Domingo Quiñones
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Domingo Quinones (born 1963) is a singer of salsa music. He is also a composer, producer and actor.
Quinones was born in Perth Amboy, New Jersey. When he was four years old he moved to Puerto Rico with his parents and lived in Ceiba. He returned to New York City in 1977. He began his career there six years later with the Conjunto Nativo. He also performed with other groups, including the orchestra of Rafael de Jesús, with José Alberto "El Canario", with Johnny Rodríguez and the Conjunto Clásico.
In 1985 he replaced Roberto Lugo in the orchestra of Luis "Perico" Ortiz with whom he recorded four albums, including La vida en broma (1985), In Tradition (1986) and Perico (1987). He then sang for a time with Louie Ramirez and Roberto Roena.
In 1987, he signed as a solo artist with RMM and released his first solo album: Domingo es mi nombre. After joining Tito Puente on his 100th record, Quiñones released his second solo album Pintando Lunas. That album included a duet entitled "Enséñame" with Tony Vega and a salsa version of the song "Crazy for You" which proved his great versatility.
This was followed by six additional recordings with RMM, including one of his most important productions: "Se necesita un milagro", selected as one of the most influential albums by the National Foundation for Popular Culture of Puerto Rico. Among his many popular songs was "Mi Negrita Me Espera".
In 1988, he demonstrated his acting abilities in the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar, together with Olga Tañón, Michael Stuart and Tito Auger of the music group Fiel a la Vega. This was followed by playing the role of the legendary singer Hector Lavoe in the New York play, Quien Mato a Hector Lavoe? with songs like "La Voz de Siempre". The play and his performance won kudos from the critics including the New York Times, proclaiming that Quiñones captured the very essence of Lavoe's life and music.
He returned to producing music recordings with the release of Poeta y guerrero which included his own compositions. But his acting days were not over yet as he won the role of Sgt. Miller in the movie Héroes de Otra Patria, about Puerto Rican soldiers in the Vietnam War. The film won Honorable Mention in the Festival de Cine de Viña del Mar (Chile) and was the official entry from Puerto Rico in the foreign film category of the 1999 Oscar competition.
