QUARANTINE 2021 PLAYLIST “FROM THE BROWN SIDE OF TOWN: VOL. 1”
We celebrate the New Year with a 2021 Quarantine Playlist, and our first blog post!
Now is the perfect opportunity to grind your freshly roasted coffee and grab your coffee pour-over, as we sip Trinity CBC coffee together and ring in 2021.
While 2020 had many Covid-19 hang-ups, breakups, and hangovers, we still care deeply about the injustice experienced by our Black and Brown neighbors and others in marginalized communities.
In 2021, we pause and honor these unique voices through their music with this coffee playlist. “From the Brown Side of Town: Vol.1” is a celebration of diversity. The Coffee Man playlist reminds us that music by Black and Brown people is beautiful.
From left to right: Alba Barrios, Francis Silva, and Lorena Encinas. Photo: Los Angeles Public Library
Available now on Spotify, the Trinity CBC 2021 Quarantine Playlist honors the forgotten Latin Soul from Chicano musicians between 1950s to the 1970s. 2021 Quarantine Playlist features deep soul, sweet soul, and Chicano Latin jazz music produced by artists from Alabama, Philadelphia, and New York. From the vast dry land in San Antonio Texas to the palm tree-lined barrios in East Los Angeles, “From the Brown Side of Town: Vol.1” is a rare collection of firme rolas with puro intoxicating chime for you to groove, move and drink Trinity CBC coffee.
The Coffee Man’s Honorable Mentions:
“Suavecito” by Malo
Written by Abel Zarate, Pablo Téllez, Richard Bean
Produced by David Rubinson
“Suavecito” defines generations of Chicanos in Aztlan, especially Latinos in Los Angeles. This oldie but goodie is considered the “Chicano National Anthem” by many. It features Jorge Santana, Carlos Santana’s hermano. Released in April 1972, “Suavecito” reached #18 on the Billboard Charts. We love this song. It explains why we named a coffee blend after it. Its placement in Chicano culture is legendary. R.I.P. Jorge 1951 - 2020.
Album cover art by Mexican painter Jesús Helguera
“Love Changes” by Charlene & The Soul Serenaders
Written by Carl Lumbus
Produced by Bill Cofield, Jim Thomas, Carl Lumbus
One of my Top 10 favorite songs of all time is performed by Charlene Southern. “Love Changes” was released by Paradox Recording in 1969. “The Soul Serenaders were a funk, soul, R&B group which was formed in 1968 in Florence, Alabama.” writes Alabama Music HOF. “Love Changes” opens with dazzling guitar strings, as a moody bassline follows at the hands of Wilbert “Rickey” Fields. Then, all of a sudden, a powerful flood of horns by Larry White.
Wilbert “Rickey” Fields on bass, Judge Ingram on guitar, Orendell Skipworth on guitar, Johnnie Hammon on drums, Charlene Southern vocals, Earnest Davis vocals, Oliver Southward vocals, James Roy on tenor saxophone, Larry Oates on alto saxophone, and Larry White.
“How Can I Get Over a Fox Like You?” by The Iceman
Written by James Stokes, LeCharles Harper, Richard Poindexter, Robert Poindexter
Produced by George Kerr
This is a special rola, and one of my Top 5 songs of all time. It so happens to be an enduring song between my wife and I. We often catch each other singing the lyrics in acapella in the kitchen, as we brew craft coffee. I was sipping on a pisto in the Harbor Area when I first heard this song. It was 2019. Santana of SOLA dropped the needle on this 45 gem in San Pedro, and it changed my life. The Icemen are Gino Armstrong and James Stokes of New York.
Released in 1968 on ABC Records
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What music are you listening to in 2021? Comments below!