New York-born percussionist/bandleader Tito Puente has carried the torch for Latin jazz for some 40 years now. He remains proud of the albums he made for RCA in the 1950s, and this 26-track collection of two of them, 'Night Beat' und 'Mucho Puente', (plus three previously-unissued tracks) shows just why. Leading New York City's finest, including conga player Mongo Santamaria and tenor saxophonist Marty Holmes, Puente heats up the tepid Tea For Two and scorches such self-penned exotica as Night Ritual. For fans of both salsa and expressive jazz of any sort, early Tito is a treat.