12/31/04
Santa Fe Club
Banda Los Latinos
by Charles Hurley
Banda Los Latinos, a 5-piece band playing "Mexican" music, has been playing at three different clubs, under what seems to be a dozen different owners, on Santa Fe street, for several years. Their music, which I will call Norteña with touches of pop, cumbia, salsa, and an occasional Santana song, is perfectly suited to the particular downtown neighborhood. For this kind of music, they are a very good dance band, with a high level of musicianship.
I have seen these guys play dozens of times. This contributes to one of my two complaints about them: they don't change material frequently. If I had not seen them so many times, I probably wouldn't notice. My other complaint is that they don't always manage their PA well, and the guitar player's guitar and voice are sometimes hard to hear. Considering that two of the five pieces are keyboards, it is easy to notice that you can hardly hear the guitar player. Aside from that, they do a good job of keeping the keyboards from overwhelming the music.
One of their most popular tunes, unsurprising, given the location, is 'Para Juarez' by Jorge Lozano. Other tunes include 'Jefe de Jefes,' 'Somos Mas Americanos,' and 'Corrido del Comedero.' They play about 20% English-language music, including "Treat Her Right", "Born on the Bayou", "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights".
The two clubs currently existing on Santa Fe street, just north of Paisano, Santa Fe and Caminantes, are much more decent than clubs in the area have been in the past. Santa Fe Club, in particular, has very conscientious ownership. They are interested in solving any problem you might have. There is plenty of parking across the street.
If you haven't heard a good Mexican dance band, grab your dance partner and head on down to the Santa Fe Club and check out Banda Los Latinos.