Maps of Music

Enrique (1999)

Where the lyrics of Enrique take you, and where it was really made.

The duet with Whitney Houston was never sung face to face: the two recorded in Los Angeles and Hamburg and sang to each other over the phone.

Key places

Iglesias's part recorded in Los Angeles (1999)

Recording site Los Angeles — Iglesias recorded his part of the duet with Whitney Houston in Los Angeles. The point marks the city only, not a specific studio. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Houston's part recorded in Hamburg (1999)

Recording site Hamburg — Whitney Houston recorded her part of the duet with Iglesias in Hamburg, Germany. The point marks the city only, not a specific studio. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Enrique: debut English album and fourth studio album by Enrique Iglesias
• Released 23 November 1999 by Interscope Records
• Launched two number one US Billboard Hot 100 hits, 'Bailamos' and 'Be with You'
• Pop album with Latin influences, recorded in about two months
• Contains a duet with Whitney Houston, 'Could I Have This Kiss Forever'

Background

• After the success of 'Bailamos', Iglesias signed a multi-album deal with Interscope
• He spent the next two months recording the first English album
• Interscope chairman Jimmy Iovine suggested a cover of Bruce Springsteen's 'Sad Eyes', since Iglesias was a Springsteen fan
• 'Sad Eyes' had recently come out on Springsteen's rare-recordings collection Tracks
• 'Bailamos' was included, having earlier appeared on a special edition of Cosas del Amor and the Wild Wild West soundtrack

Recording

• Iglesias recorded his part of the Houston duet in Los Angeles, and Houston recorded hers in Hamburg, Germany
• The two sang together over the phone, and first met when the track was re-recorded for the single

Cover

• The album cover and booklet photos were taken by photographer Pepe Botella

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · fr.wikipedia.org · pt.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Enrique Miguel Iglesias Preysler, born 8 May 1975 in Madrid, Spain.
• Son of singer Julio Iglesias and socialite Isabel Preysler.
• Raised in Miami after the 1981 kidnapping of his grandfather by ETA.
• Began his recording career in the mid-1990s on the Mexican label Fonovisa.

Career

• Debut Spanish album Enrique Iglesias (1995) sold half a million copies in its first week and won a Grammy for Best Latin Pop Performance.
• Followed by Vivir (1997) and Cosas del Amor (1998), making him the bestselling Spanish-language act of the decade.
• 1999 hit "Bailamos" (Wild Wild West soundtrack) peaked at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 and opened his English-language crossover.
• Escape (2001) was certified Diamond for over 10 million copies; its single "Hero" was a UK number-one.
• Signed to Universal, then Republic Records in 2010, then Sony Music in 2015.
• Sex and Love (2014) and the hit "Bailando" were major successes; Final (Vol. 1) and Final (Vol. 2) followed in 2021 and 2024.
• Holds the record for the most number-one songs on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart; estimated sales exceed 100 million albums.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic gave the album four stars out of five
• He noted the album dropped the Latin sound of earlier records for dance-pop and adult contemporary ballads
• He wrote that it works as a crossover for a large audience in countries where the Latin style was not well accepted

Records

• Debuted at number 33 on the Billboard 200 albums chart
• Certified Platinum in the United States for shipping 1 million units
• Certified for two platinum awards by IFPI Europe for selling 2 million units across Europe
• Certified 5 times Platinum in Canada
• Platinum in Australia and New Zealand, Gold in Mexico and other countries
• Two number one US Billboard Hot 100 hits

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · pt.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Jimmy Iovine proposed covering Springsteen's 'Sad Eyes' because Iglesias was a Springsteen fan, and the track came from Springsteen's rare-recordings collection Tracks.
• The Whitney Houston duet was recorded separately, with Iglesias in Los Angeles and Houston in Hamburg, and the two only met when the single was re-recorded.
• 'Bailamos' had already appeared on a special edition of Cosas del Amor and on the Wild Wild West soundtrack before it was added to this album.
• Both 'Bailamos' and 'Be with You' reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · pt.wikipedia.org · es.wikipedia.org

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