Cosa Nuestra

Cosa Nuestra ("Our Thing") is the album that made Willie Colón and Héctor Lavoe stars. Their fourth album together, released on Fania in 1969, was their first gold record in the US and became a landmark of salsa. The album opens with the huge hit "Ché Ché Colé," inspired by an African children's game. It blends bomba with African 6/8 rhythms, and it carried the duo's music to Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Peru and France. Colón's trombone-heavy band is at full strength here, with Jerry Masucci producing and Johnny Pacheco directing the sessions.

Lavoe sings every track, and "Sonero Mayor" shows off his gift for improvised soneo. Other highlights include "Juana Peña," "Te Conozco" and the bolero "Ausencia," and Izzy Sanabria designed the famously tough-looking cover. In 2024, Rolling Stone named it one of the 50 Greatest Salsa Albums of All Time. This Craft Latino reissue honours the late Willie Colón. It's mastered all-analog from the original tapes and pressed on 180-gram vinyl, and it's an essential piece of any Latin record collection.