Saracho: En Medio, 1973

This record, led by pianist Gary Saracho and featuring a host of great LA musicians including Roberto Miranda of Pan African People's Arkestra fame, touches on a lot of different styles. There are straight ahead passages, spacey spiritual jazz reminiscent of Pharaoh Sanders, and funky cuts a la 70's Lonnie Liston Smith. It was recorded at The Village Recorder in LA but purchased in New York. The art inside the gatefold cover includes a photo of the band posing in front of a mural that features la Virgen de Guadalupe and an arm with a clenched fist and the words "la raza linda". I can't find any other recordings by Saracho, but other members of the band went on to record more: Bruce Morgenthaler in Hollywood soundtracks, Miranda in the similarly socially conscious PAPA, Jamie Herndon in rock bands and Carmelo Garcia in LA area jazz bands. Marvin Palatt is now a violinist and concertmaster with the Topanga Symphony. The lineup is:

Gary Saracho: pianos
Lawrence Higgins: saxes
Bruce Morgenthaler: basses
Roberto Miranda: upright bass
Jeffrey Bahir Hassan: drums
Jamie Herndon: guitar
Carmelo Garcia: percussion
Owen Marshall: oboe, synth and percussion
Marvin Palatt: violin

05 Conquest de Mejico by Easy Jams