Lucho Bermudez y su Orquesta - The Coastal Invasion (2LP) [Radio Martiko]

Format: 2x12" in gatefold sleeve. Includes 16-page booklet with images and notes.
CAT: RMLP009

‘The Coastal Invasion’ highlights the golden age of big band cumbia and the maestro who is often considered Colombia’s most influential composer, Lucho Bermúdez.

Bermúdez was a key figure in the modernization of tropical music from the Colombian Caribbean coast. At the beginning of the 20th century, this type of music was largely disparaged. Bermúdez transformed that landscape by incorporating a modern sound, influenced by jazz and the big band format, into the Afro-Colombian sounds of his native region.

The infectious Afro-Amerindian dance rhythms of Lucho Bermúdez y su Orquesta conquered the most exclusive nightclubs of Bogotá and Medellín, and from there, their music spread throughout Latin America. For many Colombians, the songs of Lucho Bermúdez and his wife and star singer, Matilde Díaz, represent the very sound of their country.

This compilation brings together a selection of recordings by Lucho Bermúdez y su Orquesta made during the years they lived and worked in Medellín, probably the orchestra's best creative period.