La Conquistadora by Marty Galagarzar y La Conquistadora is one of my favorite albums. Not just because Roy Carmona kills it on lead vocals but because it’s one of the first albums where the music made such an impression on me that it propelled me towards a life of searching for that next dope song. My itch for collecting started in 2001 on my first trip to Medellin but by the time I discovered La Conquistadora in 2003, I had a better understanding of the music and more importantly, I had money to spend (didn’t purchase many albums from 2001 to 2003 as I was a broke college student).
So in comes La Conquistadora and wow was I blown away! Back in those days when in NYC, we would always make a pit stop at Casa Latina Music Shop, which is the greatest candy store ever for salsa collectors. If you find yourself in NYC, check them out on 151 East 116th Street in Manhattan (212-427-6062). When visiting Casa Latina, I would always leave with at least 10 cds. Typically, I would call DJ Sonerito (Andres Giraldo from Salsa y Control Dance Co.) for any recommendations as soon as I stepped in the door. By that time, he and his brother Johnny had been collecting for quite some time and in my eyes were the authority on salsa clasica (not to mention the source of my envy for the countless amount of cds mounted on their wall and now for all the LPs they’ve recently purchased). It was on one of those trips that Andres suggested La Conquistadora. This passion for collecting and Andres unknowingly becoming my collecting mentor is part of what brought our friendship together.
I think the only other album I can remember purchasing that day was Revolucion en NY by Orquesta Revolucion 70 because I must have played La Conquistadora non-stop the entire four hour ride from NYC to Providence. This album cemented the idea of wanting to collect every album produced during the ‘60s and ‘70s and was the final touch on my addiction to salsa clasica. A few years later I introduced La Conquistadora to DJ Travieso (Travis DeTour) from Boston. It was one of those “yo check this out” moments we would always have on our way to or from dance practice. I later put DJ Zeus (Jesus Obregon) from Baltimore on to this gem, who had almost the exact same reaction as DJ Travieso and I did upon hearing this album for the first time. Both of them quickly surpassed me as collecting addicts, in part due to the affect this album produced. Because of all the great memories this album brings, it holds a special place in my collection.
1. Yo Quisiera
2. Mami Me Gusto
3. No Pienses Asis
4. Corazon
5. Candela
6. Para Todos Mis Amigos
7. Amar y Vivir
8. Pobre Jose
9. Teruño
Review
This album has amazing dance tracks. Yo Quisiera, Candela, and Corazon are well worth the purchase for those salseros only looking for some good tracks to dance to and not looking to go crazy collecting. As a dancer, what moves me about this album is the hard hitting trombones, Roy Carmona’s cool unique nasal voice, the use of the symbols, and of course the bongo solos. Marty Galagazar played the bongos so you’ll find some nice bongo treats throughout the album.
La Conquistadora starts off strong with a powerful salsa tune, Yo Quisiera. Here’s a video of Andres Giraldo at the 2008 Dallas Salsa Congress playing with the music on this track. Check out min 2:28 to 2:31, 2:35 to 2:38, and 4:16 to 4:20 of the video. It's hard to do that with some of the newer salsa which has a flatter sound (very little breaks and changes to the music) and barely any percussion to play with. There’s no doubt after watching this video that this song was meant to rock a dancer floor.
Although Candela starts off a little slow, don’t be fooled. It’s a smoking dance track. I played Candela at an event in Baltimore where dancers weren’t familiar with salsa clasica and didn’t get a great reaction. I learned my lesson to only play this track at salsa events where seasoned salseros won’t be scared off by the slow start. Check out the trombone solo guided by the symbols on minute 3:30 to 4:08. It gives me chills every time I listen to it. That will definitely inspire some creativity on the dance floor.
