Salsa music is fun and exciting and my knowledge of it is shallow. So, I was very interested in exploring this legendary record from two legendary artists. And I am pleased to report that from start to finish, this record is highly enjoyable and gave me a sense of joy and satisfaction. I think you could put this record on during a party and it would make a terrific soundtrack for the evening along with the playlist it inspired. I hope you’ll give it a spin and enjoy it as much as I have!
“With ‘Siembra’, Willie Colon and Ruben Blades re-defined Salsa. (T)here are no filler songs in this album. With a great lineup of musicians, great musicality and sound, and a new type of messages and storytelling, ‘Siembra’ became the most popular, and most sold album in Salsa music. ‘Siembra’ is a landmark album in Salsa music.”1
My Rating:
In 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, Jesse “Chuy” Varela wrote:
“In the late 1970s Siembra (meaning “to plant”) served as an anthem for a generation of college students, who found inspiration in its positive message of Latino pride. But it also became a soundtrack for struggles of peace and justice to the many countries in Central and Latin America who were enmeshed in civil war and attendant conflicts at the time.
Strong narratives complemented by stellar playing - little wonder this was salsa’s first million seller.”2
Charts
• Peak on Billboard album chart: n/a
• Singles on Billboard charts: n/a
• RIAA certification: n/a
Released on September 7, 1978. Here’s what else was happening:
Pop Culture
• Number one song: Grease by Franki Valli3
• Number one album: Grease Soundtrack4
• Number one movie: Animal House by John Landis5
• Most watched TV program: Laverne & Shirley6
• NYT bestseller, fiction: Not published due to 1978 New York City newspaper strike, but Chesapeake by James Michener had been the most recent #1.
• NYT bestseller, non-fiction: Not published due to 1978 New York City newspaper strike, but If Life is a Bowl of Cherries, What Am I Doing in the Pits? by Erma Bombeck had been the most recent #1.
Other albums released that month
• Bloody Tourists by 10cc
• The Bride Stripped Bare by Bryan Ferry
• Molly Hatchet by Molly Hatchet
• Blue Valentine by Tom Waits
• Skynyrd's First and... Last by Lynyrd Skynyrd
• Stage by David Bowie
• Time Passages by Al Stewart
• Systems of Romance by Ultravox
• Tracks on Wax 4 by Dave Edmunds
• Studio Tan by Frank Zappa
• Ace Frehley by Ace Frehley
• Gene Simmons by Gene Simmons
• Paul Stanley by Paul Stanley
• Peter Criss by Peter Criss
• All Fly Home by Al Jarreau
• Living in the USA by Linda Ronstadt
• Tormato by Yes
• Bursting Out by Jethro Tull
• Road to Ruin by Ramones
• Love Bites by Buzzcocks
• The Man by Barry White
• One Nation Under a Groove by Funkadelic
• Parallel Lines by Blondie
• Cruisin' by Village People
• Ugly Ego by Cameo
• Never Say Die! by Black Sabbath
• Green Light by Cliff Richard
• Nicolette by Nicolette Larson
• Randy Travis by This Is Me
• Pieces of Eight by Styx7
Sport
• Sep 9 Chris Evert wins US Open Women's Tennis, her 4th straight US singles title beating fellow American Pam Shriver 7-5, 6-4; first time event played on hard courts.
• Sep 10 Mario Andretti finishes 6th at the Italian Grand Prix at Monza clinch his first Formula 1 World Drivers Championship.
• Sep 10 Jimmy Connors beats Björn Borg 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 to become the first player to win the US Open (tennis) on 3 different surfaces.
• Sep 13 New York Yankees recover from 14 games behind to gain sole possession of AL East 1st place with 7-3 win over the Tigers in Detroit.
• Sep 15 Dodgers become 1st major league team to draw 3 million fans
• Sep 15 Muhammad Ali beats Leon Spinks in 15 rounds for heavyweight boxing title.
• Sep 26 NY District Court Judge Constance Baker Motley rules that women sportswriters cannot be banned from locker rooms.8
Notable Births
• Sep 3 Valfar, Norwegian heavy metal vocalist and musician (Windir), born in Sogndal, Norway (d. 2004).
• Sep 4 Wes Bentley, American actor (Yellowstone), born in Jonesboro, Arkansas.
Sep 6 Tony Thaxton, American drummer (Motion City Soundtrack), born in Mechanicsville, Virginia.
• Sep 7 Adrian [General Austin] Witcher, American rapper (Another Bad Creation), born in Columbus, Georgia.
• Sep 9 Shane Battier, American basketball player, born in Birmingham, Michigan.
• Sep 11 Ed Reed, American Pro Football HOF safety (Super Bowl 2012 Baltimore Ravens; NFL Defensive Player of the Year 2004; 5 × First-team All-Pro; 9 × Pro Bowl), born in St. Rose, Louisiana.
