Looking For Music Recommendations

OK, I need some serious help with suggestions for some "tiki" music. Sad to say, I own 2 "tiki" albums, both by Waitiki. I'd like to get some more.

I have to say that I do not care for the slow, quiet stuff. I like upbeat stuff. Drums are very cool. My favorites from these albums are Bwana, Bwana A, Cave of Uldo (my favorite), and Dew Drop Inn.

I'm on Amazon, sampling Drasnin's Voodoo II. Puente Doble is the only song I could tolerate for long. The rest would have me asleep before they ended.
Sampling Les Baxter's Greatest Hits, they wouldn't last long on my player.
Tikiyaki Orchestra was more to my liking, so that CD got ordered.
Amazon didn't have sample of Les Baxter's Ritual Of the Savage.
Sampling Denny's Quiet Village... Hawaiian War Chant and Firecracker and My Little Grass Shack and Quiet Village and Flotsam and Jetsam were all decent, though some of the others were sleepy-time. I'd probably buy that album in order to get some music, though I wouldn't mind hearing about a better album.

I it helps any, I grew up on rock from the 60s and 70s. You know, Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin and such, though I will listen to almost anything good, from classical to 80s punk to 90s grunge. I have well over 800 CDs covering many genres. My heart, though, lives with Led Zeppelin, Emerson Lake and Palmer, Yes, The Moody Blues, Black Sabbath, and Reggae. I do love classical-inspired stuff - but it's got to rock. (Beethoven's 5th & 9th, Tchaikovsky's 1812, Wagner Ride Of The Valkyries, Holst's The Planets, Saber Dance by Khachaturian, etc).

So if anyone has any suggestions for some upbeat "tiki" music, I'd love to hear about it.

[ Edited by: Scottes 2007-12-11 11:46 ]

[ Edited by: Scottes 2007-12-11 11:47 ]

Aloha Scottes...

Thanx for ordering the CD....it shippped today. Funny, but my taste in music runs much of the same...Classic rock....KISS, Black Sabbath, ZEP Beatles, Cheap Trick.

As for Exotica...Check out Gene Rains Group - Awesome Exotica, sometimes moody, sometimes upbeat. They had 4 records out...ALL out of print, but you can find them...Check out the xtabay blog http://www.blognow.com.au/XtabaysWorld/70710/

Also, if you can find Rex Kona and his Mandarins - "Wild Orchids" record. Great stuff.

Also - Alex Keack - Surfers Paradise

Pretty obscure, but great stuff.

Another fave of mine is the Blue Hawaiians "Sway" cd, which is more surf in it's instrumentation, but has some really great exotica moments, and if you like drums....you'll love it. Gary from that band played lap steel on my CD....awesome.

Hope that helps

http://www.tikiyakiorchestra.com
http://www.tikiyaki.wordpress.com
http://www.cuefactory.com

[ Edited by: tikiyaki 2007-12-10 18:27 ]

Hey Scottes

Might not be Exotica, more reggae. Because you listed some of your music likes I have to recommend the soundtrack to 50 First Dates and Tiki Lounge. It's reggae, but I love the 50 First Dates soundtrack, and
D'yer Mak'er on the Lounge rocks!

http://www.amazon.com/50-First-Dates-Various-Artists/dp/B00018D60C/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1197339561&sr=1-1

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=3338289

Just my 2 cents

Tikiyaki, thanks for the recommendations! It may take some work but I'll see what I can find.

Bogie, great tunes. Not exactly what I'm looking for, but I will be ordering that Tiki Lounge CD anyway. There's some great bands on that CD, doing songs that I don't recognize at all. And I consider myself fairly knowledgeable in Reggae...

I recommend vintage authentic Tahitian music by Terorotua and his Tahitians -- they may do some slower pieces but they're really known for their frenzied percussion.

Scottes -

I too, was weaned on 60's and 70's Rock. While I have expanded my repertoire a little bit beyond that genre, I can definitely appreciate where you are coming from (coincidentally, I'm currently trying to recreate my teenage record collection now -- including stuff that I fantasized about then but could never afford on my paper route money).

Unfortunately, most of the Exotica records that you'll find from the 50's and early 60's probably aren't going to trip your trigger -- and if you're limited to what you can find issued on CD it's worse. There are some exceptions, of course (please no flame wars). I would definitely recommend that you check out Don Tiki. I'd also recommend that you track down the Ultra-lounge classic comp Mondo Exotica. Nothing better as a starter CD to see what you like.

