International music reviews

Tras la entrada de Alejandro Marcovich a la banda, Caifanes graba su segundo material discografico titulado "Volumen 2" o "El Diablito". Con este disco Caifanes se consagra en la escena del rock nacional y asi comienza su internacionalizacion.

Incluye grandes clasicos de la banda como "La Celula Que Explota", "Los Dioses Ocultos" y "Detras de ti". Piezas interesantes son: "Amarrate" y "De noche todos los gatos son pardos".

Canciones recomendadas: Antes de que nos olviden y Aqui No Pasa Nada.

Este disco es sin duda el disco de Caifanes que mas refleja lo que es ser mexicano y latino americano. "Aqui No Pasa Nada" es el mejor ejemplo porque muchas vaces en nuestros paises los gobiernos nos quieren tener como idiotas. Si te sientes con ganas de escuchar algo que te va a hacer sentia alegria, decepcion, esperanza, amor, u odio, este es el disco para ti.

This album is without a doubt the one in which Caifanes reflects what it means to be Mexican and Latin American. "Aqui No Pada Nada" is the best example of this because many times we feel that our governments are trying to hide the truth from us. If you want to feel joy, deception, hope, love, or hate, this is the album for you.

antes del movimiento del "rock en tu idioma", la mayoria de los actos de este eran malas copias de rock extranjero, no existia una identidad propia. Aparte de que el rock fue betado o mas bien ignorado por los medios de communicacion mexicanos por muchos a�os(en este caso TELEVISA) gracias a un incidente en el primer y ultimo evento masivo de rock en mexico tipo "woodstock" organizado por Luis de Llano, las disqueras no mostraban interes en el genero y hubo poco apoyo para este. incluso existe un anecdota en el que un ejecutivo de una disquera, cuando se le mostro el material de los primeros demos de los caifas (antes "las insolitas imagenes de aurora") dijo"aqui vendemos musica no ataudes" rechazando asi uno si el mejor de los futuros exponentes del rock en espa�ol.
paso el tiempo y los Caifanes seguian activos haciendo presentaciones con otros grupos (entre ellos La Maldita Vecindad y Los Hijos del Quinto Patio, Fobia, Los amantes de lola, entre otros) llevando al publico este sonido nacido en las calles de Mexico.
El primer disco de Caifanes fue de un presupuesto muy limitado. aunque con un sonido "new waver" tenia una calidad que lo identificaba como mexicano, poco comun en su tiempo. encuanto composicion de letra, Saul Hernandez hizo mucho uso de la metafora tambien poco comun en ese tiempo cuando la mayoria de los grupos eran mas directos en cuanto a lirica se refiere, Y aun asi la juventud mexicana se identifico profundamente con las tematicas exploradas en los temas del disco.
Para hacer la historia corta el segundo disco Vol. 2 conocido como el diablito (el tercero si se cuenta el EP de la negra tomasa) es el apice de las obras de Caifanes, y yo creo que muchos estaran de acuerdo conmigo, es la mejor representativa de esa era y ese sonido que le dio a mexico una identidad propia en este genero.

p.d. los veteranos del Tri se aprovecharon del movimiento nombrandose la leyenda del rock en espa�ol por sus largos a�os de ruido bluesero con la voz aguardientosa de Alejandro Lora. Y aunque Mana, una copia cursi de Police nunca verdaderamente fue aceptado por los rockeros mexicanos, ahora se hacen llamar el "mejor grupo de rock en mexico", muchos estaran de acuerdo que Caifanes es el grupo mas original y mas representativo del "Rock en tu Idioma", comoun dia dijo Saul..."no es el mejor el que mas vende, ni es el que mas vende el mejor".

Entre A Mi Mundo is a great album.I can't stop listening to it.Especially Como La Flor(Selena's signature song).La Characha is another favorite,along with Las Cadenas,Missing My Baby,and Amane.....Selena a true artist and her memory will never die..she will live on through her music.....Gracias Selena!

This Album Entre A Mi Mundo was released in 1992 and it was Selena's best album ever.The Tracks Here Are:
Si La Quieres
Como La Flor
Yo Te Sigo Quieriendo
Que Creias
Las Cadenas
Vuelve A Mi
La Carcacha
Siempre Estoy Pensado En Ti
Missing My Baby
Amame

This Album is very Grrrreat.

