Eddie Palmieri and His Conjunto – La Perfecta

La Perfecta is the name Eddie Palmieri gave to the band he formed in 1961, after signing up with Al Santiago’s Alegre record label. The band featured vocalist Ismael Quintana, who Eddie happened to hear as Ismael was auditioning for the Orlando Marin orchestra. At the time this recording was produced, the Pachanga was in full swing using the typical Charanga orchestration. Charanga bands used violins and flute instead of brass horns. Palmieri decided to replace the violins with two trombones for a heavier sound. Eddie’s brother Charlie, dubbed this combination the ‘trombanga‘, referring to the combination. Before long, Willie Colon and other bandleaders were formed emulating La Perfecta’s rich and bold blend. A key element to the “Palmieri sound” was trombonist Barry Rogers. Also, George Castro (flute), Manny Oquendo (bongó and timbales), Tommy López (conga) and Dave Pérez (bass) rounded out the rest of the group. Palmieri experimented by including a touch of jazz in his recordings and incorporating a popular Cuban rhythm known as Mozambique.