Aries | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 22 June 1993 | |||
Recorded | June 1992 – May 1993 [1] | |||
Studio |
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Genre | ||||
Length | 44:31 | |||
Language | Spanish | |||
Label | WEA Latina | |||
Producer |
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Luis Miguel chronology | ||||
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Singles from Aries | ||||
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Aries is the ninth studio album by Mexican recording artist Luis Miguel. It was released by WEA Latina on 22 June 1993. After attaining commercial success in 1991 with his previous album, Romance , Luis Miguel decided to return to a style similar to his earlier work, featuring pop ballads and dance numbers with R&B influences. The record was produced by Miguel, who was assisted by Kiko Cibrian, Rudy Pérez, David Foster, and Juan Luis Guerra.
Three singles were released to promote the album. The first two singles, "Ayer" and "Hasta Que Me Olvides," topped the US Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart and the third, "Suave," peaked at number nine. Two other songs were released as promotional singles, "Hasta el Fin" and "Tú y Yo"; both peaked at number four on the Hot Latin Songs chart. To further promote the record, Luis Miguel launched the 1993 Aries Tour to some Latin American countries and the United States.
Aries peaked at number one on the US Billboard Latin Pop Albums, where it stayed for 19 weeks. Internationally, the album was certified quadruple platinum in Mexico, where it sold over one million copies. It was also certified diamond in Argentina. Aries sold over three million copies worldwide. Upon its release, the album received mixed reviews from music critics; they were divided on the dance tunes and ballads, although Luis Miguel's vocals and the album's arrangements garnered positive reactions. Luis Miguel received several accolades, including the Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop Album.
In 1991 Miguel released his eighth studio album, Romance , a collection of classic boleros, the oldest of which originated in the 1940s. The album, which was produced by Armando Manzanero and arranged by Bebu Silvetti, [2] was a commercial success in Latin America and sold over seven million copies worldwide. [3] [4] It revived interest in the bolero genre and was the first record by a Spanish-speaking artist to be certified gold in Brazil, Taiwan, and the United States. [4] In spite of the album's success, Miguel did not want to release a follow-up record that was similar to Romance. [5] When asked why he chose not to record more boleros, he replied "I wanted to try my music, just forgetting a little bit about those boleros that everyone knows". [6] He began working with the composers for the album a year before recording in a studio in 1992; in Miguel's words, he wanted to "discuss the works, the themes, and melodies; ... The creation of an album has to be part of me or else I would not be able to interpret it, or sing in it". [7]
On 24 August 1992, Mexican newspaper El Siglo de Torreón reported that Miguel had begun collaborating with David Foster and Juan Carlos Calderón on some compositions, along with English-speaking composers, and selecting cover versions for the album. [8] He also received assistance from Cuban composer Rudy Pérez and Dominican singer-songwriter Juan Luis Guerra with the songwriting. [7] Recording began on 4 July 1992. [9] Miguel had difficulty finding a suitable producer for the record; he initially worked with American audio engineer Bruce Swedien, but decided to re-record the whole album after disagreements with Swedien's direction. Unable to find a producer, he decided to co-produce the album with his long-time associate Kiko Cibrian. [6] Recording the album took almost a year and was affected by several complications, including its high budget of over US$1.5 million, his father's death, and an appendectomy. [5] Miguel announced that the name of the album would be Aries during a presentation at the 1993 Festival Acapulco. [10] About the naming of the album he said, "This album expresses my personal self. I had a lot to do. I produced everything and wanted to have a lot of fun, take what I like, and what better than the zodiac sign representing what one is." [11]
