Not counting compilations and live recordings,
The Ride is the 11th album by East Los Angelinos
Los Lobos. And in contrast to the rest of their hefty catalog, it stands as a wonderful anomaly on their shelf. First, it is an offering with loads of guests, from influences such as
Richard Thompson,
Garth Hudson,
the Grateful Dead's famed lyricist
Robert Hunter, R&B legend
Bobby Womack, Latin garage-funk hero
Little Willie G., gospel great
Mavis Staples, and
Tom Waits to contemporaries like
Elvis Costello,
Dave Alvin,
Greg Leisz,
Mitchell Froom,
Martha Gonzales, Latin music statesman
Rubén Blades, and rock en Español inventors
Café Tacuba, and many more. These 13 tracks walk the razored edge between the band's wondrous amalgam of rock, blues, country, soul, and Latin folk and pop styles found on
How Will the Wolf Survive? and
The Neighborhood to the song fragmentation and studio experimentation that made records like
Kiko and
Colossal Head standouts. To this end,
Los Lobos redo some of their nuggets There's a wonderfully gospelized read of "Matter of Time," with
Costello, that adds a completely new meaning to the tune.
Little Willie G.'s vocal on "Is This All There Is" digs deep into the tune for its gritty funk root and stretches it to the breaking point -- it's one of the strongest performances on the disc. But the medley of "Wicked Rain" from
Kiko with
Womack's "Across 110th Street," with the band in full stretch-out mode and
Womack at the peak of his soul crooning powers, is the biggest surprise. Over eight minutes in length, the combination of the tunes is smooth and sweet, driven with acoustic guitars, a punched-up horn section, and
Rev. Charles Williams' shimmering Rhodes and B-3 in the mix. But the new material, such as "Veganza de los Pelados," with Mexico City's
Café Tacuba, is the meld of the two bands' quirky strengths.
Los Lobos bring the mystic Latin groove and bluesy angularity of the guitar lines, while
the Tacubas bring the big knotty beats and edgy power chords, stunning dynamics, and a sense of play. Likewise, "Ya Se Va," with
Blades, is a perfect cocktail of Afro-Cuban son and mariachi. "Wreck of the Carlos Rey," with
Thompson, pairs
David Hidalgo with the British guitarist in a snaky moaning weave of Anglo folk and driving, minor-key bluesy rock. The meeting of the band and
Staples on "Someday," with
Williams on clavinet and
Lonnie Jordan on B-3, is so fine and fluid that an entire album should be considered. Ultimately, with the possible exception of "Kitate," with
Waits and
Gonzales, which feels overindulgent and directionless, this record comes off like a dream, full of strength, vision, warmth, rhythms, textures, and a coming together of all of
Los Lobos' various adventures in a solid coat of many colors. This is the culmination of 30 years, and as such, it is an album that pays tribute as well as points to the next, and walks the narrow path between playful adventurousness and tuneful accessibility with ragged elegance and swaggering confidence. ~ Thom Jurek