Fonovisa Records celebrated their 25th anniversary in early to mid-2009 with a series of two-CD compilations, and one of them was La Historia de los exitos: Banda ("The History of the Hits: Banda"). This double-disc focuses exclusively on Fonovisa and Univision Records' contributions to Mexican banda music -- or rather, it focuses almost exclusively on banda. Ezequiel Pena's hit "Una Pagina Mas" was an inappropriate choice for this compilation because even though Pena is a jewel of a singer and "Una Pagina Mas" is a jewel of a ranchera standard, that particular track finds him enjoying mariachi backing rather than banda backing -- and as any regional Mexican enthusiast can tell you, mariachi and banda are two different things. But even if La Historia de los exitos: Banda isn't quite banda exclusive, it is certainly dominated by banda. The compilation is full of banda recordings by artists who are major names in regional Mexican music, including Graciela Beltran ("Te Reto a Que Me Olvides," "Ensename a Olvidar"), Banda Jerez ("La Baraja"), the seminal Banda el Recodo ("Y Llegaste Tu," "Te Ofrezco un Corazon"), the late Valentin Elizalde ("Soy Asi," "Y Se Parece a Ti") and La Arrolladora Banda El Limon de Rene Camacho ("En los Puritos Huesos," "Media Naranja"). The latter should not be confused with La Original Banda El Limon de Salvador Lizarraga, and the Rogelio Martinez heard on "amame" is a regional Mexican star who should not be confused with the late Cuban salsa icon Rogelio Martinez (who led La Sonora Matancera and served as Celia Cruz' musical director). La Historia de los exitos: Banda illustrates banda's diversity, ranging from rancheras and corridos to Latin pop-influenced material -- and on the humorous "Estoy Enamorada," Yolanda Perez even combines banda with hip-hop. Surprisingly, La Historia de los exitos: Banda doesn't contain anything by Jenni Rivera, but all things considered, this double-disc paints an attractive picture of the Fonovisa and Univision labels' contributions to banda. ~ Alex Henderson, Rovi