Aries is composed of ten tracks, six of which are romantic ballads. [12] The remaining four songs are dance numbers which San Antonio Express-News editor Ramiro Burr describes as containing a "pop groove" and R&B influences, further comparing them to Miguel's earlier recordings before Romance. [5] [13] Miguel said the mixture of ballads and uptempo music was done to "keep a steady musical line" because he did not want his music to be unrecognizable. [6] The dance tunes "Suave", "Dame Tu Amor", and "Que Nivel de Mujer" are "upbeat, brass-heavy, attitudinal numbers" while "Luz Verde" incorporates Latin hip hop and R&B. [12] "Suave" features a saxophone solo by American musician Kirk Whalum and "Que Nivel de Mujer" is a Spanish-language adaptation of "Attitude Dance" by American band Tower of Power. The band members assisted with the horn section in the song, which was led by one of its lead members Emilio Castillo. [7] Miguel said he included the band's song on the album because of his fondness for R&B in the 1970s, citing the group as one of his musical influences. [6]
"Ayer" is a Spanish-language cover of David Foster's instrumental "All That My Heart Can Hold" with additional lyrics by Rudy Pérez. [5] [14] Burr characterized the song as a "lush ballad sung by Miguel in his stylistic romantic swagger that simultaneously conveys pride and pain". [15] Similarly, John Lannert wrote for the Sun-Sentinel that the track was comparable to Romance's "sparse lyrical muse and smooth musical backdrop". [13] Lannert also called Juan Luis Guerra's composition "Hasta Que Me Olvides" an "emotion-drenched love ode" and referred to "Me Niego Estar Solo" and "Hasta El Fin" as "desperate confessionals about being out of love". [16] Achy Obejas of the Chicago Tribune labeled the ballads "Hasta El Fin" and "Tú y Yo" as "luxuriantly slow narratives of love lost". [17]
"Ayer" was released as the lead single from Aries on 17 May 1993. [18] It reached number one on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart in the United States the week of 17 July 1993, and stayed there for three weeks. [19] The three music videos for "Ayer" were directed by Benny Corral, Rubén Galindo, and Gustavo Garzón respectively. [20] The music videos were filmed in a mansion in Mexico City. [21] "Ayer" ended 1993 as the sixth-best-performing Latin song of the year in the US. [22] The album's second single, "Hasta Que Me Olvides", was released in August 1993 and reached number one on the Hot Latin Songs chart the week of October 23, and remained there for three weeks. [23] [19] The album's third single, "Suave", was released in 1993 and peaked at number nine on the Hot Latin Songs chart. [24] [25] Its music video was directed by Kiko Guerrero and features Miguel dancing with several women on a beach. [26] [27] "Hasta el Fin" and "Tú y Yo" were released as promotional singles in the US and both peaked at number four on the Hot Latin Songs chart. [25] [28] "Pensar en Ti" received airplay in Mexico, [29] while "Me Niego a Estar Solo" was released as a promotional single in Spain in 1993. [30]
To promote the album, Miguel began his Aries Tour on 29 May at the 1993 Acapulco Festival in Mexico. [31] After his performances in Mexico, he toured several countries in Latin America beginning with Argentina, and later performed in the US. [32] His set list consisted mainly of pop songs and ballads from Aries and his earlier career, as well as boleros from Romance, which he performed during the second half of the concerts. [33]
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [12] |
Chicago Tribune | [17] |
Los Angeles Times | [34] |
Upon its release, Aries received mixed reactions from music critics. AllMusic editor Jose F. Promis gave the album two-and-a-half stars out of five and found the ballads to be "sometimes a little too syrupy". He complimented some of the dance tunes such as "Suave" and "Dame Tu Amor", but said "Luz Verde" was a "somewhat dated attempt at early-'90s Latin hip-hop R&B". [12] A music journalist for Billboard magazine wrote a favorable review of Aries, stating that Miguel "trades in nostalgic boleros for a stylish, up-to-date package" and called "Ayer" a "perfect transition track from Romance". [35] Chicago Tribune music critic Achy Obejas gave the record two-and-a-half stars out of four, calling it "a kind of middle ground between Romance and its lush ballads, and the bouncy pop of 20 Años, its immediate antecedent". She praised Miguel's vocals as "wonderfully nuanced and dramatic", and said the ballads mostly "work", but that "the uptempo tunes fall flat most of the time". [17] Enrique Lopetegui of the Los Angeles Times gave the album three stars out of four; he lauded Miguel's inclusion of "healthy elements of jazz and funk into his polished sound" and said he "returns to familiar territory accompanied by his usual superb arrangements and musicianship". [34]
At the 36th Annual Grammy Awards in 1994, Miguel won the Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop Album for Aries. [36] At the 6th Lo Nuestro Awards in the same year, the album won the award for Pop Album of the Year and Miguel was named Pop Male Artist of the Year. [37] He also received two nominations in the category of Pop Song of the Year for "Hasta Que Me Olvides" and "Ayer"; the latter track was also nominated Video of the Year. [38] At the inaugural Billboard Latin Music Awards in 1994, Miguel received two awards including Pop Album of the Year and Pop Male Artist of the Year. [39] Miguel was awarded Best Male Singer, Best Male Show for the tour, and Best Disc for the album at the 1994 Eres awards. [40]
