Article published April 21, 2002
Julio's universal appeal
Spanish pop star Iglesias performs at the Stranahan Theater
By AVID YONKE
BLADE STAFF WRITER
The 58-year-old singer earned a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records for selling more records in more languages (seven) than any other musical artist.
|
Julio Iglesias is widely considered one of the biggest stars in Latin music. The charismatic singer from Spain, however, begs to differ with the terminology.
"I don't know what `Latin music' means," said Iglesias, who will be in concert Friday night at the Stranahan Theater. "Latin music for me is cha cha cha, tango, mambo. Latin music for me is Tito Puento, Jorge Gilberto. Ask your mother or father what Latin music is and they will say salsa, cha cha cha."
Those distinct musical styles were created within specific Latin cultures, he said. They reflected the lifestyles and the traditions of particular countries or regions. "The sense of the music is there always, it's a culture," he said from his adopted hometown of Miami. "It's not a thing that is in or out of style."
The new wave of Latin stars who have been topping the U.S. charts have broader pallets and more brushes to work with. They take bits and pieces of Latin music and merge it with American pop or European techno or African rhythms.
"I cannot say that Enrique is a Latin artist, he's a universal artist," Iglesias said in reference to his hit-making son. "Ricky Martin, same thing. Enrique, Ricky, Christina [Aguilera], or Jennifer [Lopez] - they have Latino blood but their music is really Anglo-Saxon. They have some Latin rhythms but their language is English."
Blending musical and cultural styles is something that Igelsias has been doing for decades.
The 58-year-old singer earned a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records for selling more records in more languages (seven) than any other musical artist. With his albums topping charts literally around the world, he has amassed an amazing 2,600 gold and platinum-record honors.
Iglesias has recorded with country stars such as Willie Nelson and Dolly Parton, pop legend Frank Sinatra, rock star Sting, and R&B icons Diana Ross and Stevie Wonder.
He has covered Don McLean's folk gem "Vincent," Patsy Cline's country hit "Crazy" (written by Willie Nelson), and Deep Purple's hard-rocking "Smoke on the Water."
Iglesias has been busy lately finishing two albums simultaneously while preparing for a concert tour that includes a trip to Korea at the end of May.
"One album is in Spanish and it's going to be finished in a week. One is in English. It's called `Frontiers'," he said.
"Frontiers" will be Iglesias' first new English-language studio recording in nine years, since "Crazy," and once again he is bridging cultural divides.
"It's melodies of the '70s and '80s from countries like France and Spain, that have no translation in English," he said. "We take these great songs, 20 different songs, and we put English lyrics to the music. They were great hits in their own countries but nobody here knows them."
In 1998, Iglesias released a greatest hits album titled "My Life," which featured 37 songs on two discs. The liner notes offer personal insights into each of the hit songs.
It album opens with "To All the Girls I've Love Before," Iglesias' 1984 duet with Willie Nelson and his first English-language single. It became an international hit and brought Iglesias to the attention of American audiences for the first time.
The singer said he was searching for songs for his English-language debut disc called "1100 Bel Air Place," when songwriters Hal David and Albert Perry played "To All the Girls." for him.
"I instantly liked the melody - the lyrics I didn't really understand at first because my English was so very, very bad then," he said. The song "is so funny and it gets inside your head."
In the liner notes, he calls his duet with Sinatra on the classic ballad "Summer Wind" "the biggest professional mistake of my life."
The reason, he said in the interview, is that he didn't spend enough time recording his part of the duet.
"I was doing `Crazy,' the English album. It was in the last weeks and I was really pushing to finish my own work when [legendary producer] Phil Ramone came along with the idea to do the song with Frank," Iglesias said. "When I came into the studio, I only had two hours. I should have spent two days. I hear that beautiful voice of Frank's in my ear. Sometimes you misunderstand things, and you have regrets."
Regrets, he's had a few, but then again, too few to mention, as Iglesias sang with Paul Anka on their duet of "My Way," the emotional power ballad that Anka wrote for Sinatra.
The son of a physician was a rising soccer star when his sports career was cut short by an automobile accident.
He was a 19-year-old goalkeeper for Real Madrid, one of the premier soccer teams in Europe, when a car crash almost killed him and left him partially paralyzed and unable to walk for nearly two years.
A doctor gave him an old guitar for therapy while he was hospitalized to exercise his fingers and hands. Iglesias discovered a new passion for music and began writing songs and singing.
In 1968, he won a prestigious Spanish song festival with the composition "La Vida Sigue Igual (Life Goes On)." He studied law but his music career ascended rapidly and by 1971 he had sold over a million albums.
Iglesias said the adversity he faced following the accident changed his personality. It taught him lessons about life and also shaped his career, which has thrived on romantic, sensitive ballads.
"I was a sporting, flirty young guy before that. All that pain gave me a sensitivity to everything around me."
He remains an avid soccer fan and plans to catch the first day of action at the World Cup in Korea next month.
Iglesias has seven children, three with his first wife, Isabel, and four with his current girlfriend, Miranda Joahanna Rijnsburger, including twin girls who will celebrate their first birthday on May 1.
glesias will be in concert at 8 p.m. Friday at the Stranahan Theater, 4645 Heatherdowns Blvd. Tickets are $39 and $49 from the box office, 419-381-8851, and all Ticketmaster outlets.
Permanent Link
|
|
 |
|
Search
advertisement
