Tropicology - Episode 100: Century Latin

Today we have a special event lined up on Tropicology… this happens to be the 100th episode since this franchise changed names… longtime listeners will remember this show started life back in 2014 as “The Adventures of Encyclopedia Sound.” That was a name from a DJ who didn’t expect XRAY FM to blossom into a radio force with an army of devoted listeners… when that reality became undeniable I had to step up the game a bit. For the musical theme today I have another show focused around music of Cuba and the Cuban diaspora. Today I have just picked 4 set themes that are approachable and easy to love: in the first set we’ll hear some fantastic latin lounge numbers alongside some Havana swing… this is all good time music for a go-go generation. The second set carries us outside the capital city for swing sounds that prevailed in big cities away from Havana, like Matanzas and Santiago. The second hour starts with latin sounds transplanted in the 1960s into places like New York and Colombia… this is a cosmopolitan sound with a bit more authenticity and teeth relative to the boogaloo and shingaling numbers marketed to US audiences at that time. Then we’ll end the show with some material from that moment in the mid-70s when salsa dancing was starting to emerge… early salsa music to end today’s episode.