Originally, Trio Los Panchos were a trío romántico formed in New York City in 1944 by Alfredo Gil, Chucho Navarro, and the Puerto Rican Hernando Avilés. The trio became one of the leading exporters of the bolero and the romantic ballad in Latin America.

The group sold hundreds of millions of records since its creation in the mid 1940s, some of their best known songs being their interpretations of classic folk songs such as "Besame Mucho", "Sabor a Mí", "Sin Ti", "Solamente Una Vez", "Contigo", "Quizas, Quizas, Quizas", "Contigo Aprendi", "Aquellos Ojos Verdes", "Cuando vuelva a tu lado", "Se te olvida", "El Reloj", "Noche de Ronda", "Rayito de Luna".

Los Panchos are regarded as one of the top musical trios of all time and one of the most influential Latin American artists of all time. They sold out concerts around the globe for over 70 years and have appeared in more than 50 films.

A characteristic instrument of Los Panchos and other Mexican tríos románticos since the 1950s is the requinto guitar, which is smaller and tuned higher than a standard guitar. Requinto solos are found in many bolero recordings by Los Panchos.