Ney Rivera was a Dominican singer, composer, and record entrepreneur associated with mid-twentieth-century merengue, plena, and bolero. Alongside his work as a performer, he owned Riney Records, a label that issued Dominican and Puerto Rican recordings within the musical network connecting New York and Puerto Rico.

Merengue and the Puerto Rican stage

His presence in Puerto Rico is documented in singer Johnny Toruella's career: on July 18, 1958, Toruella made his debut accompanying Rivera at the Teatro La Perla in Ponce. Rivera also recorded with different ensembles. A Marvela 78 rpm record credits Ney Rivera with the Sonora Ponceña on «Qué mulata más graciosa», while Riney issued recordings featuring his Estrellas del Caribe and Conjunto Santiaguero.

Riney Records

Ansonia Records' history of Toñín Romero identifies Rivera as Riney's owner and locates the label in New York during Romero's earliest recording period, between the late 1940s and early 1950s. The company also issued recordings by Cheíto González's Trío Casino de Santurce. Rivera's business activity therefore circulated Antillean repertoire and performers beyond his own work as a singer.

Recordings and composition

Riney 967 brings together two aspects of his work. One side features «Contestación al aguacero», a porro sung by Myrian Rodríguez with the Estrellas del Caribe, with Ney Rivera and Julio Torrez credited as its writers. The reverse features Rivera singing «Heroína», a merengue attributed to Dominican national folklore, with his Estrellas del Caribe.

With Fellito Parra's ensemble he recorded «La resbalosa» and «Qué buena es la plena», preserved by the Frontera Collection and issued as the two sides of Riney 1214. His repertoire also included «Te esperaba», a bolero by Claudio Ferrer and Pepe Robles: the Fundación Nacional para la Cultura Popular lists his Riney recording in 1963.

Legacy

The preservation of his records provides access to a career spanning performance, composition, and the record business. The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History holds a Riney 78 rpm record featuring «El marinero», performed by Rivera and his Conjunto Santiaguero, and «Contestación a: Si tú no,... la otra», featuring Florinda Sánchez with the same ensemble. These recordings, together with material preserved by the Frontera Collection and Florida International University's Díaz-Ayala Collection, document his participation in Caribbean popular music.