Issac's final disc for the now defunct label RMM, "La Primera Noche" contains lots of smooth, well-crafted and emotionally satisfying vocal tracks which don't necessarily sound like hardcore Timba. However it has a handful of numbers which have become staples of Issac's incomparable live concerts, including "La Sandunguita", "Amigo Juan" and "Que Me Disculpen" -- all written by bassist Alain Pérez.
La Primera Noche alternate cover
When Melón moved to Spain, the very capable synthesizer player, Pepe Rivero, took over on piano and Alain Pérez took full control of the arranging as well as doing much of the songwriting. The rest of the group remained largely the same and it was this incarnation of the band that recorded Issac's final disc for RMM, "La primera noche". Like most of Issac's discs, it contains lots of smooth, well-crafted and emotionally satisfying vocal tracks which don't necessarily sound like hardcore Timba. However it also contains a handful of numbers which have become staples of Issac's incomparable live concerts, including "La Sandunguita", "Amigo Juan" and "Que Me Disculpen" -- all written by Alain Pérez. Joaquín Betancourt wrote the title song and contributed an arrangement, "Amigo", before returning to a much more active arranging role in the subsequent two albums. -- Kevin Moore of www.TIMBA.com
