The Fania All-Stars popularized New York salsa during the 1970s by organizing concerts that spotlighted the salsa world's biggest stars -- Featuring a lineup of 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. Fania All-Stars usually recorded their albums live and featured long jams with plenty of space for solos for each of the salsa heroes on-stage at the time.
The Fania All-Stars recorded eight studio albums during the 1980s, gradually moving from the overly polished sound of the late '70s to a more organic Latin jazz. In 1994, the group celebrated the 30th anniversary of Fania Records with live dates in San Juan, Miami, and New York.