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Fruko y sus Tesos is the pioneer of colombian salsa bands.it was created by julio e ernesto estrada fruko. estrada started his musical career as a percussionist for los corraleros del majagual colombia's most popular tropical music band.in the late 60's he toured the united states and was impressed by the ny city's dazzling salsa movement. fruko returns to colombia and presents a proposal to discos fuentes,to create the first colombian salsa band.jose maria fuentes, ceo of discos fuentes faced a dilema, he was aware of fruko's talent,but was eskeptical about the success of this project due to estrada's inexperience and the fierce competicion he faced.jose maria fuentes decides to support the project with very limited funding. fruko had to use his one man band talent recording the percussion section,bass,piano and chorus,jorge gaviria recorded the horn section and humberto muriel performed on vocals.the album was named tesura and was released in 1970.due to its limited exposure, the record was a failure,discos fuentes remained hopefull despite the setback and continued supporting the band. fruko y sus tesos returns to the recording studios and produce a la memoria de el muerto with two new singers,piper pimienta diaz and joe arroyo.in 1972 los tesos recorded fruko el bueno with wilson saoko replacing piper pimienta diaz in vocals,two records were produced in 1973 ayunando and el violento and in 1974 el caminante was recorded,scoring several hits among them lloviendo,nadando, el ausente,tania and mosaico santero.the band showed an influence from richie ray& bobby cruz in the piano and trumpets,in the rhythm section they displayed the ideal blend between a powerfull bass and resonant timbales creating an electrifying swing.in 1975 fruko el grande was released producing several hits among them los charcos, manyoma,confundido and el preso which became one of the greatest hits in the history of tropical latino music.the band embarks on several european and american tours while julio e estrada continued improving the sound of the orchestra, sophisticating his musical arrangements using a vast arsenal of creative techniques