Aries was released internationally on 22 June 1993, [15] although pirated cassettes of the album were being sold for $1 in Mexico ten days before the official release. [6] WEA Latina prepared 500,000 copies to be distributed on the release date, but after finding legitimate copies of the compact disc were already being sold on the pirate market, they discovered only 300,000 units stored in their warehouse. WEA Latina responded to the piracy by having a Mexican radio station play the whole album a few days before its release. [41] In Mexico, the album was certified quadruple platinum; it has sold over one million copies in the country. [42] In the US, it debuted and peaked at number two on the Billboard Top Latin Albums chart, second to Gloria Estefan's album Mi Tierra . [43] Aries remained in this position until it was replaced by the Gipsy Kings's album Love and Liberté 20 weeks later. [44]
Aries peaked at number one on the Billboard Latin Pop Albums chart and stayed at the top for 19 weeks. [45] It ended 1993 as the second best-selling Latin pop album in the US after Romance. [46] In Argentina, the album peaked at number two on the album chart and was certified diamond by the Argentine Chamber of Phonograms and Videograms Producers for sales of 500,000 copies. [47] [48] Elsewhere in South America, the album peaked at number one on the Chilean albums chart and was certified platinum in Colombia. [49] [50] Aries sold over three million copies worldwide. [51]
All recordings produced by Luis Miguel and Kiko Cibrian, except where noted. [52]
No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Suave" |
| Cibrian | 4:47 | |
2. | "Me Niego a Estar Solo" | Rudy Pérez | Pérez | 4:17 | |
3. | "Luz Verde" |
| Pérez | 4:59 | |
4. | "Hasta el Fin" | Cibrian | Cibrian | 4:49 | |
5. | "Ayer" | Pérez |
| 3:25 | |
6. | "Que Nivel de Mujer" | Castro |
| 4:28 | |
7. | "Pensar en Ti" | Francisco F. Céspedes | Céspedes | 4:15 | |
8. | "Dame Tu Amor" |
| Cibrian | 3:23 | |
9. | "Hasta Que Me Olvides" | Juan Luis Guerra | Guerra | 4:40 | |
10. | "Tú y Yo" | Pérez | Jorge Calandrelli | 4:50 |
Adapted from the Aries liner notes: [53]
The Hollywood String Ensemble(tracks 3, 5, 7–10)
Weekly charts
Monthly charts
| Year-end charts
All-time charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Argentina (CAPIF) [48] | Diamond | 693,162 [60] |
Colombia (ASINCOL) [50] | Platinum | 60,000 [61] |
Chile | — | 200,000 [62] |
Mexico (AMPROFON) [42] | 4× Platinum | 1,000,000 [42] |
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [63] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
Uruguay (CUD) [64] | 3× Platinum | 18,000^ |
Summaries | ||
Worldwide | — | 3,000,000 [51] |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Mexican recording artist Luis Miguel has released 21 studio albums, 30 compilation albums, three extended plays (EP) two live albums, two soundtrack albums and five box set. Luis Miguel has sold over 60 million records, making him one of the best-selling Latin music artists of all time. Luis Miguel is also the artist with the second-most number ones on the Billboard Top Latin Albums chart with nine albums. At the age of 11, he released his debut studio album, Un Sol (1982), which was certified platinum and gold in Mexico. The artist would release four more studio albums under the record label EMI: Directo al Corazón (1982), Decídete (1983), También es Rock (1984), and Palabra de Honor (1984). A Portuguese-language version of Decídete and Palabra de Honor were released in Brazil as Decide Amor and Meu Sonho Perdido, respectively. Luis Miguel made his acting debut in the film as the lead role on Ya nunca más (1984) and recorded its soundtrack. In 1985, he participated in the Sanremo Music Festival 1985 with the song "Noi ragazzi di oggi"; it placed second in the Big Artist category and was later included on the Italian-language edition of Palabra de Honor. In the same year, Luis Miguel recorded the soundtrack for the film Fiebre de amor, which he co-starred with fellow Mexican singer Lucero.
Romance is the eighth studio album by Mexican singer Luis Miguel. It was released by WEA Latina on 19 November 1991. Although the production was originally intended as another collaboration with Juan Carlos Calderón, that plan was scrapped when Calderón was unable to compose songs for the album. Facing a new-material deadline in his recording contract, at his manager's suggestion Miguel chose bolero music for his next project. Mexican singer-songwriter Armando Manzanero was hired by WEA Latina to co-produce the album with Miguel. Recording began in August 1991 at Ocean Way Recording in Hollywood, California, with Bebu Silvetti the arranger.
