Fania All Stars

Fania All Stars – Spanish Fever (1978/2023)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 40:47 minutes | 1,48 GB | Genre: Salsa, Latin Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Craft Recordings

“This is not straight-up salsa, or any of the Latin music varieties one typically associates with Fania. This is salsa-flavored disco. The Fania touches elevate the material above standard-fare 70’s club tracks, but the Washington Heights fire is no where to be found. Still, any of these tracks would add a little spice to a vintage disco set.”

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Fania All Stars – Delicate & Jumpy (1976/2023)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 37:39 minutes | 1,30 GB | Genre: Funk, Jazz-Funk, Latin Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Craft Recordings

The flagship act for Fania Records, the Fania All-Stars popularized New York salsa during the 1970s by organizing concerts at larger and larger venues (from the Red Garter in Greenwich Village all the way to Yankee Stadium in the Bronx) that spotlighted not only the label’s but the salsa world’s biggest stars – Ray Barretto, Willie Colón, Johnny Pacheco, Rubén Blades, Hector Lavoe, Ismael Miranda, Cheo Feliciano, Bobby Cruz, Pete “El Conde” Rodriguez, and special guests like Tito Puente, Celia Cruz, and Eddie Palmieri. LPs by the collective were usually recorded live and featured long jams with plenty of space for solos for each of the salsa heroes on-stage at the time. Though the label management’s quest for crossover success led to a few diluted major-label recordings during the late ’70s and early ’80s, infrequent events featuring the Fania All-Stars remained huge attractions into the late ’90s.

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Fania All Stars – Cross Over (1979/2023)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 40:46 minutes | 1,54 GB | Genre: World, Salsa, Latin Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Craft Recordings

The flagship act for Fania Records, the Fania All-Stars popularized New York salsa during the 1970s by organizing concerts at larger and larger venues (from the Red Garter in Greenwich Village all the way to Yankee Stadium in the Bronx) that spotlighted not only the label’s but the salsa world’s biggest stars – Ray Barretto, Willie Colón, Johnny Pacheco, Rubén Blades, Hector Lavoe, Ismael Miranda, Cheo Feliciano, Bobby Cruz, Pete “El Conde” Rodriguez, and special guests like Tito Puente, Celia Cruz, and Eddie Palmieri. LPs by the collective were usually recorded live and featured long jams with plenty of space for solos for each of the salsa heroes on-stage at the time. Though the label management’s quest for crossover success led to a few diluted major-label recordings during the late ’70s and early ’80s, infrequent events featuring the Fania All-Stars remained huge attractions into the late ’90s.

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Fania All Stars – Live At The Cheetah (Vol. 2) (2023)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 46:29 minutes | 1,91 GB | Genre: World
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Fania

On August 26, 1971, the Fania All Stars electrified the Cheetah Club stage in New York, causing a salsa-induced delirium that not only defined their career, but the salsa genre. This live recording captures that unforgettable performance, featuring fiery grooves “Anacaona” (feat. Cheo Feliciano) and “Quítate Tú” with vocals by Héctor Lavoe and other salsa legends.

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