There have been many attempts to document the history and identity of Latin America through its music, whether from specific styles or visions. Worthy of mention are: Seeds of the son by Santiago Auserón, The book of salsa by Cesar Miguel Rondon or Reggaeton by Raquel Z. Rivera, but also many others that seem to tire halfway between technical difficulties, available resources and immediacy, such as the documentary series Break everything or the book Witnesses of the end of the world.
Knowing that making a long list is taking a risk as a curator, journalist and editor, a group of five communicators and journalists from different parts of Latin America set themselves the titanic task a little over three years ago of making a kilometer-long list of albums that could function as a sound panorama of the musical wealth of the entire region. Against all odds, and after a long journey of discussions, attentive listening and reviews, after a preliminary launch in April 2024, the digital project of The 600 of Latin America.
A project by José Luis Mercado (Peru), Jorge Cárcamo (Chile), José Juan Zapata (Mexico), Felipe Figueroa (El Salvador) and Eduardo Rodríguez (Mexico), which addresses – as its name suggests – the whopping figure of six hundred records from different countries, eras and musical styles, spanning 102 years of recordings from 1920 to 2023.
Beyond being merely an ordered compendium of records, this review exposes highlights of the musical history of the region, its geopolitical context and evolution. Jorge Cárcamo says: “While we were writing and reviewing the different artists we realized how genres influence each other between countries, for example how cumbia arrived in northern Mexico. In one of Andrés Landero’s reviews he also tells how it arrived in Argentina in the eighties and ended up influencing the accordion and the way we now listen to cumbia villera (…). In the end one realizes that Latin America has been well connected since the 30s, 40s, since Gardel… For example, Jorge Negrete visited Chile in the 40s, he arrived at the central train station and they welcomed him as if he were Elvis Presley, and one learns about things like that by delving into all the genres.”
Shortly after its release on the Internet through its official website 600discoslatam.comthis independent publication has sparked joy, anger and intense discussions on social media, gaining the attention of the region’s public, as well as critics, journalists and artists mentioned in the list. Such as Andrés Calamaro or Rubén Blades, who tops the list with his 1978 album, Siembra, recorded alongside Willie Colón.
The 600 of Latin America It stands out for being a sort of celebratory window into the music of a region that, until not long ago, had been excluded from the discussion and mechanisms of cultural validation at a global level, especially from the totalizing eye of the Anglo-Saxon mega-record industry.
Layout and digitally designed by the Mexican journalist based in Argentina, Jose Juan Zapatathis list can be addressed by genre, country, numerical order or by author of the texts alluding to each recording, as well as being consulted randomly and with the option of listening via digital platforms, which further facilitates a diverse, non-encyclopedic and flexible reading,
From Chile, Jorge Cárcamo, one of the authors of the ranking, explains that although its order is not chronological, the main purpose of telling the history of Latin American music is present in the index in different ways. This allows the index to address other types of records and attract a larger number of readers than if a much more synthesized and conventional history had been proposed instead.
“The criteria were always shaped little by little, but the main goal was to put on records that told part of the history of Latin American music, and to try to leave out as little as possible, so that it wasn’t just our discussions. Suddenly we were choosing a lot of rock, or there were a lot of Argentine rock records – which we are all fans of – but they had to be left out in order to tell a wider variety of stories,” Cárcamo explains.
Neither best nor absolute
How can you rank an album by Los Prisioneros, Shakira or Emmanuel above one by Charly García, Violeta Parra or Caetano Veloso? Complexities, considerations and comparisons aside, the ranking of this list – a format that did not have the total consensus of those involved – is presented as a game that provokes and stimulates dialogue, a purpose that is being fully fulfilled, revealing at the same time the apparent fissures of this compendium.
“What happened with the list is that a lot of people reacted both in favor and against, many praising it, others throwing some hate, but within all that noise there are people discovering music that catches their attention, all this kind of scandal allows them to discover music; for me it allowed me to remember things that I had forgotten (…). The rankings are easy to visualize, they help spread Latin American music, so that people can learn more, expand their musical options by countries, scenes or music to which they were not accustomed. It is not about establishing a canon, but rather inviting people to play and have them discuss, and also propose their own lists and choices,” says Mexican José Juan Zapata from Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Through your account on X, @600DiscosLATAMthose involved in the project republish and disseminate all opinions, threads and editorial pieces that come up, whether positive or not, regarding the list. Among the criticisms, the lesser presence of entirely digital productions, of much more recent styles such as trap, as well as albums recorded in indigenous languages, among others, stands out.
As people continue to learn The 600 of Latin Americadiscussing and listening to the albums that comprise it, its authors rule out a future in which it could be expanded, become a list of songs, remain alive with contributions from readers, or take the form of a reference book, transcending its digital and self-managed scope.
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