Azteca - Azteca (1972)

Azteca was an American Latin rock/jazz fusion group formed in 1972, started by percussionists Coke Escovedo and his brother Pete Escovedo, who had just finished stints with Latin rock pioneering band Santana. Azteca was the first large-scale attempt to combine multiple musical elements in the context of a Latin orchestra setting, and featured horns, woodwinds, multiple keyboards, three vocalists, guitars, drums, and multiple Latin percussionists. Onstage, the band consisted of between 15-25 members, and toured with acts including Stevie Wonder. Other notable Azteca alumni included vocalists Wendy Haas and Errol Knowles, guitarist Neal Schon, trumpeter Tom Harrell, bassist Paul Jackson, drummers Lenny White & John H. Brinck Jr., and percussionist Victor Pantoja. The group was also a musical starting point for Latin percussionist Sheila E. (the daughter of Pete Escovedo), who appeared with the band as a teenager. Two albums were released on Columbia Records, the self-titled Azteca (1972) and Pyramid of the Moon (1973), before the band split up.
 Azteca never would’ve had a major-label contract if it weren’t for Santana, the trailblazing San Franciscan group that made Latin rhythms acceptable. Azteca had a stronger Latin bent than Santana, particularly on their eponymous 1972 debut that is dense with polyrhythms and horns, dipping occasionally into a Cinemascope presentation of saccharine emotions. That sentimentality and on-the-nose celebrations (“You Can’t Take the Funk Out of Me”), along with a general hippie-dippy vibe, give the album a period-piece flavor but there is much to savor here, especially in how all involved enjoy playing with the groove, letting it breathe and expand, sometimes happy to let it ride upwards of seven minutes. Azteca is too undisciplined to be a minor gem but it’s still charming: it envisions a world without borders and that’s hard to resist even when it’s not always well articulated. This album also contains single versions of “Ain’t Got No Special Woman” and “Mamita Linda” as bonus tracks.


01.  La Piedra Del Sol  - 1:13
02.  Mamita Linda  - 3:40
03.  Ain’t Got No Special Woman  - 5:59
04.  Empty Prophet  - 5:27
05.  Can’t Take The Funk Out Of Me  - 4:22
06.  Peace Everybody  - 4:30
07.  Non Pacem  - 6:39
08.  Ah! Ah!  - 3:24
09.  Love Not Then  - 5:00
10.  Azteca  - 4:45
11.  Theme: La Piedra Del Sol  - 1:52
12.  Ain´t Got No Special Woman (Single Version) (bonus track)  - 2:52
13.  Mamita Linda (Single Version) (bonus track)  - 2:55

Credits
Acoustic Bass, Electric Bass [Fender] – Paul Jackson
Congas, Vocals – Victor Pantoja
Drums, Vocals – Lenny White III
Electric Piano – George Muribus
Guitar – Jim Vincent, Neal Schon
Organ – Flip Nuñez
Piano [Acoustic], Clavinet – George DiQuattro
Soprano Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone, Baritone Saxophone, Flute, Piccolo Flute – Mel Martin
Tenor Saxophone, Flute, Piccolo Flute – Bob Ferreira
Timbales – Coke Escovedo
Trombone [Valve] – Jules Rowell
Trumpet – Tom Harrell
Vocals – Errol Knowles, Pete Escovedo, Rico Reyes, Wendy Haas

Notes
Recorded at: Columbia Studios, San Francisco, California, in 1972
Mastered By: George Horn
Genre: Latin Rock, Jazz Fusion
Length: 52:40
Producer(s): Azteca, Coke Escovedo
Engineer: Glen Kolotkin
Arranged By: Coke Escovedo, Tom Harrell
© 1972 Columbia Records