Del Este de Los Angeles (Just Another Band from East L.A.)

1	El Canelo Son Jarocho 3:47
2	El Pescado Nadador Ranchera 2:43
3	Sabor a Mi Bolero 3:51
4	Flor de Huevo Son Locos 1:54
5	Cielito Lindo /Cielito Lindo HuastecoSon Huasteco 3:44
6	La Iguana Son Jarocho 3:21
7	El Cuchipe Canción Boliviana 2:21
8	Imploración Bolero Ranchero 2:33
9	Guantanamera Guajira 4:48
10	La Feria de las Flores Ranchera 2:42
11	María Chuchena Son Jarocho 3:57
12	El Bon Bon de Elena Bonus Track / Plena 3:39

Barnes & Noble

By the time Los Lobos hit the national radar in the early 1980s, they were a wildly eclectic, visionary combo mining a free-wheeling blend of ethnic roots and rock-n-roll energy. But when they started out, almost a decade earlier, they were a straightforward Mexican-American party band, playing energetic acoustic renditions of traditional Mexican folk tunes at neighborhood parties and weddings. In 1978, to promote themselves locally, they recorded the independently released all-acoustic LP Just Another Band from East L.A. While three songs from the album eventually showed up on a 1993 retrospective disc, also titled Just Another Band from East L.A., the remainder of the album has never been widely available, having fallen out of general circulation by the time the band achieved national recognition. This newly reissued version of the rare indie album offers a vibrant collection of rancheras and boleros, performed mainly with such traditional instruments as guittaron, jarana, and accordion. It's a joyous, exuberant collection, with impassioned vocals, rambunctious harmonies, plucky solos, and breakneck rhythms. The band picked up much of its early repertoire from their parents' record collections, and a few songs here, such as "Guantanamera" and "Clelito Lindo" (which sounds like the band threw a party in the studio during the recording), are familiar classics. Los Lobos became one of America's best bands, and through all their evolutions, they've never lost touch with the roots they celebrate on this album. Steve Klinge

All Music Guide

In 1978, when Los Lobos were paying their bills by playing weddings and Mexican restaurants in the greater Los Angeles area, they put out an independent album of their traditional Tex-Mex songs with a pumped-up rock & roll feel. The album, Del Este de Los Angeles, established their sound and provided a jumping-off point for David Hidalgo and {|Louie Pérez|} to start writing their own material. The LP has since been released by Hollywood Records on CD (not to be confused with their similarly titled box set Just Another Band from East L.A.) and is an interesting glimpse into the band on the verge of breaking away from their traditional roots and pushing into creating their own influential style. Zac Johnson