Fania All-Stars

[music: Vente con migo by Fania All-Stars]
[mood: satisfied]

When we were leaving Bethlehem in October of 1986 for San Diego, I didn't realize how life-alterning this change would be. I was 8 years old, and my father packed me, my mom and all the stuff he didn't sell into a late 70s Datsun B-210 and hit the road.

My father was all about Puerto Rico, and salsa music. A few tapes in particular were the Fania All-Stars. I didn't know who they were, but my father loved the music, and would ALWAYS play the tapes. We had other salsa tapes, but for some reason, the Fania All-Stars stuck out with me.

Seventeen years ago today my father passed. I was 11 and while he wasn't able to show me everything, I'm thankful for a few things. He gave me California, he told me to always treat women good, and he gave me the Fania All-Stars.

I went to the Fania All-Stars website. I'm glad to see it was active, but a photo struck me in particular. It was the cover of 'Our Latin Thing' which is a salsa compilation. For some reason, I can imagine my father being in this photo, complete with conga, moustache and cigarette. This photo conveys an atmosphere of grassroots-ness that I can imagine my father being a part of. He loved nature and salsa. I'm very glad I found this photo today.