Segundo Romance is the tenth studio album by Mexican singer Luis Miguel, released on 30 August 1994 through WEA Latina. Like Luis Miguel's 1991 album Romance, Segundo Romance comprises cover versions of boleros written between 1934 and 1993. It was produced by Luis Miguel with Juan Carlos Calderón, Kiko Cibrian and Armando Manzanero and recorded in early 1994 at the Record Plant in Los Angeles.
"El día que me quieras" is an Argentine tango with music by Carlos Gardel and lyrics by Alfredo Le Pera. It is considered one of the most popular songs of the 20th century and one of the best Latin songs of all time. Originally featured in the 1935 film of the same name, sung by Gardel himself, it became a heavily recorded tango standard, even by artists outside of the realm of tango. It has subsequently been covered by various artists such as Luis Miguel, Julio Iglesias, Michael Bolton Roberto Carlos, Raphael de España and Shlomo Idov who translated the song to Hebrew. The song was inducted into the Latin Grammy Hall of Fame in 2001. "El día que me quieras" was honored at the 2014 La Musa Awards as "La Canción de Todos los Tiempos". It was among the tango standards selected by Plácido Domingo for his 1981 album Plácido Domingo Sings Tangos. In addition to Domingo, the song has been covered by operatic tenors including José Carreras, Juan Diego Florez, Christian Ketter, and Alfredo Kraus.
Nada Es Igual is the eleventh studio album by Mexican recording artist Luis Miguel. It was released by WEA Latina on 20 August 1996. The album has a musical style similar to his previous pop album Aries (1993) on which Miguel performs power ballads and R&B tunes. Recording took place at the Record Plant Studios in February 1996, with production handled by Miguel and his longtime associate Kiko Cibrian. Its songwriting was assisted by Cibrian, Rudy Pérez, and Alejandro Lerner. The album was promoted by three singles: "Dame", "Cómo Es Posible Que a Mi Lado", and "Que Tú Te Vas"; the former became the most successful single reaching number two and number one on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs and Latin Pop Songs charts, respectively. To further promote the recording, Miguel launched the Tour America 1996 where he performed in several South American countries.
20 Años is the seventh studio album recorded by Mexican singer Luis Miguel, It was released by WEA Latina on May 18, 1990. The album was produced by Spanish singer-songwriter, composer and record producer Juan Carlos Calderón, who had worked on the two previous albums by Luis Miguel, and was a massive success across Latin-America, Spain, and with Hispanic listeners in the United States. A large majority of the tracks from the album received radio airplay, but the songs officially issued as singles were "Tengo Todo Excepto A Tí", "Entrégate", "Amante del amor", "Hoy el aire huele a ti", "Más allá de todo" and "Será que no me amas".
América & en Vivo is a live extended play (EP) by Mexican singer Luis Miguel. It was released on 25 September 1992 by WEA Latina. The EP consists of three live versions of "Inolvidable", No Sé Tú", and "Contigo en la Distancia" from his performance at the National Auditorium in Mexico during his Romance Tour on June 26, 1992, as well as a new track "America, America", originally performed by Nino Bravo. "America, America" was released as a single and peaked at number 20 on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart. The EP was rated three out of five stars by an editor on AllMusic and received a positive review from Mario Taradell of the Miami Herald, who praised his vocals and the production of the EP. América & En Vivo peaked at number 12 on the Billboard Latin Pop Albums chart and was certified platinum in Argentina by the Argentine Chamber of Phonograms and Videograms Producers (CAPIF).
El Concierto is the second live album by Mexican recording artist Luis Miguel, released on 17 October 1995 by WEA Latina. It was recorded from his performances at the National Auditorium in Mexico and at the José Amalfitani Stadium in 1994 during his Segundo Romance Tour. The album features live covers of José Alfredo Jiménez's songs, which were previously unreleased. The first two songs were released as singles, the former reaching number one on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart and the latter peaking at number three on the same chart.
The Romances Tour was a concert tour performed by Luis Miguel during the years 1997 and 1998 to promote his new album Romances. To present this album, two press conferences were held, one at the Rainbow Room in New York City and another at the Casino de Madrid, Spain.
