Puerto Plata is a veteran of the guitar tradition of the Dominican Republic, adept in all of its many forms—bolero, merengue, ranchera, mangulina, bachata—and above all, son. Son is a style which is most often associated with Cuba, and soneros all over Latin America owe a tremendous debt to great Cuban groups like El Trio Matamoros, El Septeto Nacional, Los Compadres and Antonio Machín. Nevertheless, the Dominican Republic is home to an unbroken native son tradition, and José Cobles has personally lived a good part of its history.