Beto & the Fairlanes
One last 2012 local music roundup
Reviewed by Jay Trachtenberg, Fri., Dec. 28, 2012
Beto & the Fairlanes
Best o Beto (Fable)If you were active in the burgeoning Austin music scene of the late Seventies, then dancing to Beto & the Fairlanes under the stars at Liberty Lunch on Thursday nights was a weekly ritual. To celebrate its 35th anniversary, Robert "Beto" Skiles and crew compiled a career retrospective that grabs favorites from the group's six LPs, all songs by Skiles. Basically a hot Latin jazz dance band, their incorporation of diverse contemporary grooves and styles once characterized this town's musical culture at large. Along with Skiles, a dazzling pianist, the band boasts an array of top jazz musicians who put forth formidable chops on highlights including "Playa Gloria," "Eye of the Hurricane," and "Sesos de Huesos," their first 45 single from 1977. Although dated, Best o Beto still offers effusive party music that captures an essential slice of Austin music. Vamos a get down!