark Hammond | Chambersburg, PA USA | 01/12/2001

(3 out of 5 stars)

"It is good in that it gives a selection. However, for me, Caliente Tango y Mambo was a disappointment. I expected more from an album with such a title. I am afraid that I know more about tango than mambo. Most people now dance salsa to the mambo. As a milonguero, I am disappointed that more space was spent on the disc for mambo than tango. Also, within the genre of tango, we were limited to just Carlos Gardel and Astor Piazzola. The mambo fans get Xavier Cugat, Carmen Miranda, Perez, and Tito Puente. All of the performers are household names. Everybody knows them and loves them. The tanguero in me asked, "Is that all there is?" I would have had more tango selections and would have included greater variety, perhaps including D'Arienzo, Troilo, and Laurenz. This disc might be okay for somebody to buy to just have a few tangos and a few mambos. If you are a regular tango or mambo fan, this disc will not be for you. You would have a collection of discs dedicated to that style of music. If you are a disc jockey who provides music for dances and wants to have a variety of music to appeal to a wide audience, it makes economic sense to buy this recording. However, if you are planning the music for a milonga, you will want to have a greater selection than that which is available on this disc."