Andy Palacio has long been Garifuna music's foremost ambassador, literally — he's held posts in the Belizean Ministry of Culture. He used to push an upbeat, contemporary treatment of the music called Punta Rock. No mas. His new album, Watina, with a group of musicians called the Garifuna Collective, is a return to rootsy form with basic instrumentation and traditional rhythms and subject matter. Not that you can understand a word of it; Garifuna is a polyglot language unto itself. Yet the music is at once exotic and accessible, with African-inflected vocals and guitars, earthy grooves and a feel that connects. (cumbancha.com)

With tracks by Cuban and Nuyorican heavies like Machito, Tito Puente and Ray Baretto, Latin Jazz is full of the best kind of virtuosity — the kind that makes you want to dance. (putumayo.com)

By Dave Herndon