In 1961, celebrated composer Henry Mancini released ‘Mr. Lucky Goes Latin,’ which kicks off with a Latin Jazz re-imagining of the theme song he'd composed for the popular CBS-TV drama series "Mr. Lucky." The back cover liner notes explained that, while "exotic rhythms" had been emphasized, the LP’s real accent should be placed on "romantic melodies, intriguing sounds and sophisticated humor."

     The same could be said for ‘Cloud Eleven Goes Latin,' written and performed entirely by Rick Gallego, mastermind behind the L.A.-based power pop/psych pop vocal group Cloud Eleven, whose self-titled debut album was released 25 years ago on the legendary L.A. indie label Del-Fi Records.

     For this new album, Gallego wanted to expand his musical horizons into Latin instrumental music. This turned out to be a natural fit since he is of Latin descent, growing up with a Caucasian mother and Latin father (his father’s family originated from Mazatlán, Mexico, before moving to California). There was always a wide variety of music playing on the family Hi-Fi, including Mancini's LP, as well as other Latin instrumental classics by vibraphonist Cal Tjader, Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass, and The Baja Marimba Band, among others.

     Their combined influence and inspiration remained with Gallego his entire life. Now, in 2024, he's fulfilled one of his lifelong dreams, to take a nostalgic musical trip back to a beloved era in music more than sixty years ago, a time when jazz combos and instrumental orchestras often released albums with "Goes Latin!" prominently featured in the title.

     These twelve brand-new original recordings are full to the brim with South of the Border vibes: piano montuno (a Latin piano progression which reminds us that the piano is a percussion instrument), Hammond B-3, flute, timbales, bongos, meowing felines, and more! Songs like the percolating lead-off track, “Bongós y Gritós," with its rousing Mexican shouts, feels like a fun night out in a Mexico City nightclub, with a sound not unlike Tjader, or Tito Puente in their early '60s heyday, while “Mi Casa en San Luis," replete with marimbas, vibraphone and Mariachi horns, conjures up memories of the time Gallego lived with his cousins in the Arizona/Mexican border town of San Luis.

     Not everything on the album has a Latin vibe, however. A few tunes, like “Girl From Ikiki Beach" and “Exotica Island,” are closer to the Tiki and Exotic-tinged sounds of Martin Denny, music that also included a lot of Afro-Cuban rhythms—straight outta the West Indies—in its makeup. They are a big part of this record too, but with all the various side trips Gallego takes (including to the Far East and Southern California’s South Bay on a lovely tune inspired by Brian Wilson), ‘Cloud Eleven Goes Latin’ makes for a very interesting, and often complex, musical journey. Gallego’s goal was to make a record that held up in the shadows of the masters—Mancini, Esquivel, Tjader, Puente— and it pleasantly sounds like he’s succeeded.

Click here to buy.