 He is also a common member of jazz fusion band Spyro Gyra.Born in New York on August 15, 1947, Velez began his musical career in The Bronx, New York.He notably joined Jimi Hendrix's band Gypsy Sun and Rainbows in July 1969, performed at the Woodstock Festival and at a small number of studio sessions, before Hendrix disbanded the group in favour of returning to the three-piece format of The Jimi Hendrix Experience.