Tropical Disco Chart

DJs Hugo Mendez and Frankie Francis AKA Sofrito have been throwing wild Tropical warehouse parties in East London since 2005. They’ve gone on to play at festivals, clubs, boats and beaches, from Glastonbury to Greece via Brooklyn and Paris. Digging out incredible vintage dancefloor gems from Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, Sofrito cook up seriously sublime party mixes. Konpa, Soca, Soukous, Plena…these guys do non-stop tropical mayhem with sweet, rare tracks that were made for the dance. Hot and heavy sounds, people!

Their Sofrito Specials exclusive 12” edits always sell out fast. This month Sofrito release their debut full-length compilation - so now everyone can have a little Tropical Discotheque in their lives. Meanwhile here’s a special Sofrito selection for Mondomix:

1. Rafael Cortijo & Ismael Rivera - Madame Calalú (Puerto Rico)

Cortijo's amazing records from the early 60s are a vital part of any Sofrito set. His unique sound - especially when coupled with Ismael Rivera - influenced a whole swathe of Puerto Rican music and gave birth to the legendary El Gran Combo. Pretty much his entire output is essential but our favourite LP has to be Fiesta Boricua, an evergreen classic of Caribbean music that we return to again and again. This clip is for another gem ‘Quitate De La Via Perico’:

2. Super Jazz des Jeunes - Denise (Haiti)

Great old-time Compas/Latin crossover from one of the best Haitian orchestras - amazing horn arrangements and tight rhythm section combine for a uniquely Haitian vibe that transports you back to the mid 60s...

3. Petrona Martinez - La Vide Vale La Peña (Colombia)

Top track from the Queen of Bullerengue and a bit of a Tropical anthem across various scenes. Heavy folkloric Colombian sounds that definitely do the business on the dancefloor.

4. Orchestre Mabatalai - N'gou N'gou N'gou (Cote D'Ivoire/Congo)

Abidjan-based label Zaire Promotion 2000 released a series of extremely heavy Soukous records at the beginning of the 80s, mainly recorded by visiting Congolese band Orchestre Mabatalai. For our ears a lot of Soukous productions (and Congolese recordings in general) often lack the bottom end required to move a modern dancefloor, but here this is definitely not the case. All-time Sofrito classic ‘Pour Chercher le Magot’ is sadly not available online but this track gets a fair few spins as well - it's also extremely popular on the Colombian coast with Champeta soundsystems...

5. Los Hermanos Martelo - La Escoba (Colombia)

‘La Escoba’ is a party-starting merengue style track that has been recorded by many different groups across the Caribbean and South America over the past thirty years - Felix del Rosario also recorded a great version with his signature honking baritone sax that often gets an outing at Sofrito parties. This version comes from Colombian greats Los Hermanos Martelo and never fails to ignite the dancefloor.

6. Pinduca - Sinha Pureza (Brazil)

Carimbó master Pinduca comes from Belem in the far North of Brazil. Carimbó music seems to combine the sounds of rhythms of various different places (especially French Guyana) and sticks out like a sore thumb in the vast world of Brazilian music. 'Sinha Pureza' is taken from one of his first albums and grooves like very little else...

7. Anthony Que - Move up time (UK/Jamaica)

A great track on an interesting Latin-influenced rhythm released by UK label Room in the Sky a few years ago. There is also a great melodica version... www.myspace.com/anthonyque

8. Charlie Palmieri - Tiene Sabor (NYC)

The sound of El Barrio at the end of the 60s - driving pachanga meets with a heavy dose of soul. Johnny Ventura also did a version that sits right next to the Latin output of Benin kings Orchestre Poly Rythmo...

9. Dj Mujava - Mugwanti Sgwejegweje (Schlachthofbronx Remix)

A world away from the vintage Latin of Charlie Palmieri and Rafael Cortijo, this remix of one of Kwaito master Mujava's hottest tracks represents a modern tropical sound. Munich crew Schlachthofbronx strip it down, speed it up and twist the original into something altogether different. A great sound that comes out of a great scene in Munich headed up by the Dala Dala Soundz family...

Dj Mujava - Mugwanti Sgwejegweje (Schlachthofbronx Remix) by schlachthofbronx

10. Florent Mazzoleni - L'épopée de la musique africaine : Rythmes d'Afrique atlantique (published in French by Hors Collection)

A fascinating book on African music and the problems surrounding a Pan-African musical identity. Mazzoleni also has a great book Afro Pop that will be published in the Spring, with information drawn from extensive travels and interviews alongside his enviable vinyl archive.

Various Artists – Sofrito: Tropical Discotheque