Corazon is my favorite track on this album. It also starts off slow but if you’re patient enough, Corazon will repay you on the dance floor. DJ Turco played this track once at Mambos in Boston and had the entire dance floor packed. Check out the pay off Andres Giraldo got from Corazon on minute 3:15 to 3:35 of this old video at the original Boston Havana Club (around 2004) back when it was at the BCCA. He returns the favor with some creative footwork to this trombone and break section:
The only other salsa track, Teruño, finishes off the album, which is a nice chill song to listen to but not great for the dance floor. I'm not a huge fan of Teruño but only because it just doesn't compare to the three other salsas metioned above.
La Conquistadora also has equally nice tracks to just sit back and lounge to. These songs are good but may take some getting use too if your ear is not accustomed to listen to this type of music, especially the boleros. Salsa clasica has taught me many lessons. One is to appreciate boleros and another is that some boleros just flat out suck. So as you can imagine, La Conquistador has one bolero that got put on my favorites list and another that I barely touch. No Pienses Asi is the only song on this album that I don’t like. Amar y Vivir on the other hand I’ve enjoyed on many occasions. Like most boleros, this one starts off slow but kicks it up a slight notch at minute 1:50 and finishes off with a smooth trombone solo starting at minute 3:05.
Even though Oscar Hernandez’s piano solo from minute 2:20 to 3:20 is the highlight of Para Todos Mis Amigos, I really enjoy listening to the lyrics of this guajira, which ponders who will be by your side in your final days. I keep telling some of my friends that they need to learn Spanish just so they can enjoy songs like this one. Mami Me Gusto and Pobre Jose are the two son montunos of the ablum. Mami Me Gusto has a really catchy chorus and a rythm guided by campanas and bongos that always get me doing some funky shoulder move. Check out minute 2:13 to 2:35. You'll know what I'm talking about. This song also has cool lyrics. My wife always gets a kick out this cat calling tune: "Tu tienes muchas cosas que vacilan, porque tu andas con mucha dulzura mama." Once again, Oscar does his thing on Pobre Jose with a silky performance on minute 2:18 to 2:58, which is followed by some bongo action that closed the deal for me on this song.
Info on the Band
La Conquistadora was originally released on vinyl in 1972 on Vaya Records with Fania re-issuing the album on cd in 1999. Marty Galagarza formed La Conquistadora along with the trombone player, Carlos Berrios, who left the band to record with Tempo 70. Marty went on to release two more albums with La Conquistadora: Pinocho in 1974 and Conciencia in 1980. Prior to forming La Conquistadora, he co-lead La Conspiracion with Ernesto Agosto. Marty only appeared on one album with La Conspiracion (self titled) released in 1971 also on Vaya. Lucky for us that they had a fallen out as we were blessed with two kick ass bands.
This album was produced by Larry Harlow. For those that are just beginning their collection, you should look for albums produced by Harlow. He produced a bunch of awesome bands like Rafi Val y La Diferente, Orquesta Dicupe, and Chino Rodriguez y La Consagracion during the early '70s. In my opinion, the bands he was producing in the early ‘70s came out with better music than he was creating for his own band. Oscar Hernandez (leader of Spanish Harlem Orchestra) played the piano as a teenager on this album. It’s hard to believe that a 17 year old could have such mastery of those teclas. With his work on this album, you could tell Oscar was in for a long accomplished career.
Roy Carmona also sang on Pinocho but was later replaced by Cheo Colon and Israel Perez on Conciencia. I don’t know of any other bands that Carmona sang with except for his work on 100% Bailable by Chino y Su Conjunto Melao. Although he’s not mentioned as a singer on the album’s credits, there’s no denying he sang the tracks Jazmin and Bongo off that album. The back cover of the album has Roy Amante as one of three singers. Perhaps, Carmona had a name change. He’s one of those soneros with a unique voice that is easy to recognize. I’ll have to someday write a review of Bongo as the lyrics are beautifully written to describe the life of a musician and Carmona sings this salsa tune to perfection.
Hope you enjoy this album as much as I have!
Peace
DJ Walt
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