Sabor Latino

In 1997, Philippine Latin band Sabor Latino released Sabor Latino. The music is propelled by Latin-styled percussion and contains strong, vibrant singing and instrumentation. Sabor Latino contains seven members, including a female vocalist/percussionist, a male vocalist/percussionist, another percussionist, a drummer/percussionist, a guitarist, a bassist, and a keyboard/synthesizer player. Opening the album is a suave version of "Suavecito," the hit song for American Latin band Malo in 1972. Sabor Latino's version is close to the original, although Sabor Latino adds some passion of their own. The band also covers the Righteous Brothers' "Unchained Melody," and gives this classic a Latin twist. The song moves at a moderate pace that is faster than the original, and is carpeted over steady, zesty percussion. However, as good as these remakes are, it is the original material that makes the album interesting. "All I Wanna Do," for example, shines on its strong melody and vocals, as well as the exciting horn-like riffs (presumably played on a keyboard synthesizer). The percussion is strong here and throughout the album. For example, the percussion solos on "Trabajar," "Chambo," and the aforementioned "Suavecito" are exciting and add much to the album's charm. Another enjoyable song is "Bambalambeo," which features a male vocalist singing in a contrived and comical nasal voice (the title is probably a play on the Gypsy Kings' hit, "Bamboleo"). The backing vocals here are also well-honed. The singing throughout the album by the female and male lead singers, as well as the backing vocalists, is enjoyable and consistent. This is a good debut album.