Latin Music USA

This survey and history of Latin Music in the United States is a great presentation. The use of period footage and eye witness interviews is great. The narration by Jimmy Smits is excellent. The decision to present the material in chronological order was a good one. The first chapter is, by far, the best -- but all of the segments are fascinating. For me, this program revealed aspects of American music -- especially Jazz -- which were heavily influenced by Latin artists in a whole new light. I mean, it was an eye opener! Now, I have much more respect for these pioneers and I can appreciate the contributions they made to popular music. Like me, you may be influenced to take notes and then go shopping for CD's of the original releases of these historic artists. I highly recommend this program.

I originally had this on VHS tape. Needed an updated and better quality version of this outstanding PBS 4 hour expose.

I wish the Mavericks and the Texas Tornadoes had been mentioned. Apart from that I loved this series. The salsa section reminded me of being at university in the late 1970s and early 1980s and hearing El Gran Combo's Aqui no se sienta nadie and Willie Colon and Reuben Blades Siembra. My best friend had roomates from Venezuela and Panama who played these albums at parties. I was interested in knowing more about Cuban music and love traditional Mexican music. Iwas also glad to see Gloria Estefan, Marc Anthony, and Juanes mentioned.

Left out all the greats of my era: Eddie Palmieri, Tito Puente, Mongo Santamaría, Joe Quijano, Joe Cuba - And what happened to Enrique..?

A 4 part series on the history of salsa and other latin music. If you love salsa, you will love this. My dear uncle Artie Perez, NYorican, had recorded this show a few years ago on pbs and I fell in love with it. My dear uncle passed away suddenly last week. If it weren't for him, I would not have known about this program. Thank you uncle. Lisa

I had always thought Salsa music originated in either the Dominican Republic or Puerto Rico. After viewing Latin Music USA, I realized I was totally wrong. As this skillfully produced documentary reveals, Salsa music is primarily an American invention. Although it has Afro-Caribbean roots, Salsa music got its commercial start in New York City. Surprised? I was. Goes to show you how important it is to pay attention to fine documentaries like Latin Music USA. This documentary doesn't just focus on Salsa. It covers the entire range of Latin music, from Merengue to Tex Mex to Chicano music of the 1960s and 1970s. Very interesting and worthy of purchasing if Latin music interests you.

This is a must have if you want a thorough and entertaining history of Latin music. Two thumbs up for the people involved in the production of this documentary. I loved it.

As a lifelong student and fan of afro-Cuban music I was delighted to finally find this wonderful DVD. I had seen about 30 minutes of it on public television years ago, and now I have the whole program. The sections about Latin pop were not as interesting to me, but the entire show was expertly researched and beautifully produced. I can't imagine how anybody interested in Latin music could be less than thrilled with this offering.

Fantastic

A friend told me about this show, which originally aired on TV as 4 1-hour episodes. I found it easily on amazon and ordered it. As a music lover, I was glued to the TV and pretty well watched it all (including the bonus interviews) in 2 sittings.Oddly enough, I had just finished reading a book about the Brill Building and how some of the writers loved to hang out and dance to latin music in New York and had used those rhythms in their classic. A short while ago I had read another book about Dizzy Gillespie and how he brought latin rhythms (cuban) into jazz. So this program really tied all this information together neatly for me.The program focuses on the key musicians, dancers, industry players, songs and locations that were instrumental in popularizing "Latin" music. It does not really explain the differences between the various rhythms themselves... it's a history lesson, not a music lesson. It shows the Latin influence on jazz, rock, etc. and brings the music quite up to date, as far as I can tell.The program is good in that it makes me want to learn more and check out more of the music and musicians. Someone who plays this music legitimately and professionally probably already knows all of this, and can tell the difference between salsa, cha cha, etc. and knows which are African, Cuban, Brazilian, etc. I still consider myself rather new at this.As for the music itself, I have a hard time believing that the electronic and digital latin music (ie. probably everything since Gloria Estefan) is as legit as the earlier "acoustic" music of Tito Puente, Arturo Sandoval, etc. Those were very "hot" players!A few last notes to anyone not sure whether to fork out the money for this DVD set. First, the sound and video quality are great, and the editing is tight. Second, you don't have be a Latin music fan to enjoy this, any music lover will enjoy this (although not everyone will want to watch all 4 episodes). Third, reading about this music cannot replace watching and listening, so it's a great, quick and meaningful way to be exposed to it. A&E had previously done some special episodes and dvd's on Songwriters, the Brill Building, etc. and this show includes some interviews taken from that series.