Paquito D'Rivera - Taste of Paquito

Not a greatest-hits album (like he was shooting for hits) nor a thoroughgoing anthology of Paquito D'Rivera's Columbia period (only the first five of his seven albums are covered), the word "taste" is an intriguing choice, though at 74 minutes the CD is a bit more than just a taste. But then, since Sony has done a real number on his catalog by not reissuing those first five albums, A Taste is all that CD buyers can sample from Paquito's first American recordings. Up to a point listeners receive a pretty good idea as to what the commotion was initially about, starting from the time two years after D'Rivera's defection from Cuba when he was primarily a joyous, shouting Latin bopper with a hot hand on the alto sax. Read More