Bachata Roja

A compilation of the greatest acoustic players of bachata-a musical form developed in the Dominican Republic and first played on backyard instruments made from trashcans, fences, and even trash-this album reveals what the music was like before it got plugged in. It reeks of island heartache and drunken happiness-all in easily understandable Spanish-and comes with a 32-page color, bilingual booklet highlighting the genre’s storied past and prominent players, such as Augusto Santos, Marino Perez, and Edilio Paredes, who produced the collection. It’s a connection to a bygone era of innocent escape, one that everyone should be happy to imagine.