Born in Broooklyn , NYC, the Puerto Rican blooded percussionist, has jammed and recorded with most of the jazz and latin legends, Charlie Parker, Art Blakey, Lou Donaldson, Dizzy Gillespie and also sessioned with names such as The Stones, Average White Band, Bee Gees etc.
Cocinando Suave is an outstanding "descarga" , a jam session described by Ray himself as "... a slow burner" Listen and enjoy

Claustrophobic and pulsing. Chunks of dulcimer and clouds of reverb mesh together in a disorientating but coherent whole.

What a magnificent performance. This album has long been considered the greatest live jazz album of all time, for a number of reasons. 1. The Lineup: Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Charles Mingus, Bud Powell & Max Roach, each of whom was at their peak of mastery of their instruments. 2: It was recorded in Canada, so Parker's usual endorsement deal for a particular brand of saxophone was void, meaning he was able to play a special Grafton plastic sax that had been given him. 3. Parker had a clear head, since he was, for the time being, clean & sober. Any track on this album could have been my selection, but I've chosen this. The band bashes it's way through Gillespie's hit, and Bird tears everything to shreds in reaction to Dizzy's goofy vocal. A thoroughly sublime recording from start to finish. If you only own one bop album, it may as well be this.

This exceptionally haunting and lyrical song by Quincy Jones has received its definitive interpretion by Astrud Gilberto with arrangement and accompaniment by the Brazilian organist Walter Wanderley. The melancholy urgency of the piece resonates well with the dark/sad tonality that pervades so much of Bossa Nova music, though its character is also reminiscent of certain otherwise very different pieces from the bebop era, which had a formative influence on Quincy Jones' music. There is definitely the remote influence of Charlie Parker and especially Dizzy Gillespie. It's truly a completely unique piece. The drifting melody which seems to skirt over the chord changes has a beautiful inevitability. Only a very gifted and skilled musician could have contrived such a beautiful work. So Quincy Jones deserves especial credit for crafting this song from the film "The Deadly Affair."

Astrud's delivery, so typically limpid and restrained, only serves to heighten the intensity of this darkly passionate song. The subtle but somehow fierce organ playing of Walter Wanderley acheives a sizzling romanticism that perfectly complements the reading of Astrud's apparently detached fatalism.

In my opinion, this track is a true musical masterpiece. Its remarkable economy of means is a testament to the skill of the composer as well as the artistry of the performers. In fact, it's a nearly perfect combination of expressive means and poetic intent. The beautiful resolution, with Astrud's perfect striking of the high B-flat over the half-diminished F-minor seventh, is a moment of sublime dramatic intensity, though profoundly understated, as is typical of her finest artistic moments. One is reminded of Miles Davis. Her poetic skill is rooted in subtlety.

I have listened to this extraordinary track hundreds of times, and always experienced chills rising up on the back of my neck. How amazing that this incredible musical gem was omitted from the original album A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness. Perhaps it was too intense, too heavy; whatever the case, it's a truly remarkable piece of music.

I'm truly grateful to have discovered this great albeit minor musical masterpiece. There's really nothing else quite like it! The sizzling but subtle sensitivity of the rhythm section (Claudio Slon on drums, possibly Joao Gilberto on guitar and Jose Marino on bass) adds an intensity to the piece which helps project the almost existential tone of the song.

I'm really swept away by this obscure and neglected work, which attains -- for me at least -- to a peak of poetic intensity really rare in music. As is usual with Astrud at her best, it accomplishes its artistic ends with what seems like the most minimal of means. But subtlety is always the avenue to the most profound of artistic experiences. I think this is a remarkable example -- one of the greatest -- of the wedding of popular music and high art. It is a truly perfect performance. In my opinion, its greatness increases rather than diminshes with repeated listenings. There is only one word for that -- it's magic!