Dance Mania Vol. 1 & Vol. 2 (1960)

Samenvoeging van twee van Puente's bekendste albums, uit 1957 en 1960, plus bonus tracks, in 2009-remastervorm in Sony's Legacy-serie. "Appearing in vibrant sound as part of RCA's Living Stereo series, "Dance Mania" exploded with a series of tight arrangements, propulsive playing, and the features of new additions in vocalist Santos Colón and conguero Ray Barretto. Puente didn't dilute his sound for Dance Mania -- unlike the many commercial crossover LPs that were released by both established groups and ad hoc studio collectives -- but his hard mambos here were performed at tempos that encouraged dancing by more staid LP-buyers, slightly slower than the high paces of his Tico sides or Palladium shows. Brassy and swinging, yes, and certainly as precise as a great Latin band could get, but not as torrid as Spanish Harlem dancers would be accustomed to. Most were Puente originals, spanning mambo and cha-cha and guaguanco, and Dance Mania built the foundation for great Latin LPs to come." (John Bush, Allmusic)