Casa de las Américas (cover design: Umberto Peña), "Versos Sencillos cantados por Oscar Chávez," 1972. Vinyl LP,

This 1972 vinyl album presents Mexican singer Oscar Chávez performing musical settings of "Versos Sencillos" (Simple Verses), the celebrated poetry collection by Cuban national hero José Martí. The cover, designed by Umberto Peña and produced by EGREM, features a striking pop-art portrait rendered in halftone dots with green and pink tones, framed by polka-dotted shapes on a salmon-pink background. A green circular medallion containing a rose and wheat motif—symbolizing both beauty and revolutionary labor—anchors the lower portion of the composition, creating a visual dialogue between folk tradition and modernist graphic design.

The album features musical arrangements and artistic direction by Benjamín "Chamín" Correa, with songs including "La Niña de Guatemala" (canción), "Mi Honda Es La de David" (guajira), "La Bailarina Española" (pasillo), and "Yo Tengo un Amigo Muerto" (guajira-huapango). The liner notes explain that Martí's "Versos Sencillos" sought to find foods that nourish the soul in simple, profound moments—whether encountering a brave dying friend in 1891, discovering a singular Mexican dancer (Óscar Chávez, made in 1935), or expressing grief and friendship. This recording represents Casa de las Américas' ongoing commitment to connecting Latin American artistic traditions across borders, uniting Mexican musical interpretation with Cuban literary patrimony to celebrate the shared cultural heritage of the Americas.