Aloha,

Vic

[ Edited by: vegasvic 2008-04-14 17:48 ]

I grew up on Heavy rock too, and then I got into surf music, then I got into Hawaiian and Exotica from that.
I dig that Exotica is slow, moody,and sleepy time sounding.
Thats part of the Escapism of it.

I have to say if your not really the Mellow side of Exotic music,
maybe the tiki scene isn't for you.
try going to a Jimmy Buffet concert, maybe the Parrot Heads music will capture your soul.

Jeff(bigtikidude)

On 2007-12-11 09:50, bigtikidude wrote:
I have to say if your not really the Mellow side of Exotic music,
maybe the tiki scene isn't for you.

You're suggesting that I throw everything tiki away just because I don't like slow music?

Wow. That's fairly ridiculous. Thanks for nothing, Pal.

I'm still stunned at just how pathetic your comment is.

Scottes, I dig the slower stuff! But I do know exactly where you're coming from.

I honestly was way more into Hapa Haole than Exotica when I started my Tiki lifestyle, but eventually, Exotica worked it's way into regular rotation on my record player.

I bet in a couple of years, ya know, when you're older :wink: you'll find the slow stuff more appealing. I wish I had more to add suggestionwise, but the stuff already mentioned is great.

I honestly think you're probably in a slight majority in your musical tastes to tell you the truth. Most people of our generation and younger need to be bashed over the head with drums and energy, but I find the appreciation of Exotica to be very much like the appreciation of alcohol (or anything with subtle nuance)in time, your palette demands more, it's always a progression.

Do sound tests the way you do Rum tests, which tempo Exotica number goes best with Demerara etc. etc. :)

Also, I'm guessing that bigtikidude had his tongue in cheek, jeez I hope he did!

[ Edited by: The Granite Tiki 2007-12-11 10:26 ]

Thanks Carl.

Your mention of Hapa Haole makes me wonder if I used the term "Exotica" in error. Perhaps that's too narrow a term and one that I don't understand (yet). And I'm not sure that I can explain what I'm looking for, because I haven't heard very much (or maybe haven't listened hard enough).

But your presence reminded me of something, which you might have a recommendation... Your song with the lap steel guitar makes me realize that I do like that stuff. Any suggestions?

On 2007-12-11 10:11, Scottes wrote:

You're suggesting that I throw everything tiki away just because I don't like slow music?

Wow. That's fairly ridiculous. Thanks for nothing, Pal.

I find it ridiculous that you are into tiki but not Exotica.
but thats just me, maybe there are others out there like you.
I just haven't heard of it before.
maybe its a East Coast thing. :roll:

Jeff(bigtikidude)

[ Edited by: bigtikidude 2007-12-11 11:03 ]

On 2007-12-11 11:03, bigtikidude wrote:
I find it ridiculous that you are into tiki but not Exotica.

There's the problem: You can't read.

I said "I do not care for the slow, quiet stuff."

I guess his tongue wasn't in his cheek, somewhere else I guess. :wink:

My song was pretty much in the Hapa Haole style Scottes, not Exotica. That's the Uke and Lap Steel music with Hawaiian words frequently worked into the English lyric. Think "Hukilau""Sweet Leilani" etc. Great stuff and usually very upbeat!

Listen to Vegas Vic's Tiki Lounge for a great cross section of all types of Tiki Lounge Music. Sometimes I listen with a notepad sitting by so I can write down the stuff I like.

Here's the address:

http://www.live365.com/stations/brianeh

DUH! He already suggest that!

He's right!

[ Edited by: The Granite Tiki 2007-12-11 11:19 ]

On 2007-12-11 11:07, Scottes wrote:

On 2007-12-11 11:03, bigtikidude wrote:
I find it ridiculous that you are into tiki but not Exotica.

There's the problem: You can't read.

I said "I do not care for the slow, quiet stuff."

which probably 95 % of Exotica is slow, so I made a bit of an all encompassing statement there, shoot me.

I'm sorry if I am comming off as being rude, I just find it hard to believe that someone could be into tiki and not like slow, mellow quiet Exotica, it just boggles my mind.

do you like Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan?

Jeff(bigtikidude)

[ Edited by: bigtikidude 2007-12-11 11:38 ]

do you like Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan?

