Bwana

1972 Colombia

October 7, 2007

You can practically count the number of great progressive / psych albums from Colombia on one finger. And here it is. But their sole representative isn't only good, it's nothing short of amazing. I suppose it comes as no surprise that the major influence here is Santana. In particular the first two albums. The organ tones are not as heavy (I don't think it's a Hammond either) and the guitarist doesn't have near the chops as Carlos (though he's no slouch either). And while vocals exist on Bwana, they aren't a key to the sound. And when it's time to get indigenous, they naturally raise the sounds of pre-Colombian South America versus Mexico. So at this point you may be thinking we have a watered down version of "Abraxas", but that's not the case at all. Where Bwana gains ground is in their use of percussion, which is more varied and is also a feature rather than an accent. There's also a tribal voodoo element going on throughout, making me wish I knew of other groups coming out of Colombia during this era. Six long tracks, totalling over 45 minutes, and not a dud amongst them.

The cover shown above is the original LP. With today's eyes and mores, it appears to be quite offensive. The CD I have on Acid Symposium has a different and much better cover which features a collage similar to, once again, Santana's "Abraxas". Apparently the label has reissued it again with the original cover as above. I couldn't find a decent scan of the alternate cover, but when I do, I'll add it as well.

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