Ralfi Pagan
| Ralfi Pagán | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Rafael Pagán |
| Also known as | Ray Paige |
| Born | 1947 |
| Origin | Bronx, New York, USA |
| Died | 1978 |
| Genres | Latin soul/boogaloo, salsa, disco, Latin pop |
| Occupation(s) | Singer |
| Years active | 1966–1978 (his death) |
| Labels | Fania Records, Pumpkris |
Ralfi Pagán (born Rafael Pagán; 1947–1978) was a Bronx, New York-based Latin soul and salsa singer of Puerto Rican and Cuban parentage who was active from the mid-1960s until his death in 1978. He specialized in soul ballads sung both in Spanish and English and released five albums during the 1970s. He is well known for the duet with Sylvia Robinson entitled Soul Je T'aime and for his solo reworking of Make It With You previously recorded by David Gates and Bread. In 1978, he was murdered while on a promotional tour in Colombia, South America. His murder remains unsolved.
The first recording released by Pagán was an all-but-unnoticed 45RPM single recorded in New York and released in 1966 on the RCA Victor label under the name Ray Paige. Subsequently, as a backing vocalist Pagán featured on a number of recordings by King Nando's Orchestra (real name Fernando Rivera) before in 1969, Pagán released the self-titled album, Ralfi Pagan, on Fania Records produced by Kenny Vance. Issued twice, first with all Spanish sung titles and shortly after with four English sing titles substituted for four Spanish titles Pagán's falsetto tenor favoured ballads such as Who Is The Girl For Me, Don't Stop Now, and I Can't See Me Without You. This made him highly popular amongst young Hispanic Americans particularly in the urban centres of Los Angeles and New York where Pagán made a significant cultural impact. He was also adept on up tempo salsa such as his cover of Oscar Brown's Brother, Where Are You?.
In 1971 he broke through nationally with a Latin cover of Make It With You which entered the Billboard R&B chart on the 10 July 1971 for an eleven-week run during which it peaked at #32. It sold 250 000 copies nationally and Pagán appeared on the nationally syndicated TV show Soul Train A second album With Love produced by Harvey Averne and Jerry Masucci and recorded in New York consolidated Pagán's status amongst urban Hispanics and Chicanos. A further R&B hit in 1973 with Soul Je T'Aime, a duet with Sylvia Robinson on Vibration records was his last appearance on the national charts. The Ralfi album containing Latin soul and salsa-influenced tracks was released the same year.
...
Wikipedia