Not at all, and very little, respectively.

My musical tastes and likes and dislikes are all over the place. Categorizing just gets to be ridiculous. I have 800 CDs categorized into 4 categories, yet I doubt there's a (loose) genere that I don't have. Jazz, country, techno, rap, hip-hop, punk, folk... I have them all.

So it looks like I incorrectly categorized "exotica" as "that stuff all my tiki friends listen to" and I'm probably wrong. So shoot me. :)

Edit: The word "exotica" has been removed from the title and first post. I just want some good music to go with a Mai Tai and some friends. :)

[ Edited by: Scottes 2007-12-11 11:48 ]

No need to throw stones guys.

Scottes...maybe Surf is more what you're looking for to accompany your mai tai :)

That being said, I got into surf first, but that led me to exotica. I consider Surf to be the "punk rock" version of exotica.

My theory is this :

After rock n roll came along in the the tail end of the 50's, the garage bands of the world started making their music sound more "Hawaiian" or "Island-y" to accompany the Polynesian Pop craze of the early 60's, and because they couldn't play jazz and sound like Martin Denny, they took that sound and mixed it with their garage rock n roll thing, and "Surf Music" was born.

Try that Blue Hawaiians CD I mentioned, you won't regret it. AND, of course, enjoy your cocktail with The Tikiyaki Orchestra CD as well :wink:

I think you will eventually mellow out and grow to like the slower Exotica stuff. If you love Tiki, then Exotica is a natural companion.

Aloha !

On 2007-12-11 12:49, tikiyaki wrote:
Scottes...maybe Surf is more what you're looking for to accompany your mai tai :)

When someone says "Surf" I think of The Beach Boys. Please tell me that's not what you mean...

I will certainly check out that stuff you mentioned. I did so, a little, and found enough that I liked to continue. I just have to find some albums on a place where I can listen to some samples.

George Cates - Polynesian Percussion

and Kapu by Milt Raskin (the exciting sounds of milt raskin)

i like those two records a lot. info on kapu at http://www.digitiki.com/music.htm

Don't be dissin' the Beach Boys now!

But no, they're not really "Surf", they're vocal harmony in the surf style.

Dick Dale etc. is classic surf.

Since you've broadened your requests spectrum, try these:

http://www.crazedmugs.com/

http://www.whollycatsband.com/haolekats.html

many correct things have been said. so what if he grew up listening to classic rock records? the fact he’s here now shows that there’s still hope! and what better place to explain things like exotica and surf. to me that’s one of the greta things of the web and especially places like this. wait, there’s only one place like this!

On 2007-12-11 13:47, Kawentzmann wrote:
so what if he grew up listening to classic rock records?

Yeah, so what? There's still hope for me! :)

On 2007-12-11 12:56, Scottes wrote:

When someone says "Surf" I think of The Beach Boys. Please tell me that's not what you mean...

We really mean Instrumental Surf. Think Rock music dripping in reverb, or the Pulp Fiction soundtrack. I also theorize that it is the offspring of the original exotica scene, music that was morphed for 60's teenagers in Southern CA. Maybe not as relaxing (for some) as Hapa Haole-style music, but trust me it mixes with Rum very well :wink:

Vic

Scottes, my good friend, I think you may, in the short run, check out some of Don Tiki's music, and in the longer run, you will have to tune into many of the great lounge and exotica broadcasts on internet and Marconi-style radio. Java's Bachelor Pad, Jet Set Planet (always posted on this thread), and this new one from the Lounge King-xcentrica radio - http://www.theloungeking.com. Listen as much as you can, and when you hear something you like, do your research. It will be fun and entertaining, and connect you to this scene in a different way. I like the Lounge King's show; there is a visual component there that he incorporates into his broadcasts that draws you in and takes you away to his world. Very nice.

Anyway, as you can see, musical tastes are a touchy subject, the source of both rivalries and friendships. No matter what, don't be afraid to be both honest and open minded. Often I find that to mean honest with myself and open minded with others. Go for what you like, but don't be averse to going where someone else's tastes lead you. The worst that can happen is you learn something, even if it's what you don't like, for now.

On 2007-12-11 14:50, The Mayor Of Exotica wrote:
Go for what you like, but don't be averse to going where someone else's tastes lead you. The worst that can happen is you learn something, even if it's what you don't like, for now.

