With his remarkable range and phenomenal technique, Arturo Sandoval is one of the world's great trumpeters; he can do virtually anything he wants on his instrument. Some detractors have claimed that he has too much technique (is such a thing possible?) and that his recordings for GRP are a bit erratic. The latter criticism cannot be applied to this 1988 release. Sandoval is heard with a standard quartet comprised of the great pianist Chucho Valdes (the leader of Irakere), bassist Ron Matthewson, and drummer Martin Drew. Recorded in England before Sandoval broke ties with Cuba, Sandoval is in near-miraculous form on some blues, a lyrical "My Funny Valentine," and a few basic originals. Just listen to him tear through "Blue Monk," playing in the low register with the speed of an Al Hirt before jumping into the stratosphere like Maynard Ferguson.

Chucho Valdes, Cuba's most famous jazz musician, has rebalanced the repertoire of his Afro-Cuban Messengers on Border-Free, mixing its American-jazz agenda (the group's name deliberately references both Valdes' roots and the late Art Blakey's classic soul-bop Jazz Messengers group) with more extended Latin-American input, and some Native American and Andalusian connections, too. Saxophonist Branford Marsalis, guesting on three tracks, is warmly romantic on tenor on the loping Tabu, agile and fluent on the Cuban dance-shuffle Bebo, and mercurial on a soprano-sax break full of north African microtonalisms on the hurtling, horn-hooting finale, Abdel.

Grammy Award-winning California-based percussionist Poncho Sanchez is a Latin-jazz superstar from the old school. His thunderous hand-drumming style is derived from Mongo Santamaria, and he performed with vibes master Cal Tjader for years before he made a name for himself as a leader. On this recording, Sanchez gives you danceable grooves for the head and the heart. Backed by a large ensemble, Sanchez travels the New World in search of Latin sounds, stylistically docking in the musical ports of Havana, New York, and New Orleans. He spices up several Afro-Cuban standards, including the festive Machito anthem "Sambia" and Tito Rodriguez's "Batiri Cha Cha." Special guest Chick Corea wrote the title track and he dazzles the ear with his Afro-Iberian pianisms on a furious folkloric rendering of Wayne Shorter's Blue Note classic, "Ju Ju."