What is interesting in this is the exchange of music that occurred between New Orleans and Cuba, I mean, they had ferries that would go from one port to another.

Every band had their own distinctive sound, but it was pretty much dancing music and rhythmic music with a tremendous emphasis on copying the Cuban models.

And, he'd seen me in Panama, and he talked about maybe doing something in New York so I hooked it up when I came here and I recorded in 1969 my first album with Pete Rodriguez.

I was the first person to come into New York with a Latin American point of view which was also very much influenced by political happenings in Latin America.

So that in 1974, when I graduated as a lawyer, I figured I'm not going to be a lawyer under a military regime.

It doesn't make sense for me to be a lawyer in a place where there is no law.

Everyone comes back. It makes no difference how far we wander, we always have our country, our land, in our souls and our minds.