Del Este De Los Angeles

In 1978, when Los Lobos were paying their bills by playing weddings and Mexican restaurants in the greater Los Angeles area, they put out an independent album of their traditional Tex-Mex songs with a pumped-up rock & roll feel. The album, Del Este de Los Angeles, established their sound and provided a jumping-off point for David Hidalgo and Louie Pérez to start writing their own material. The LP has since been released by Hollywood Records on CD (not to be confused with their similarly titled box set Just Another Band from East L.A.) and is an interesting glimpse into the band on the verge of breaking away from their traditional roots and pushing into creating their own influential style. – Zac Johnson