Richie ray bobby cruz biography examples

He also edited the recording that complemented the book. A year later, Ray and Cruz had a reunion concert in Bayamon, Puerto Rico; reviving the hits from their salsa days. The concert won critical acclaim from the music critics.

Richie ray bobby cruz biography examples

The concert was recorded under the Universal label and became one of the leading releases in Bobby Cruz. Bobby Cruz was born in in the small town of Hormigueros, Puerto Rico. The reach of his potent voice and his skills as a music arranger and composer won him ample notoriety. When he joined Richie Ray's orchestra in , he added popular Puerto Rican music themes in addition to singing in Spanish without errors.

The most important influences on him were Cortijo y su Combo, the plena, and themes related to country folk. The album included their smash hit single "Juan En La Ciudad". All of these were successful releases. Richie Ray and Bobby Cruz lost most of their fans and found opposition among the members of their own faith when they suggested the idea of Christian salsa.

They stood their ground, however, and little by little, they started to regain the confidence of their fans and fellow Christians. They abandoned secular salsa and recorded salsa with a Christian message, reworking many of their worldly hits into religious themes. They also created some new ones, like "Los Fariseos", "Timoteo", and "Sipriano".

The sincerity of their Christian beliefs was not just conveyed in their music. Both Ray and Cruz are pastors, and they have founded more than 70 churches throughout Puerto Rico and the United States. In addition, Ray founded the Salvation Records label as an outlet for Christian music. Then, he continued his music career although his long-time friend, Cruz, had retired.

During "retirement", however, both Cruz and Ray released albums with previously recorded numbers and with other bands or singers. The duo sang some of their early hits together along with some of their religious songs, and the concert was recorded live. The outcome was so impressive that they were offered a contract by Universal Records. The recording was selected as one of the best recordings of , and helped bring the pair back into the limelight of the Puerto Rican music scene.

The pair has continued to be active in the music scene since. The album was an instant hit in Colombia and Latin America. Ray currently lives in Florida with his wife Angie Ray and besides being musically active, he is also busy attending the churches which he and Cruz founded in the United States, Caribbean and Latin-America. Ray is still considered along with Eddie Palmieri and Papo Lucca as one of the best and most influential pianists of all time in Salsa music.

Contents move to sidebar hide. Article Talk. Read Edit View history. Tools Tools. Download as PDF Printable version. The change to a religious focus was not easy and they lost many of their fans and found opposition among the members of their own faith when they suggested the idea of Christian salsa. They stood their ground and little by little they started to regain the confidence of their fans and fellow Christians, when they recorded salsa songs with a religious message.

However, so as to concentrate in their religious ministries, Ray and Cruz decided to record one last "secular" salsa song together: "Adios a la Salsa" Goodbye to Salsa was a farewell tribute to the style of music which gave them fame and fortune. Ray and Cruz founded over 70 Christian churches during the time they retired from popular music, which lasted about 16 years.

However, hardcore salsa fans constantly pressured them to return to secular work. After considerable reluctance they feared alienating their religious followers , they gave away to fans' wishes, and played sold-out return concerts in Puerto Rico, Miami and New York, to their own surprise. Even when specifying that these joinings were to be sporadic and occasional, popular demand for their music remained constant; the Ray and Cruz orchestra played to sold-out crowds in the few tours that followed.

The result was so impressive that they were offered a contract by Universal Records to record their concerts. Cruz and Ray currently continue their music and evangelical ministries. Ray occasionally plays Latin jazz as part of experimental musical collective La Orquesta Experimental. Occasionally, they perform "secular" salsa music mostly in concerts , perhaps with less popularity than in their heyday, but still influencing a new generation of performers.

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