In 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Jorge Cárcamo and Cristofer Rodríguez called on users of the social network Twitter (now X) to send their opinions. discs which they considered vital in the history of Latin America during the 20th century.
The initiative began in April of that year and, in a short time, the managers of the project They began to receive hundreds of proposals until they completed six hundred albums of different genres and nationalities, including their historical contexts.
“We began to invite other people to the group, with some acceptances and declines. Zoila Antonio, Felipe Figueroa, Eduardo Rodríguez, Marcus Losanoff and Joelle ‘Azuquita Prieta’ joined. Our group was made up of women and men, people from Chile, Peru, BrazilColombia, Venezuela, El Salvador, Dominican Republic and Mexico (with residence in the United States, Argentina and the country itself)”, say the promoters on the portal that the public can access to learn about the results of the great cultural contribution.
He project It also had the two main pillars, Cristofer Rodriguez and Jorge Carcamo, and the organizational support of Jose Juan Zapata, Mercedes Sanz, Eduardo Rodriguez, Felipe Figueroa and Julian Jimenez. The list includes discs published between 1920 and 2022.
Dominican Republic stands out
In the extensive list of albums, for the Dominican Republic The following are included discs: “The handle” by Johnny Ventura (meringue1962); “The real King of Merengue” by Joseíto Mateo (1964).
That same year, the now deceased Johnny Ventura also premiered “My new tumbao… cannon shot“alongside the legendary Johnny Pacheco, in which they bet on Cuban son and charanga (1964).
They are followed by the album “Celia and Johnny” recorded by Celia CruzJohnny Pacheco and Johnny Ventura (hard sauce1974). The outstanding singer Angela Carrasco appears in the selection with her album “Loving you” published in 1979.
Another of the productions selected in recognition of Dominican talent and creativity is the album meringue “The Civil Servant” by the outstanding artist Wilfrido Vargasreleased in 1983. The album meringue “Caribbean“Las Chicas del Can”, recorded in 1988, is another of the national productions included in the exclusive list.
The music Typical is also represented by the disc “20 hits” of the emblematic merengue player Tatico Henriquez (1989). The award-winning artist Juan Luis Guerra figure with his iconic disc “I hope it rains coffee” (1989). Guerra is also present with the acclaimed album “Bachata Rosa“, with which he consolidated his success in the Hispanic world in 1990.
The popular group The Rosario Brothers and his album “The owners of the swing” (1995) are also part of the selection of Internet users. The album “In your hands” (1996) from the queen of meringue, Milly Quezadais listed here https://www.600discoslatam.com.
Waters, an album by music alternative of Muleis among those selected, as well as the once popular urban duo Sandy & Papo with the self-titled album they released in 1996.
The album “For another theeitherof Chichi Peralta and They are family (1997) was also included in the list of Dominicans.The Jew” of Rita Indiana and The Mysteries (2010) is another of the Dominican proposals that was awarded after being selected by the participants.
And the music from the singer-songwriter Xiomara Fortuna is found in the document, with its disk “They are true” (2018) securing a position.
International records
Among the international ones, there are “The Last Don” from the Puerto Rican urban interpreter Don Omar (2003); “Echo” of Jorge Drexler (2004); and “Reminiscences and others waltzes unforgettable” by Julio Jaramillo (1968).
Likewise, there are “7” of The Big Combo of Puerto Rico (1975); “Transa” of Caetano Veloso (1972); “Roberto Carlos” by Roberto Carlos (1971); “Buena Vista Social Club Presented by: Omara Portuondo” (2000); “Jose Jose” by José José (1970) and “Mambo” by Pérez Prado (1965).
What was originally intended to be a list of 500 albums was expanded to 600 because the creators felt that some important albums were being left out (although others may have been left out as well). The opportunity was taken to extend the list through 2022. One of the last discussions was about whether the list should be numbered or presented in another way, with the former being decided on without appealing to fundamentalism, which will allow the list to be presented this year.
“In the final stretch, Mercedes Sanz, Julián Jiménez and Cristofer Rodríguez were unable to continue with the project for various reasons (although Cristofer continued to participate in important decisions until the end) and made valuable contributions. Among those of us who remained, we opted to continue and finalized the list. To determine the order of the 600 albums, we used mixed selection dynamics that included majority voting over several months, accompanied by numerous discussions in which each member explained why certain albums deserved better positions. The final list, which won over the dissent, reflects the result of this process,” they said.
It took the promoters of the initiative around three years to compile the database and publish the results.
“All of us who have been part of this project are music communicators from different fronts. Some are dedicated to journalism full-time, others have large digital projects with continuous diffusion about music, and some have collaborated in media outlets at some point. We all share a deep love for music,” they say in the document that details the effort to document the list.
