Latest Release
- JUN 11, 2024
- 12 Songs
- Aqui No Se Siente Nadie (Remastered) · 1979
- Nuestra Música (Remastered) · 1985
- 20 Aniversario (1962-1982 Historia Musical) · 1982
- Nuestra Música (Remastered) · 1985
- Breakng the Ice (Remastered) · 1984
- Nuevo Milenio - El Mismo Sabor · 2001
- Nuestro Aniversario (Remastered) · 1982
- Arroz Con Habichuela · 2003
- Happy Days (Remastered) · 1981
- Happy Days (Remastered) · 1981
Essential Albums
- During the holidays, this festive 1985 album from Puerto Rico’s most beloved salsa orchestra is as necessary as coquito. The tempo stays lively as EGC’s rollicking big brass section and multipart harmonies enliven the spirited “Desenfunda” and “El Jibaro Listo.” Island-flavored gems like “La Fiesta de Pilito,” “El Arbolito,” and “Asalto Navideño” celebrate eating plentifully, drinking merrily, and living life the way it’s meant to be lived—overflowing with rhythm and son. So what if you load up on calories? You’ll burn them off dancing the night away.
- El Gran Combo formed in 1962, and 17 years in, their rich brand of salsa still sounded as fresh as ever, delighting in the genre’s sumptuous horn arrangements and irresistible rhythms. On lively songs like “Adela,” the trumpets and the timbales all seem to be engaged in conversation with one another, while “Brujeria” manages to sound both big and nimble at once thanks in part to Rafael Ithier’s sophisticated piano playing.
- 2016
Music Videos
- 2021
- 2021
Artist Playlists
- This legendary orchestra spreads the salsa beat around the world.
Live Albums
- 2024
Appears On
- Secreto El Famoso Biberón
About El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico
Salsa orchestra El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico was formed in 1962 by pianist Rafael Ithier, a longtime member of Cortijo y Su Combo. ∙ 1963’s Acángana was the group’s first Gold album, kicking off a prolific run during which they released more than 20 LPs by the end of the decade. ∙ Beginning in 1965, El Gran Combo spent several years as the house band on the Puerto Rican variety TV program El Show de las 12. ∙ In 1970, they started their own label, EGC Records—later known as Combo Records—and have (mostly) released their own music ever since. ∙ Sharing a bill with Fania All-Stars, El Gran Combo played for 50,000 people in 1975 at a sold-out Yankee Stadium. ∙ Their 1984 album, Breaking the Ice, earned El Gran Combo the first of their six Grammy Award nominations. ∙ Officially named Ambassadors of Our Music by the Puerto Rican Senate, the group won countless accolades, including a Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2015. ∙ After more than five decades of music, El Gran Combo is recognized as the most successful Puerto Rican musical group of all time.
- ORIGIN
- San Juan, Puerto Rico, United States
- FORMED
- May 1962
- GENRE
- Música tropical