Richie Ray
| Richie Ray | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Ricardo Maldonado Morales |
| Also known as |
"El Embajador del Piano" (The Piano Ambassador) |
| Born |
February 15, 1945 Brooklyn, New York |
| Genres | Salsa |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, Pianist, Music arranger, Composer and Religious minister |
| Instruments | Piano |
| Years active | 1965–present |
Ricardo "Richie" Ray (born February 15, 1945) is a virtuoso pianist, singer, music arranger, composer and religious minister known for his success beginning in 1965 as part of the duo Richie Ray & Bobby Cruz. He is known as "El Embajador del Piano" (The Ambassador of the Piano).
Ray (birth name: Richard Maldonado Morales ) was born in Brooklyn, New York City of Puerto Rican parents. They lived on Hoyt Street. Ray's father, Pacifico Maldonado, was an accomplished guitarist in his native Bayamón, and as such was the Maldonado family's early musical influence.
Ray's parents had him take lessons and he started to play the piano when he was only seven years old. His lifelong partnership with Robert "Bobby" Cruz Feliciano started five years later in 1957 when Ray played bass in a group led by Cruz. This combination was the beginning of one of the greatest salsa duos in the salsa music industry.
He attended the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music, the famed High School of Performing Arts, and the Juilliard School of Music. This experience served to further develop and refine his musical training. In addition, he became well versed in various Latin music genres which were popular at that time the Guajira, the Cha-cha-cha, the Bolero and others.
Ray left Juilliard in 1963, after just one year. He made this choice so that he could get organized and dedicate himself to his own band. This was a year after Cruz joined in as the lead vocalist. In 1965, he signed with Fonseca Records and released his debut album, Ricardo Ray Arrives-Comején. The album included the outstanding hit songs "Mambo Jazz", "Comején", "Viva Richie Ray", "El Mulato", "Suavito", "Pa' Chismoso Tú" and the bolero-cha "Si Te Contaran". The famous pair recorded some of their finest work during the period that they were with the Fonseca label.
In 1966, the group switched to the Alegre label, coinciding with the arrival of the boogaloo. Ray recorded nine albums with Alegre. He was a part of Tico/Alegre Records until 1970, and during that time he produce such hits as "Richie's Jala Jala", "Mr. Trumpet Man", "Señor Embajador", "Agúzate" (Gold Record Award winner), "Amparo Arrebato", "Traigo de Todo", and the Spanish version of Frank Sinatra's "My Way", called "A Mi Manera". This song went on to be the most radio played Spanish version of "My Way" during 1970; the song also won the duo a Gold Record Award.
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