La Costa Brava

Along with El Gran Combo, Costa Brava was one of the top Puerto Rican salsa bands of the 1980s. Formed in 1978 in Santa Isabel, a small town on the southern coast of Puerto Rico, Costa Brava is led by trumpeter Elvin Torres, whose son, Elvin Torres, Jr., later joined the band as pianist, composer, and arranger. During the band's prime years, albums such as Dando de Que Hablar (1986), A Tiempo Completo (1987), Orgullo de Puerto Rico (1988), and Costa Brava 90 (1990) regularly appeared on the Top 20 of Billboard's Tropical/Salsa album chart. While the band's popularity steadily faded after the turn of the decade, Costa Brava remained active not only as live performers but also as recording artists. Even if they didn't sell as well as the band's earlier releases, independently released latter-day albums such as Otra Vez (2004, EJR Music), Costa Brava en Navidad (2005, EJR Music), and ¡A Pico y Pala pa' Que No Joma! (2007, Envidia Records) found the band in fine form.