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Vuelve (1998)

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

Much of this album was recorded while Martin was still on tour, and its success later came from a World Cup anthem that was not even on the original release plan.

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Album story

Overview

• Vuelve (Come Back): fourth studio album by Puerto Rican singer Ricky Martin
• Released February 17, 1998 by Sony Discos and Columbia Records
• A Latin record mixing Latin dance numbers with pop ballads
• Fourteen songs in total
• Follows the worldwide success of "María" from the 1995 album A Medio Vivir

Background

• A Medio Vivir moved Martin away from ballad-style songs toward a riskier fusion of traditional Latin sounds
• "María" was chosen as the second single of that album and became a breakthrough success
• FIFA asked Martin to write an anthem for the 1998 World Cup in France, which led to "La Copa de la Vida"
• While on tour in 1997, Martin returned to the studio and began recording material for this album
• He described touring and recording at the same time as "brutal and incredibly intense"
• On December 7, 1997, Martin confirmed the album would be released in February of the following year

Recording

• Producers KC Porter and Robi Draco Rosa worked with Martin on the album
• Desmond Child is also credited on the World Cup song "La Copa de la Vida"
• Recorded in studios across the United States, Puerto Rico, and Spain
• The album title Vuelve was announced on January 25, 1998
• Martin said the album would reaffirm the internationalization of his career

Cover

• Cover details are not given in the source text

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

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Enrique Martín Morales, born December 24, 1971 in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
• Began singing at age six; appeared in television commercials from age nine.
• Joined the boy band Menudo in 1984 at age 12, leaving in July 1989.
• Began his solo career in 1991 with Sony Music, releasing the album Ricky Martin.

Members

• Solo artist; no group members.

Career

• A Medio Vivir (1995) brought the hit "María" and his first international success.
• Vuelve (1998) earned his first Grammy Award and the FIFA World Cup anthem "La Copa de la Vida".
• The English album Ricky Martin (1999) debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200; "Livin' la Vida Loca" topped the Billboard Hot 100.
• Often credited with launching the late-1990s Latin pop boom in the US mainstream.
• Has sold over 70 million records worldwide.
• Acted in General Hospital and as Ché in the Broadway revival of Evita.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Critics' reviews were generally positive, praising the uptempo tracks and the production
• AllMusic's Jose F. Promis praised how the album balances dance tracks and ballads, and named "La Copa de la Vida" the main highlight
• Billboard's John Lannert compared the album to A Medio Vivir and said the uptempo songs could be hits
• Rolling Stone's David Wild praised the record's polished and infectious Latin pop
• The Los Angeles Times' Ernesto Lechner said Martin could handle both ballads and up-tempo tunes
• Critics were divided on the ballads, and some found the second half forgettable

Reappraisal

• Several critics singled out "Vuelve" and "Perdido Sin Ti" as strong ballads
• Miami Herald's Leila Cobo criticized the title track as one of the album's weakest songs

Records

• Debuted at number one on Billboard Top Latin Albums, holding the position for 26 weeks
• Debuted at number 81 on the Billboard 200 and peaked at number 40
• RIAA platinum; over 888,000 copies sold in the US according to Nielsen SoundScan
• Won the Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop Performance at the 41st Annual Grammy Awards in 1999
• Number one in Norway, Portugal, and Spain
• Platinum in France? (no, omit)
• Six-times platinum in Spain (PROMUSICAE)
• Sextuple platinum in Turkey for 180,000 copies
• Over six million copies sold worldwide by 2008

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

Trivia

• FIFA contacted Martin in the middle of his tour and asked him to write the 1998 World Cup anthem.
• Martin's Grammy Awards performance of "La Copa de la Vida" was credited with boosting the album's sales.
• The title track was written by Venezuelan songwriter Franco De Vita, who said he had been writing the song for 10 years before Martin asked him for an album track.
• "Gracias por Pensar en Mi" adapts "A Via Lactea" by Legião Urbana; Renato Russo had written the original months before he died of AIDS.
• "Marcia Baila" was a cover; Les Rita Mitsouko originally performed it and it was a hit in France in the 1980s.
• The Arrowhead Pond show of the Vuelve tour grossed over $446,805.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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