• Sep 12 Ruben Studdard, American singer (American Idol, I Need An Angel), born in Frankfurt, Germany.
• Sep 13 Swizz Beatz [Kasseem Dean], American rapper and record producer (Full Surface Records), born in New York City.
• Sep 14 Danielle Peck, American country music singer ("Findin' a Good Man"), born in Jacksonville, North Carolina.
• Sep 14 Ron DeSantis, American Republican politician, Governor of Florida (2019-), Representative (2013-18) and presidential candidate, born in Jacksonville, Florida.
• Sep 23 Anthony Mackie. American stage and screen actor (Brother To Brother; The Hurt Locker - "Sgt. Sanborn"; Captain America -"Falcon"), born in New Orleans, Louisiana.
• Sep 27 Brad Arnold, American singer (3 Doors Down - "Kryptonite"), born in Escatawpa, Mississippi.9
Historical Events
• Sep 3 Pope John Paul I officially installed as 263rd supreme pontiff.
• Sep 5 Anwar Sadat, Menachem Begin and Jimmy Carter begin Egypt-Isreal peace conference at Camp David.
• Sep 8 Iranian army fires on Khomeini followers in Tehran, 100s killed.
• Sep 9 Ayatollah Khomeini calls for an uprising in the Iranian army.
• Sep 14 Portugal government of Da Costa falls.
• Sep 14 The Provisional Irish Republican Army explode over 50 bombs in towns across Northern Ireland over the next 5 days, injuring 37 people.
• Sep 16 25,000 die in 7.7 earthquake in Tabar, Iran.
• Sep 17 30th Emmy Awards: "All in the Family"; Ed Asner & Sada Thompson win.
• Sep 17 Anwar Sadat, Menachem Begin and Jimmy Carter sign the Camp David Accords, frameworks for peace in the Middle East and between Egypt and Israel.
• Sep 25 PSA Boeing 727 and a Cessna private plane collide over San Diego, California; 144 die.
• Sep 26 NY District Court Judge Constance Baker Motley rules that women sportswriters cannot be banned from locker rooms.
• Sep 28 Israeli Knesset endorses Camp David accord.10
Notable Deaths
• Sep 2 William Nebergall, American inorganic chemist (invented fluoride toothpaste), dies at 63.
• Sep 5 Joe Negroni, American rock vocalist (Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers), dies of a brain hemorrhage at 37.
• Sep 6 Adolf Dassler, German entrepreneur (founder sportswear company Adidas), dies at 78.
• Sep 6 Tom Wilson, American record producer (Sun Ra; Bob Dylan; Simon & Garfunkel; Mothers of Invention; Velvet Underground), dies of a heart attack at 47.
• Sep 7 Keith Moon, British rock drummer (The Who - "Bell Boy"), dies of a drug overdose at 32.
• Sep 10 Ronnie Peterson, Swedish auto racer (World F1 C'ship runner-up 1971, 78), dies in crash during Italian F1 GP at 34.
• Sep 12 Frank Ferguson, American character actor (My Friend Flicka - "Gus"; Peyton Place - "Eli Carson"), dies of cancer at 71 (0r 78, birthdate disputed).
• Sep 15 Willy Messerschmitt, German aircraft builder, dies at 80.
• Sep 16 Bill Foster, American Baseball HOF pitcher (NL All-Star 1933, 34; NgL World Series 1926, 27; Chicago American Giants), dies at 74.
• Sep 24 Ruth Etting, American stage, radio, and screen singer ("Shine On Harvest Moon"; "Ten Cents A Dance"), and actress (Roman Scandals; Ziegfeld Follies), dies at 80
• Sep 24 Virginia Valli [McSweeney], American (mostly silent) film actress (Wild Oranges; Pleasure Garden), dies at 73.
• Sep 25 Claire Adams, Canadian born silent film actress (Legally Dead, End of the Road), dies at 80.
• Sep 26 Manne Siegbahn, Swedish physicist (Nobel 1924-discoveries and research in the field of X-ray spectroscopy), dies at 91.
• Sep 28 John Paul I [Albino Luciano], 263rd Roman Catholic pope (1978), dies after 33 days as pope at 65.
• Sep 30 Beryl Booker, American swing and cool jazz pianist (Dinah Washington), dies at 56.
• Sep 30 Edgar Bergen, American ventriloquist (Charlie McCarthy), dies at 75.11
Enjoy and listen without prejudice. Cheers!
See all the videos here: You're Welcome 112; Siembra by Willie Colón & Rubén Blades
Prime: 112. Siembra by Willie Colón & Rubén Blades
Varela, Jesse; 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, edited by Robert Dimery, p. 414,