EGREM/Areito (cover artist: Raúl Martínez, artist: Carlos Embale, conjunto: Cubason, musical director: Rubén González), "Carlos Embale," 1970s. Offset print, vinyl record LP

This album cover represents a masterwork by Raúl Martínez (1927-1995), one of Cuba's most important visual artists and a pioneer of revolutionary pop art. Martínez's distinctive collage aesthetic combines portraiture with symbolic elements of Cuban identity, creating a visual language that celebrated revolutionary multiculturalism while maintaining sophisticated artistic experimentation. His work adorned countless Cuban cultural products during the 1960s-70s, making high art accessible to mass audiences.

The cover presents Carlos Embale at center, holding a drum and surrounded by a rich tapestry of Cuban cultural symbols: vibrant red hibiscus flowers, butterflies, a spotted jaguar representing Cuba's natural heritage, decorative seashells along the bottom border, and multiple human figures including Afro-Cuban and white faces plus a traditional folkloric figure. The composition's textured blue background—created with visible brushstrokes—grounds this collage in Martínez's characteristic style, which drew from both international pop art and specifically Cuban visual traditions. A full moon in the upper right adds mystical dimension, referencing Afro-Cuban spiritual practices.

Carlos Embale performs with Conjunto Cubason under the direction and orchestration of the legendary Rubén González (later famous for his work with Buena Vista Social Club). The album features classic Cuban song forms including boleros by Rafael Ortiz ("Amor de Loca Juventud," "El Plato Roto") and Calixto Callava ("Lo Añoro"), guarachas by Ortiz and Florencio Hernández ("Quinto Llamando"), and bolero-sons by Lázaro Herrera ("Las Nenas No Lloran") and Yáñez y Gómez ("Sabroso, Que Bien Me Siento"). Side B includes "Dame un Trago, Tabernero," "No Me Pidas Madre," and "Dulce Habanera."

Produced by ethnomusicologist Marta Teresa Linares with recording engineer Eusebio Domínguez at EGREM studios in Havana, this stereo pressing (LD-3927, CARA A) exemplifies how revolutionary Cuba integrated visual art, popular music, and cultural preservation into unified artistic statements that elevated both high and popular culture simultaneously.