JOHNNY PACHECO - Cañonazo (Reissue) - LP - 180g Vinyl [SEP 13]

LP - 180g Black Vinyl. 

In the ’50s, Pacheco cut his chops in the legendary orchestras of Tito Puente, Xavier Cugat, and Charlie Palmieri before forming his own band, Pacheco y su Charanga, in 1960. Over the next few years, the group released a string of best-selling albums (Pacheco Y Su Charanga Vols. 1–5), toured the globe, and created a dance craze along the way, “The Pachanga” (a combination of the bandleader’s name and “charanga”). By 1963, however, Pacheco was in search of a new home for his recordings. But rather than sign with an established label, he decided to form his own. Co-founded with lawyer Jerry Masucci, Fania Records not only offered Pacheco full creative control over his work, but also allowed him to champion his fellow Latin artists, including Willie Colón, Héctor Lavoe, Rubén Blades, Cheo Feliciano, Celia Cruz, Ray Barretto, and many others. Before long, Fania would become one of the world’s most successful and influential Latin music labels.

It was only fitting that Fania’s first album was by Pacheco himself. Released in 1964, Cañonazo ushed in a new era for the bandleader, who reorganized his popular group into a conjunto—replacing violins with trumpets and renaming the outfit Pacheco y su Nuevo Tumbao (the word Tumbao translates into any number of meanings, including style, rhythm, and attitude—all of which feel appropriate to mark the artist’s new creative journey). The album also marked Pacheco’s first of many outings with vocalist Pete “El Conde” Rodriguez, a relative newcomer at the time, who would become a major star in the scene.

Cañonazo found Pacheco interpreting popular Cuban songs from the ’50s and ’60s, including the title track, written by Evaristo Aparicioand popularized by La Sonora Matancera (featuring Celia Cruz). Other highlights include a cover of La Sonora Ponceña’s “Como Mango,” Cheo Marquetti’s “Pinareño,” and “Fanía (Funché),” a Cuban son by Reinaldo Bolaños, made famous by Estrellas de Chocolate in 1953. The song’s title also inspired Pacheco when it came to naming his new label.

With the release of Cañonazo, Fania Records began its ascent in the Latin music world. Pacheco, meanwhile, would go on to record scores of albums—both as a soloist, as well as with many of Fania’s artists, including popular titles with Celia Cruz, Justo Betancourt, and Papo Lucca. As Fania’s musical director, Pacheco oversaw hundreds of recordings and, in the late ’60s, formed the legendary Fania All Starscollective. Beginning in the ’70s, he expanded into film scoring—working on such projects as the 1972 documentary Our Latin Thing and 1974’s Salsa.

During his seven-decade-long career, Pacheco recorded and composed over 150 songs, earning 10 Gold records from the RIAA, and nine GRAMMY® nominations. Among many other honors, Pacheco received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2005 Latin GRAMMYs and, in 1996, was the first Latin producer to receive the NARAS Governor’s Award. Pacheco was an inaugural inductee into the International Latin Music Hall of Fame and, several years later, received their Lifetime Achievement Award. In 1996, Pacheco was celebrated by his home country with the Dominican Republic’s Presidential Medal of Honor, while in 2009, he received the highest distinction possible (the “El Soberano”) at the Dominican Republic’s annual Casandra Awards (now known as The Soberano Awards), which is the country’s equivalent to the GRAMMYs.

Tracklist: 

A1.        Cañonazo
A2.        Como Mango
A3.        Pinareño
A4.        Cabio Sile
A5.        Campeon

B1.        El Kikiriki
B2.        Labrando La Tierra
B3.        Fania
B4.        Yo Soy Guajiro
B5.        El Pregonero
B6.        Dakar, Punto Final