Vision still in sight for Jose Feliciano

If succeeding in the music industry is all about getting by with a little help from your friends, then it's no wonder Jose Feliciano is a music dynamo.

With friends that range from Ricky Martin and Carlos Santana to longtime pal Glen Campbell, Feliciano's is a face that has shown up around the world since he got his break in 1966. But it was his meeting with Campbell in a 1969 special that left an impression on the Puerto Rican native.

"I don't think a lot of people know that Glen is such a great guitar player. I would have to say he was one of the ones that blew me away."

The respect he felt for Campbell three decades ago hasn't faded at all. "I saw Glen last year in Washington, D.C. and he was still singing and playing greater than ever. He's a really good guy. I'm glad he has turned his life around. If anything bad would have happened to him, we all would have missed out on a great performer and a really good person. He's just a really good guy."

The same has been said about Feliciano himself. Because he was born blind and poor in a brood of eleven boys, the charismatic crooner knows the importance of random acts of kindness. It's a lesson he has learned repeatedly in the past.

"I think the biggest lesson that I've learned is that you have to be a good person. You have to give back to those people that are less fortunate. I think that's the most important thing you can learn as a performer. You have to remember that, at least for me, I came with nothing and I'll leave with nothing. People that don't learn that will never be happy," he said wisely.

Revered by many industry veterans and fans as the first Latin artist to make the difficult crossover from the Latin charts to the annals of pop, there aren't many awards the sixteen time Grammy nominee has missed out on. With accolades that include six Grammies (most recently for 1998's Senor Bolero), double platinum success, Billboard Magazine's Lifetime Achievement Award and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Feliciano's balloon never seems to land. Unless, that is, you ask about regrets.

There is plenty that is right in the world of this self-proclaimed happy man, but despite his successes, there is one thing that he would change about his past.

"I wouldn't have gotten married as early as a I did," he admitted. "I was about twenty. I would have waited a bunch of years, until I grew up. I wasn't ready and the kind of marriage that I had wasn't a good marriage. I think that would be the only thing that I would change."

One thing you won't hear Feliciano lamenting is his decision to leave school at 17 to earn money to help support his family in New York City.

"I knew as a kid what I wanted to do and I don't think sitting in a classroom would have made my life any better than it is today," he explained. "I'm not recommending that kids leave school early, because some kids have to stay in school, but I knew from the get-go what I wanted to do. I think my traveling and the experiences that I've had have given me more of an education than I would have gotten otherwise. But I think that in today's world, it's totally different." Any regrets, he fears, would have lead him down a different path.

Instead, the consummate performer whose hits include chart mainstays like 'Rain,' 'Chico & The Man,' 'California Dreamin',' 'Destiny' and a slew of Spanish hits continues to churn out music that is more suited to a romantic dinner than a mosh pit. It's a genre that he is not only comfortable with, but proud of. He sees the popularity of fellow singers like fellow Puerto Rican native Ricky Martin and music legend Carlos Santana, with an age gap that spans decades, as a testament to Latin music's resiliency.

"Latin music has lasted many, many years. This is not the only boom that it's had. Latin music was even popular during Glen Miller's days...so Latin music has been around and will be around, I think, for a long, long time. It's stood the test of time."

So has Feliciano. Even without his physical vision, his mental vision has always remained intact. He has thrived by carving out a niche for himself in the world and refusing to accept that anything was out of his reach.

"There are times in my life that I've felt that I've been underrated as a musician, but that's just something that I feel. I can't prove whether that's true or not. I've often felt that, as a musician, I am very underrated, but I'm not bitter about it. If anything, when people underrate you, it's time that you prove them all wrong and do the best that you can."