Marc Anthony - Valio la Pena

Singer/songwriter Marc Anthony gets back to the basics here, rewarding his main fanbase by recording salsa versions of the Spanish-language pop ballads on his Amar sin Mentiras CD. Beyond "Lamento Borincano," the old folk-salsa standard by the legendary Puerto Rican songwriter Rafael Hernandez, there isn't anything new. The other seven tracks are simply horn-fueled and percussion heavy retakes. But even those who already have Amar can find new juice here. Valio La Pena vibrates with new sonic urgency as Anthony describes the risks sometimes necessary in finding romantic happiness. The pop version of "Ahora Quien" was dramatic and anthemic. Here, it's speeded up and filled out with melodic pianos and horns. Even "Escapemonos," the tepid duet with actress/singer Jennifer Lopez, gets a recharge in the salsa version thanks to percolating percussions. Anthony's strength is his strong, plaintive vocals. On ballads he's ok, but it's in fiery salsa tunes where the music and the vocals really complement each other. Did we really need two Anthony CDs? Probably not, but his hardcore salsa fans will appreciate the extra effort. --Ramiro Burr Amazon.com

Love it

One of the reasons I'm such a big fan of Marc Anthony is that he's able to sing with such feeling. With this CD he does it again. Valio la Pena is the kind of album you either want to dance to or sing. Or both. Marc and his band put their all into this album and the end result is a fantastic CD from el rey de salsa. Enjoy.

March 28, 2007

Valio la pena to buy this cd.lol

This is a great cd from marc anthony.I love the song "se esfuma tu amor".I have all of marc anthony songs in my ipod.He is the best. February 25, 2007

HE'S BACK!

After acouple of questionables albums Marc Anthony the best modern day salsero is back and i cant be any happier as i live and die by this mans golden voice and unlike victor manuelle he can get away with this salsa/bolero style of salsa.Tu amor me haces bien being the best song of the album and the rest is just as good i gave it 4 stars b/c at the start of the album it was a smooth start but it got choppy by the end, the landing was rough but it was good enough to give it four stars. November 21, 2006

Just off 5 stars

Marc Anthony is excellent as always. The only reason I didn't give this five stars is that I was disappointed to find out that the album contains "salsa" versions of the songs played on the radio such as Ahora Quien. The version I heard on the radio is more of a ballad style as is Tu Amor me Hace Bien. Since I prefer the slower versions there was a bit of a disappointment for me since I still have to buy the slower versions. Other than that I love the album. July 31, 2006

Not as good as his 3 previous salsa albums

*** stars - can't change the above!

Valio is a rearrangement of some of the songs of Amar sin Mentiras. And it definitely has the feeling of an afterthought.

While it is a pretty decent salsa album (albeit brief), it is simply not in the class of his other three salsa CD's, Todo a su Tiempo, Contra la Corriente, and especially, Libre. The arrangements are standard competent rather than thorougly innovative and unique as were the older ones. May 19, 2006

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