Who's Smoking

Born and raised in Cuba, Paquito D’Rivera is one of the country’s most acclaimed musicians. When he defected to America in 1980, he became an internationally revered ambassador for Latin jazz while constantly expanding its reach and vocabulary.

An NEA Jazz Master, 16-time Grammy® winner, recipient of the National Medal of Arts, a Guggenheim Fellow, and a Kennedy Center honoree as a Living Jazz Legend, D’Rivera has backed artists ranging from Dizzy Gillespie to Gloria Estefan to Yo Yo Ma in addition to his outstanding catalog of classic albums showcasing his ability to move fluidly between styles while always sounding distinctly D’Rivera.

Who’s Smoking?! was Rivera’s tribute to the straight-ahead jazz pioneered by Dizzy, Miles, and Monk. but it’s anything but straight-ahead. While the great James Moody provides a direct line to bebop’s beginnings, D’Rivera’s band of Latin-jazz legends and contemporary American hot-shots give the session a unique flavor fans will instantly recognize.

Originally released on CD, Candid is proud to revive this hard-driving set, with refreshed artwork, plus newly remastered sound courtesy of Alex McCollough at True East Mastering. Now on vinyl for the first time, Jeff Powell cut the Who’s Smoking?! across 2LPs for the best possible sound.