Speaking of bippy Latin dance, the follow-up to the first ACAS album not only has no mention of Ry Cooder within, but, in its entirety, is more diverse than the first go.

 If you've seen the excellent, vibrant movie about these formerly forgotten Cuban musicians, you're familiar with Ibrahim Ferrer's smiling face (and large wife), Ruben Gonzalez's methodical piano fingers and Juan de Marcos' handsome dreadlocks. But the music is the rub here, and there's a welcome, sometimes more jungle sound in the group's second time through (there've been a few fine solo albums since the resurrection under the ACAS banner - Ferrer and Ruben Gonzalez's being the best).

 These old boys have grown up and become stars again, with a lot of new faces, horns and timbales in the works. They've managed to get both a more traditional, big-band sound and stray into primitive territory, as on the Warariansa track. It's a tribute to Gonzalez's late father's Cuban version of the Freemasons, a great chorus with a Nigerian origin. This then switches into a too-diva-ish Homanaje a Martha Valdes, but it's the last track and easily skipped. If you liked the first record, make room on your shelf for this one.

 It's different enough to stand on its own as well, though not quite as tall.

 Viva Havana, anyway.

Track Listing 1.Distinto, Diferente
  02.Tumba Palo Cocuye
  03.Tributo Al Nino Rivera
  04.Reconciliacion
  05.Variaciones Sobre Un Tema Desconocido
  06.Al Vaiven De Mi Carreta
  07.Gandinga, Mondongo Y Sandunga
  08.Huellas Del Pasado
  09.Warariansa
  10.Homanaje A Martha Valdes