"Tengo Todo Excepto a Ti" is a song written, produced, and arranged by Juan Carlos Calderón, and performed by Mexican singer Luis Miguel. It was released as the lead single from his studio album 20 Años (1990). It reached the number one position all over Ibero-America, became his fourth number-one single in the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart after "Ahora Te Puedes Marchar", "La Incondicional" and "Fría Como el Viento" and was nominated for Pop Song of the Year at the Lo Nuestro Awards. The parent album peaked at number two in the Latin Pop Albums chart and sold more than 600,000 copies in its first week of release.
The El Concierto Tour was a concert tour performed by Luis Miguel, to further promote the album El Concierto which began on September 15, 1995, at the Circus Maximus Showroom in Las Vegas, Nevada and performed across several cities in the United States, Puerto Rico, Mexico and Venezuela. In November 19, Luis Miguel did a special appearance in Sinatra: 80 Years My Way, a television special celebrating Frank Sinatra's 80th birthday, which was held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, performing the song "Come Fly with Me".
The Segundo Romance Tour was a concert tour performed by Luis Miguel during the last part of 1994 to promote his last album. He began the tour in Mexico before the official release of Segundo Romance, performing the new songs of the album on the 16 sold-out concerts at the National Auditorium in Mexico City.
"América América" is a song written by José Luis Armenteros and Pablo Herrero and performed by Spanish performer Nino Bravo. It was released as a single for his fifth studio album y volumen 5 (1973). The song reached number one on the Spanish Singles Chart in 1973. In 2013, the song was inducted into the Latin Grammy Hall of Fame.
"Hasta Que Me Olvides" is a song by Mexican singer Luis Miguel from his ninth studio album, Aries (1993). The song was composed by Dominican Republic singer-songwriter Juan Luis Guerra with Miguel and Kiko Cibrian handling the production. It was released as the album's second single in August 1993 by WEA Latina. A sentimental ballad, the song narrates the protagonist who insists on loving his partner until he is forgotten.
"Suave" (transl. "Smooth") is a song by Mexican singer Luis Miguel from his ninth studio album, Aries (1993). The song was composed by Kiko Cibrian and Orlando Castro with the former handling its production along with the artist. It is a dance number in which the singer describes a woman who bewitches him and becomes the woman of his dreams. The song received positive reactions from two music critics. It was acknowledged as an award-winning song at the 1995 Broadcast Music Inc. (BMI) Latin Awards. Commercially, the song reached number nine on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart in the United States. Its music video was directed by Kiko Guerrero and filmed in Acapulco, Mexico, and features Miguel dancing in a beach with several women.
The Aries Tour was launched by Luis Miguel to some United States and Latin American countries to promote his album Aries. It began on 6 May 1993, in Guadalajara and ended on 24 July 1994, in Costa Rica.
"La Media Vuelta" is a song written and performed by Mexican singer José Alfredo Jiménez released in 1963. One of Jiménez' most famous compositions, the song has become part of the traditional Mexican musical repertoire, and has been recorded by dozens of singers and groups.
"Todo y Nada" is a song written and performed by Mexican singer Vicente Garrido Calderón released in 1957 and originally recorded by Los Tres Ases and Lucho Gatica. It was covered by Mexican singer Luis Miguel on his album Segundo Romance (1994) where it was released as the third single from the album in 1995 and reached number three on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs and number one on the Latin Pop Airplay charts, becoming his third number-one song on the latter chart. "Todo y Nada" became Miguel's third consecutive number-one song from Segundo Romance in Mexico; and became a top-five hit in Chile, Panama and Puerto Rico.
"Ayer" (transl. "Yesterday") is a song by Mexican singer Luis Miguel from his ninth studio album, Aries (1993). Miguel and Kiko Cibrian handled the song's production. It was released as the album's lead single on 17 May 1993 by WEA Latina. It is a Spanish-language adaptation of David Foster's instrumental "All That My Heart Can Hold" with lyrics written by Rudy Pérez. A sentimental ballad, the song conveys the singer's pride and pain of his frustrated dreams. Three music videos for the song were filmed at the Longoria Mansion in Mexico City and were nominated for Video of the Year at the Premio Lo Nuestro 1994. The ballad received positive reactions from music critics who favorably compared it to the ballads of his previous studio album, Romance (1991).
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: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)Este disco expresa mi forma muy personal. Tuve mucho que ver en todo. Lo produje totalmente y quise divertirme mucho, sacar lo que a mi me gusta y, entonces qué mejor que el signo zodiacal que representa lo que uno es.
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