Limited 180gm vinyl LP pressing. Abelardo Carbonó, despite thinking "outside-the-box", recorded two brilliant albums in 1980 and '81 for Codiscos' imprint Costeño, as well as several other labels, his first being Africa llama (1978) under the band name Grupo Abharca for the Sonolux imprint Caliente in 1978. Guitarist, singer, songwriter, and one-time policeman Abelardo Carbonó (b. 1948, Ciénaga, Magdalena) hails from Baranquilla and his early work was different from his contemporaries. It was definitely not salsa, nor was it really cumbia. Rather, it was novel and genius polyglot stew of diverse musical strains with African roots but never before blended in this way. Styles like Afrobeat, soukous and highlife were effortlessly stirred together with elements of the Cuban son, touches of Latin rock and funk, with a pinch of calypso, a hint of Haitian compas and even a dash of rock and roll, not to mention a foundation of local coastal Colombian varieties like vallenato and porro. Carbonó himself has admitted that Venezuelan psychedelic Afro-rock outfit Grupo Bota was a big influence as well, and his father Abelardo Sr. Was a famous porro and cumbia guitarist in Los Tigrillos. The particular blend Carbonó and his bandmates created sounded unlike anything else at the time, and is still refreshingly unique and hip today.