No problem here! I once spent 3 months downloading over 6,000 Reggae songs, listened to them, and deleted about 5,500. Of those left, I ran out and got every song on CD that I could find still in print, and then walked around finding every out-of-print CD possible... It took about 10 or 11 months, but I managed to collect one heck of a reggae collection.

In comparison, this tiki music quest should be a cakewalk since I have so much help.

On the way home from work I finally plugged in a collection from a friend, and found myself skipping over many songs that were too slow and boring for me. Until track 8. Glorious track 8. The Karminsky Experience's "Hip Sheik." Luckily, my car stereo goes to 11, and my home stereo even louder. I think I made the quickest Amazon purchase on record. Thanks Jack!

[ Edited by: Scottes 2007-12-11 16:19 ]

if you want to find out about Real instrumental surf music,
go here:
http://www.surfguitar101.com
then click on the forums

Cheers.
Jeff(bigtikidude)

Scottes..... uptempo exotic madness from 2 out of print cds (but can be found) "Jungle Exotica" & Jungle Exotica Vol 2" on Strip Records, Germany, Various artists. Also "The Astroglides- Channel Surfing With..." containing the groovy songs: "Meat Cleavage" and "Kabalah Fucker". Not exotica but you might check out "Big Sugar-Heated". This Canadian band started out doing great straight ahead blues but has morphed into something a little different. Some classic rock (a cool cover of BTO's "Let It Ride".....I don't know how Takin Care of Business became such a huge hit for them, I hated that song, ultra lame) and originals.....some reggae too! Aloha

There are lots of side steps. Surf music, Rock a Billy, Hawaiian pop, and Reggae are among them.

The hardcore music of Tiki is Exotica, i.e. Martin Denny, Les Baxter, et al.

Among contemporary artists that "get it" are Waitiki and Don Tiki.

Jack

How 'bout Los Straitjackets? I think at least the first couple albums might work for ya.

Here's a band you may like Scott - Clouseaux:
http://clouseaux.tripod.com/

Lagoon is their best album IMHO. They're kind of a exotica meets surf band.

Dick Dale, Dick Dale, Dick Dale, Dick Dale...

I might also suggest Combustible Edison, on the pop-side.

But my foremost suggestion, already offered earlier here by CV and MH, would be go dig into some real authentic Tahitian/Polynesian percussion. I have a CD called "Percussions Polynesiannes" that really goes into the bones. (I put it on the backyard boombox one evening while I was re-tying/re-roofing the Cosmic Tiki Hut here, and, looking at the stars while listening to it and lashing bamboo rafters, I totally got a transporting sense of riding a raft with the ancient Navigators. Transporting, exotic, and still kick-ass.

Also, if you haven't sampled any of the more rapid Gamelon orchestra works out there, check those out. If 'high-speed exotica' is really what you're looking for, you might find that rather addictive. I do. Oooo.

SOK

[ Edited by: Son-of-Kelbo 2007-12-12 12:43 ]

If you like Waitiki's "Bwana A", you might also like Arthur Lyman's original version.

Maybe you'd dig some Latin jazz,too? Uptempo, lots of percussion. I recommend:

Anything by Cal Tjader, particularly his "exotica" album "Several Shades of Jade"."Tambu" by Tito Puente - amazing album, wild tiki cover.
"Rites of Diablo" by Johnny Richards - possibly even wilder!
"Afro-Cuban Influence" by Shorty Rogers
"Voodoo Suite" and "Exotic Suite of the Americas" by Perez Prado

I'm sure there are others, but these are the first to spring to my mind.

On 2007-12-13 05:32, Quiet Village Idiot wrote:

"Tambu" by Tito Puente - amazing album, wild tiki cover.
"Rites of Diablo" by Johnny Richards - possibly even wilder!

Both these LPs are AMAZING! I concur completely!

glen leslie
http://www.jetsetplanet.com

"Sorcery!" by Sabu (Sabu Martinez) is another amazing Latin/exotica crossover. Insane sleevenotes on this one!

Many thanks for the recommendations so far! I haven't had enough time to go through them all, but I have purchased 4 CDs so far (Best of Arthur Lyman, Cloiseaux's Lagoon, Tikiyaki Orchestra, and another I'll remember once I open it...)

But I've barely scratched listened to half of the recommendations so far. Hopefully the weekend will allow some sampling time, which will hopefully result in more CDs being ordered.

