Album Notes

When I was five, my Tío Raúl would take me on his plumbing jobs, sit me down on bathroom and kitchen counters all over Newark, NJ, and teach me songs while he was working. Driving home in his truck, we'd listen to Beny Moré and Celia Cruz. My uncle had a lovely, smooth, velvety voice like Nat King Cole, and I have always considered him my first voice teacher.
Later, as young teens, my friends and I spent our summer evenings listening to the sounds of Marvin Gaye and Aretha Franklin. We loved to imitate their styles and search for complementary vocal harmonies. In those young days, I never imagined making my own record, but as I grew older I realized it was something I must do. After two and-a-half years of much hard work, I am grateful to the wonderful musicians who helped me complete this project, and to God, who inspired me to develop a style which combines the Cuban rhythms of my uncle's truck, the influences of R & B, and the urgings of my heart.