Central America & the Garifuna
Belize · Honduras · Guatemala · Nicaragua · Panama
Mayan highlands and a Caribbean coast. The drums and songs of the Garifuna — of African and Indigenous descent — are UNESCO-listed heritage; add marimba, Nicaragua’s songs of protest and Panama’s great salsa poet.
27 recordings, 1952–2022
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1952
Various Artists, The Black Caribs of Honduras
Songs and drumming of the Garifuna (Black Caribs) of Honduras, recorded by Peter Kite Smith and Willard Pictures in places such as Trujillo, Masca and Puerto Cortés, and produced for Folkways by Doris Stone.
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1970
Various Artists, Panamá (Latin, Calypso And Funk On The Isthmus 1965 - 75)
Compiled by Roberto Ernesto Gyemant from a radio station’s discarded LPs in David, Panama: deep soul, calypso, descarga, salsa and gritty funk from the isthmus, including calypsos by Lord Cobra.
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1977
Carlos Mejía Godoy, El son nuestro de cada día
A Nicaraguan composer and singer known for warm songs in country people’s language, closely tied to the social movements of the 1970s.
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1982
Various Artists, Traditional Music of the Garifuna of Belize
Garifuna music recorded in Belize in 1981 by Carol and Travis Jenkins, including chumba and other songs with drums; the notes describe the overlapping of leader and chorus that leaves few pauses in the singing. Issued by Folkways.
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1984
Rubén Blades y Seis del Solar, Buscando América
The Panamanian singer’s portrait of Latin America’s realities, including songs about a murdered archbishop and the “disappeared.”
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1985
Rubén Blades y Seis del Solar, Escenas
Panama’s Rubén Blades with his band Seis del Solar: lyrics of city life that made salsa something to listen to as well as dance to.
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1987
Alux Nahual, Alto al Fuego
The fifth album by Guatemalan rock band Alux Nahual, issued by DIDECA in 1987. Most of its songs, the title track among them, became hits heard across Central America, and it is seen as the band’s mainstream breakthrough.
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1994
Editus, Ilusiones
The debut by Costa Rican trio Editus — Ricardo Ramírez, Edín Solís and Carlos Vargas — who went on to meet and work with Rubén Blades around their 1998 album Calle del Viento.
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1995
Andy Palacio, Keimoun (Beat on)
Belizean singer Andy Palacio recorded this in Havana and Belize with Cuban and Belizean players, blending punta with jazz and rock. Released on the newly founded Stonetree label, it was the first CD produced in Belize.
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1996
Ricardo Arjona, Si el Norte Fuera el Sur
Guatemalan singer Ricardo Arjona; the title song imagines North and South swapped, satirising US–Latin American relations.
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1999
Paul Nabor and others, Paranda
Elder Garifuna singers of Belize and Honduras with their guitar-led paranda songs, recorded before the style faded.
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2000
Los Rabanes, Los Rabanes
The third album by Los Rabanes, from Chitré, Panama, recorded in early 2000 at Crescent Moon in Miami with Emilio Estefan Jr. producing. It mixes punk, calypso, reggae, ska and hip-hop, sung in a heavy dose of Spanglish.
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2002
Walter Ferguson, Babylon
Calypsonian Walter Ferguson, who lived in Cahuita on Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast, made his first high-quality CD with the help of the Papaya Music label; his first LP, from 1982, had poor sound and never circulated in Costa Rica.
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2003
Malpaís, Uno
The debut by Costa Rican band Malpaís, led by singer Fidel Gamboa, released on Papaya Music and certified platinum by the Costa Rican industry body FONOTICA. Gamboa died in 2011.
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2004
Aurelio, Garifuna Soul
The first solo album by Garifuna singer Aurelio Martínez, produced by Ivan Duran of Belize’s Stonetree Records and recorded in Hopkins village, Belize, exploring his roots in paranda and traditional rhythms.
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2007
Andy Palacio & The Garifuna Collective, Wátina
A Belizean Garifuna singer’s plea, in the Garifuna language, for his culture to be passed on. He died suddenly at 47 the following year.
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2008
Umalali, Umalali: The Garifuna Women’s Project
Garifuna women of Belize, Honduras and Guatemala singing songs from work and home, recorded over a decade.
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2010
Aurelio Martínez, Laru Beya
A Garifuna singer from Honduras who recorded partly in Senegal, linking Garifuna song to the West African sounds it descends from.
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2010
Danilo Pérez, Providencia
Panamanian pianist Danilo Pérez joins Panamanian folk rhythms and jazz in a chamber-like ensemble.
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2013
The Garifuna Collective, Ayó
The Garifuna Collective’s follow-up to Wátina, dedicated to their late leader Andy Palacio — its title means “goodbye” in Garifuna. Ivan Duran produced again, and it came out on Stonetree and Cumbancha.
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2016
Gaby Moreno, Ilusión
Guatemala-born, Los Angeles-based, moving easily between bolero, old Latin American songs and jazz in Spanish and English.
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2017
Rubén Blades with Roberto Delgado & Orquesta, Salsa Big Band
Rubén Blades with fellow Panamanian Roberto Delgado’s orchestra — Latin Grammy Album of the Year.
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2019
Sech, Sueños
Panamanian reggaetonero Sech — Panama is one cradle of Spanish-language reggae — scored with “Otro Trago.”
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2019
Sara Curruchich, Somos
The debut by Kaqchikel Maya singer-songwriter Sara Curruchich: 13 songs in Spanish and Kaqchikel, recorded in Guatemala, France and Spain under the direction of Gambeat of Manu Chao’s band, about resistance, Maya cosmovision and migration from Central America.
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2019
The Garifuna Collective, Aban
The Garifuna Collective’s first album in six years, on Belize’s Stonetree Records: deep Garifuna drumming and rhythm with subtle nods to dub, dancehall and reggaeton. It topped the Transglobal World Music Chart in November 2019.
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2020
Debi Nova, 3:33
Costa Rican singer Debi Nova’s May 2020 album, including “Quédate” with Pedro Capó. It won the Latin Grammy for Best Engineered Album, and its Grammy nomination made her the first Costa Rican artist ever nominated.
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2022
Gaby Moreno, Alegoría
Guatemalan singer Gaby Moreno’s seventh album, self-produced: eleven songs in Spanish and English, with guests including Marc Ribot. It was nominated for the Grammy for Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album.