Never pay attention to The Mayor of Exotica.
His term has been embroiled in scandal and anarchy.

I oughta know, I've helped him debauch on more than one occasion.

Granite Tiki, however, is wise beyond measure. :wink:

I wish Swanky would weigh in on this - he's got a pretty serious collection as well.
kooche always pushes the envelope of what is exotica. He has a thread around somewhere where he lists some favs.

On 2007-12-15 19:43, pablus wrote:

Never pay attention to The Mayor of Exotica.
His term has been embroiled in scandal and anarchy.

Hey, if it weren't for scandal and anarchy, what would we do on weekends?

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=18791&forum=11

That's kooche's podcasting thread.
There is at least one more where he lays out some others.

I had never heard of about half of everything he was listening to back then.
Not that I'm much of a measuring stick for Exotica. But I did have a Billy Mure album when I was 12.

Alas, due to my geographical proximity to the Mayor's circle of corruption, there is an Independent Council looking into my affairs as we speak!

Billy Mure is great! Coincidentally, I was just suggesting to Urban Tiki that he check out Billy Mure, as an afficiando of electric guitar instrumentals.

He performs/arranges "Firecrackers" on his lp "Fireworks,""Hawaiian War Chant" on "A Quad Sound Spectaular," "Caravan," Misirlou," "My Little Grass Shack in Hi-Fi," Cherokee," "Tabu," and "Malaguena," on Supersonic Guitars in Hi-fi (with a Jim Flora illo on the back!), "The Moon of Manakoora," and "Baia" (essential) on "Billy Mure's Supersonic Guitar Vol. 2," and a whole lp of Hawaiian tunes on the "Hawaiian Percussion" lp. All the rest of the tracks can be loosely characterized as Space Age Bachelor Pad and of great quality. All essential stuff.

Jack

Well I was drinking with a few friends tonight and we started talking about music, and we mentioned this thread and what I ended up with.

Well, I downloaded a whole bunch of music to find things that I might like. I listened to a bunch of MP3 samples on eMusic and Amazon and a couple other places that sell MP3s. Many, many MP3s got deleted. But after a few weeks I felt that I had a decent collection, so I bought a bunch of MP3 singles, and many CDs to replace the good MP3s that I downloaded. I'm kinda bummed that many albums aren't available anymore, though. I've still got many songs obviously recorded from old LPs.

In the end, I boiled down my favorite choices to just over 150 songs, though I have another 1000 that weren't good enough to listen to on a constant basis. I will have to go back over these some day, just in case they grow on me.

I ended up with:

Arthur Lyman - Many songs, though they're not my favorites because many are too slow for me.
Martin Denny - Many songs, though not much of his weirder stuff where he went off into crazy sounds like bird calls and such.
Don Ralke - Wow, Savage & Sensuous Bongos just blows me away. Some of my absolute favorites.
Don Tiki - Just about everything on Forbidden Sounds that didn't have vocals. For some reason I don't care for singing when I listen to this type of music.
Les Baxter - Many songs
Robert Drasnin - Almost all of Voodoo 1 & 2
Tikiyaki Orchestra - Almost every song from their album made my cut. Good stuff.
Waitiki - Again, almost every song from their albums made my cut. Good stuff.

I also have a smattering of things from here and there, all across the board. A couple "unusual" ones like Kharminsky Experience and Clouseaux which I liked quite a lot. While they might not seem to fit next to Arthur Lyman, they're close enough and they're great tunes. A few by Milt Raskin, Gene Rains, and more modern like Kava Kon and Klangraum.

Looking at this from an album perspective, most of my favorite stuff came from:

Martin Denny - Best Of Martin Denny's Exotica
Martin Denny - Primitiva
Arthur Lyman - Exotic Sounds of Arthur Lyman
Arthur Lyman - The Very Best of Arthur Lyman
Ultra Lounge 1 - Mondo Exotica
Waitiki - Both albums
Tikiyaki Orchestra - StereoExotique
Dan Ralke - Savage & Sensuous Bongos
Les Baxter - Tamboo!
Les Baxter - Ritual Of The Savage
Les Baxter - Sacred Idol
Robert Drasnin - Voodoo 1 & 2

There were others, but only a song or two from them so they kinda not worth mentioning.

When it came down to it all, and when I realized what to listen for, much of this was played over and over at friend's houses.

