Tango [Remaster] (CD - 1996)

Personnel: Julio Iglesias (vocals); Abraham Laboriel, Ed Calle, Nestor Marconi, Raul Parentella, Rafael Ferro, Lester Mendez, Grant Geissman, Julio Hernandez, Dan Warner, Lee Levin, Carlos Alberto Corrales Jr., Carlos Alberto Corrales, Tim Devine, Julian Navarro.

Recorded at Criteria Recording Studios, Miami, Florida and A&M Recording Studios, Los Angeles, California.

TANGO was nominated for a 1998 Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop Performance.

On TANGO, the smooth, sensual pop singer beloved by millions abandons his contemporary style in favor of more traditional material. But fear not, Julio fans. The supple rhythms and burning emotions of Argentinian tango accentuate exactly what's appealing about Iglesias, and he proves more than adept at singing it.

Iglesias' emotional commitment to these 12 songs is palpable. He involves himself so completely in every song that one is almost surprised he can walk away from one song to begin the next. "La Cumparsita," "Volver" and "Caminito" all exude the musical sophistication and smoldering passion that have made Iglesias a household name. TANGO is a testament to the breadth and depth of his musical vision.

Arriving in 1996 after several years of alternating English-language adult contemporary pop albums with contemporary Latin pop albums, Tango was a back to basics move of sorts for Julio Iglesias. Back to basics might be stretching it a little, because Iglesias always was a contemporary pop singer, so this was more of a roots move, finding Iglesias tackling 12 of the most famous tangos, many of which date back to the '30s and '40s, if not earlier. If the production did not exactly sound timeless -- it was a contemporary big-budget recording, so it was very clean and polished -- it nevertheless wasn't nearly as slick as his English language records, and the execution of these tangos modernized these classic songs, bringing them to new audiences. Iglesias responded in kind, giving them some of his most passionate performances in years, and the result was one of the highlights of his '90s work. [In 2006, Tango was reissued by Columbia/Legacy in remastered sound with new liner notes.] ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine minimize