''Azteca'' is the debut album by former Santana band members Coke Escovedo and his brother

Pete Escovedo Peter Michael Escovedo (born July 13, 1935 in Pittsburg, California) is an American percussionist. "Pete Escovedo Biography & Awards"/ref> With his two brothers, Pete formed Escovedo Bros Latin Jazz Sextet, before Carlos Santana hired Pete and ...

with their new band, Azteca. The was album released by Columbia Records in December 1972 and debuted at No.178 on the

Billboard 200 The ''Billboard'' 200 is a record chart ranking the 200 most popular music albums and EPs in the United States. It is published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine and is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of ar ...

Album Chart on January 13, 1973, peaking at No.151 on February 17, 1973, and spending nine weeks in the charts.

Reception

On the website

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

, music critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote: In December 1972 '' Billboard'' in its review of the album stated "the seventeen man conglomerate boasts, among other assets four fiery vocalists and a four man horn section that cooks to the boiling point. Especially powerful are 'Mamita Linda', 'You Can't Take the Funk Out of Me' and 'Love Not Then'". Saturday Review of the Arts described it as an "impressive debut album", "featuring a bold, funky sound supported by an accordingly large batch of esteemed players, including graduates of Santana".

Track listing

Personnel

Azteca * Coke Escovedo –

Timbales Timbales () or pailas are shallow single-headed drums with metal casing. They are shallower than single-headed tom-toms and usually tuned much higher, especially for their size.Orovio, Helio 1981. ''Diccionario de la música cubana: biográfico ...

– Vocals * Errol Knowles – Vocals *

Wendy Haas Wendy Haas-Mull (born c. 1949) is an American vocalist and keyboardist best known for her work with the bands Santana (band), Santana and Azteca (band), Azteca. Biography Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, Wendy Haas began her musical car ...

– Vocals * Rico Reyes – Vocals * Victor Pantoja –

Conga drums The conga, also known as tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed drum from Cuba. Congas are staved like barrels and classified into three types: quinto (lead drum, highest), tres dos or tres golpes (middle), and tumba or salidor (lowest). ...

, Vocals * Flip Nuñez – Organ * George Moribus – Electric piano * George DiQuattro – Piano, Clavinet *

Paul Jackson Paul Jackson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Paul Jackson (bassist) (1947–2021), American jazz fusion bassist * Paul Jackson Jr. (born 1959), American jazz fusion guitarist * Paul Jackson (poker player), English professional poker player ...

–

Acoustic bass The acoustic bass guitar (sometimes shortened to acoustic bass or initialized ABG) is a bass instrument with a hollow wooden body similar to, though usually larger than a steel-string acoustic guitar. Like the traditional electric bass guitar ...

, Electric bass * Lenny White III – Drums, Vocals *

Neal Schon Neal ( Neil) is a given masculine name and surname of Gaelic and Irish origin. The name is an Anglicisation of the Irish Niall which is of disputed derivation. The Irish name may be derived from words meaning "cloud", "passionate", "victory", "hon ...

– Guitar * Jules Rowell –

Valve trombone A valve is a device or natural object that regulates, directs or controls the flow of a fluid (gases, liquids, fluidized solids, or slurries) by opening, closing, or partially obstructing various passageways. Valves are technically fittings ...

Tom Harrell Tom Harrell (born June 16, 1946) is an American jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist, composer, and arranger. Voted Trumpeter of the Year of 2018 by ''Jazz Journalists Association'', Harrell has won awards and grants throughout his career, including mul ...

– Trumpet * Melvyn Martin – Soprano saxophone,

Tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while ...

, Baritone saxophone, Flute, Piccolo * Bob Ferreira –

, Piccolo * James Vincent (Dondelinger) – Guitar Production * Coke Escovedo, Azteca – Producer *

– Arranger *

– Arranger *George Engfer – recording engineer *

Glen Kolotkin A glen is a valley, typically one that is long and bounded by gently sloped concave sides, unlike a ravine, which is deep and bounded by steep slopes. Whittow defines it as a "Scottish term for a deep valley in the Highlands" that is "narrower ...

–

Engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limit ...

*George Horn – Mastering *Bruce Steinberg – Design, Artwork, Photography * Coke Escovedo – Sleeve Notes

References

{{reflist Columbia Records albums 1972 albums