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Conjunto Casino were a breeding ground for Cuban music legends, including percussionist Carlos "Patato" Valdes, sonero Roberto Faz, and bandleader-singer Roberto Espi. Propelled by pianist Nico Cevedo and sweetened with multitiered vocals, the band hit its stride in the 1940s and '50s with a potent versatility that was equally at home with roaring mambos and jazz-influenced takes on the venerable son montuno, like the bouncy "Que Te Parece," with the catchiest close-harmony horns this side of Herb Alpert. Even when playing to the gallery in the novelty number "La Vaca Lechera," with trumpet quotes from "Dixie," the Conjunto easily acquit themselves with strong melodic hooks and a deeply danceable groove. "Yo Soy Guajiro" shows Espi and company at full-tilt as Alberto Ruiz launches an urgent lead vocal at a tightly wound chorus and swirling brass in a wickedly compelling guajira that sounds so fresh, it might have fallen off the latest Afro-Cuban All Stars disc. --Bob Tarte.