But I had one big "Wow!" experience - and that was from Don Ralke's Savage & Sensuous Bongos. This album is fantastic, and not very much about bongos since they often play in the background. They certainly pack more percussion than many of the others, but have plenty of vibraphone and other such "exotic" instruments, along with a nice brass section that added some very nice tones. Highly recommended - if you can find it. I wish that I could.

On 2008-02-16 18:07, Scottes wrote:
I had one big "Wow!" experience - and that was from Don Ralke's Savage & Sensuous Bongos. This album is fantastic, and not very much about bongos since they often play in the background. They certainly pack more percussion than many of the others, but have plenty of vibraphone and other such "exotic" instruments, along with a nice brass section that added some very nice tones. Highly recommended - if you can find it. I wish that I could.

It has been reissued on CD, with the title changed (slightly) to The Savage and the Sensuous. Available via Amazon, although a bit expensive.

I don't know if you are still looking for new music. I'm new here myself and my tastes are more 80s and 90s post punk / new Wave

Here is an off the wall recommendation:

Feast by The Creatures
In 1983, between the release of the (Soiuxsie & the) Banshees albums A Kiss in the Dreamhouse and their live album Nocturne, The Creatures recorded and released their first full length album Feast. The week of its release, the band was on the front cover of the NME and the Melody Maker. It was both a critical and commercial success, reaching number 17 in the UK Albums Chart. To conceive it, the band decided to determine where to record the album by randomly placing a pin on a map of the world. The result was Hawaii, which led to the featuring of The Lamalani Hula Academy Hawaiian Chanters on some tracks. The song title "Inoa 'Ole" is Hawaiian for "No Name"."Ice House" was inspired by an obscure television play. "Dancing on Glass" is based on an Indian musical: during the studio-session, sounds of broken glass were created by Siouxsie and Budgie dancing on broken mirrors with tough shoes on. The hit-single "Miss the Girl" took its inspiration from the book Crash by J. G. Ballard. Shortly after its exit from the charts, a follow-up "Right Now" was recorded: it was originally composed by Mel Tormé. The Creatures revamped it by adding a brass section: that became their most successful single, reaching the top fifteen.

Listen before you buy though - the tracks vary considerably.

On 2007-12-11 12:49, tikiyaki wrote:

Scottes...maybe Surf is more what you're looking for to accompany your mai tai :)

Try that Blue Hawaiians CD I mentioned, you won't regret it. AND, of course, enjoy your cocktail with The Tikiyaki Orchestra CD as well :wink:

I agree, but like Glenda the good witch said to Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz " It's always best to start at the beginning" so check out The Shadows out of England in the late '50's early '60's.

Besides the usual Dick Dale & The Ventures there are a ton of great modern surf bands and some have a bit of carry over exotica influence. I was just turned on to Crazy Al's band Ape.

Some of my fav surf bands are:
Aqua Velvets
Blue Hawaiians
Blue Stingrays
The Eliminators
Los Straightjackets
Vera-Tones
Pollo Del Mar
Mel-Tones
And my most favorite of all are The Mermen

I am going to put in my two cents:
Unfortunately, Tiki is a broad term when it comes to music. A lot of what we call Exotica is slow and languid and is adapted from Hollywood versions of Hawaiian, African, south American and Asian music. It is meant to be background music, suitable for cocktale parties and conversation, but not direct listening like you would with some of the prog rock bands you mentioned (YES). However, most of us on this forum are severely addicted to it. Hawaiian music itself is often slow as well, but there is some upbeat stuff. Surf music seems like it might be up your alley. And some of the more modern surf at that. There are modern bands that combine surf with exotica, my favorites being the Tikiyaki orchestra, APE and the martini Kings. For upbeat Hawaiian style music try King Kukulele or the Mai-kai gents.
I am thinking you may like lounge music. That's where you get a lot more of the latin style music which features drums. Jack Costanzo is very upbeat and features a lot of bongos. An album that I consider a lounge classic is the rat pack live in Vegas. This was featured in a sopranos episode where they park a boat across from some guys house they want him to move from, and blast the album at high volume day and night.
I would also reccomend Esquivel.
I also would not advise sparring with people like BigTikiDude on the subject of music. Not only is he a musician, but he is also a DJ and is to be considered an expert when it comes to music (INMHO) and he has imppecable taste.