Sacha Nairobi - Princesa

After getting a couple of emails asking me to feature this track by Miami-based Venezuelan singer Sacha Nairobi, I decided to bow to popular demand and put up the video with the lyrics so you can all sing along at home.

The daughter of Venezuelan composer Enrique Hidalgo and sister to Jesus and Jannio of the group Los Hidalgo, Sacha grew up listening to folk music and composes all her songs on the cuatro, the traditional Venezuelan four-string guitar.

The track appears on the Putumayo compilation CD "Radio Latino". Enjoy.

Princesa
Mira
me acostumbré a las cosas buenas de la vida,
ya tanto tiempo que no viajo en limosina,
los sacrificios que hago por tí!.

Antes
de vacaciones cuatro meses para Italia,
con todo pago, tres criadas y una nana,
ahora me quedo en la casita preparándote comida.

Era princesa
pero no era felíz de esa manera
y ahora contigo estoy mejor
aunque no tenga dinero
porque yo me alimento de tus besos,
mi cielo, mi cielo!

No tengo dinero, pero tengo amor (x2)

Gucci, Prada,
Versace y Christian Dior ya no son nada,
te digo, la paso bien sin ropa entre tu cama, que rico!
y ahora mis amigas ricas mueren de la envidia.

Era princesa
pero no era felíz de esa manera
y ahora contigo estoy mejor
aunque no tenga dinero,
porque yo me alimento de tus besos,
mi cielo, mi cielo!

No tengo dinero, pero tengo amor
No tengo diamantes, pero tengo tu calor
No tengo dinero, pero tengo amor
Ya no tengo lujo, pero tengo tu pasion
No tengo dinero, pero tengo amor
Tengo una vida llena de amor

Los Amigos Invisibles - Sexy

Venezuela's best party band take some inspiration from the spoof comedy Airline for the video to "Sexy", a great song from their 1998 album "The New Sound of the Venezuelan Gozadera" on David Byrne's label Luaka Bop.

If only flying was this much fun.

Video: Los Amigos Invisibles - Mentiras

Video: Los Amigos Invisibles cover of Los Fabulosos Cadillac's "Mal Bicho"

Video: Los Amigos Invisibles - Diablo

Video: Los Amigos Invisibles - Cuchi Cuchi

Video: Los Amigos Invisibles - Playa Azul

Video: Max and Jason have lunch with Los Amigos Invisibles

CD Review: Venezuelan Zinga Son Vol 1 - Amigos Invisibles

CD Review: Arepa 3000 - Los Amigos Invisibles

Adolescent's Orquesta - Persona Ideal

Some smooth salsa romantica from Adolescent's Orquesta with their song "Persona Ideal" performed live in Medellin, Colombia.

The song appears on the group's greatest hits album: "La Historia: Los Exitos".

To hear preview tracks from "La Historia: Los Exitos" click here:

Mango Funk - Trankilo

Maracaibo band Mango Funk hit big with "Trankilo" - a track from their album "El Nuevo Beat del Tambor", which fuses elements of Afro-Venezuelan beats with funk and electronica.

Basically, it's a break up song: "Mujer, dejame beber, dejame vivir tranquilo."

There are clear echoes of Los Amigos Invisibles on "El Nuevo Beat del Tambor", with the upbeat electronica and slow bossa nova tracks, but Mango Funk are succesfully carving out their own niche and "Guira y Tumbadora" is a great attempt at making folk drum beats funky.

It's a confident first album considering the band only got together in 2003, when guitarist and lead singer Alexis Romero hooked up with Miguel Romero on bass guitar, Melvin Portillo on percussion, and Luis Cova on drums.

Later, knob-twiddler and turntablist Carlos Guillen and keyboard player Oscar Vargas came on board to fill out the sound.

Check out their MySpace page:

I like the Gilbert and George inspired poster.

Los Impala - Sound of the Swinging 60s

Los Impala, along with Los 007, produced some of the best Venezuelan pop-rock music of the swinging 60s, covering Mersey Beat and surf tracks. The band was made up of Henry Stephen on vocals, Pedro Alfonzo on piano and vocals, Edgar Quintero on guitar and vocals, Francisco Belisario, on on guitar and vocals, Nerio Quintero on bass and vocals and Omar Paduay on drums. Try and guess who did the original of this track: "La Vi Parada Ahi".