In 1992 Selena released Entre En Mi Mundo {Welcome To My World in English} that became so popular with Selena fans all over the world not because of great selling standards but was the first Selena album to have "Los Dinos" disappear from the album cover. The album starts with the Mariachi styled Si La Quieras which by the way is a tipical Mariachi song that is real Selena. Como La Flor will always be a Selena classic and is featured here in it's original version. Track three is a cumbia styled track which is oh so flavorful. Que Creias is a lovely ranchera styled track which you can really actually hear Selena's voice in her highest register. A shorter version can be heard on the 12 Super Exitos cd. Las Cadenas is a fun song which was Selena's biggest hit from this album and is also on the earlier mentioned 12 Super Exitos cd. But the highlight song is Missing My Baby in it's original version. This song was rereleased as a single one year after her farewell. The only song I think should've been a single is Amame now that song is one of Selena's real dance singles. Amame to me is a good song but truth is harkens to sound like a Selena version of Karyn White's song Secret Rendezvous in Spanish. But other than that flaw a simply GREAT Selena album. ...
Hope this review Helps,
HOTSEAT

This album has alot of great songs. Most of the are just fun, and then you have your hits, like "mirame a los ojos" and "aunque muera por ti" witch really shine. But the current pop scene has left these songs behind with more digital sounds, but this is still a great album that will make you happy and bob your head a bit.

Vaselina Onda is absolutely the best all around Love and Dance music I,ve heard to date. Very Uplifting Album

You don't have to be a native Spanish speaker to have fun dancing and listening to this album's fun and danceable rock tunes and disco tunes. I really like "Un Pie Tras Otro Pie." Good album.

Este disco es muy bueno! Tu bailas y tienes muy feliz! Me gusto mucho!

Well. I have the CD's and is great, Specially I love the song El destino, and Me refugie en tu Juventud, I will give anything to see rocio sing that song. But I have a question How and where can I buy the VHS of this concert of Juntos otra vez. I will really be happy to get it. It will really make my day. I being looking for it but I couldn't find it. Excelent Cd.

This fabulous double CD captures a magical reunion of Juan Gabriel and Rocio Durcal, a performance from June 24, 1999 at Teatro Degalado de Guadalajara Jalisco. And the ONLY thing BETTER is to see the performance available on VHS. It, too, is just too wonderful!

It's no wonder these two have done so well, and to reunite combining their voices again, for an historic night to remember is magical! Superstar, songwriter Juan Gabriel performs with the beautiful velvety voice of Rocio Durcal. No one can ever sound like Juan Gabriel; it must be that nasal throaty sound that only he projects. His partner again, Rocio Durcal also has an enjoyed a career in movies and in 1977 she recorded 10 compositions written by Juan Gabriel, as he was her influence. So beautiful is their duet hit "El Destino" (The Destiny.) It is a soothing love ballad brilliantly composed by Gabriel.

Enjoy the musical exuberance of "Mariachi Vargas" and "Mariachi de Mi Tierra". I have a taste for a variety of musical styles, but nothing can beat the sounds of mariachi! Listen to mariachi magic in "El Principio" and "Verdadero Amor." Various slower songs are enhanced with that orchestral ambiance to bring dimension to the music. Hear the calming instrumental "El Final". The duets "Juntos" and "Que Bonito Es Santa Fe" are both lively and danceable favorites.

Gabriel and Durcal exude this emotional chemistry when they duet on a love song "Dos Favores". This double CD offers a variety of their solos and duets! But, what is better is the VHS performance, go one step beyond and see the magic. I can't ever get tired of either. .....MzRizz

This was a very great collection of songs put together.

I bought this disc mainly on the strength of Metts�n Tytto, which I heard on the Nordic Roots Music Sampler CD. Also, I felt that their "best of" album (which is a good starting point for new fans) was woefully lacking in tracks from this album. I wondered if Karelia Visa was worth the effort. But thankfully I took the chance -- I have never been more glad to be wrong.
The songs on this album take the listener on a wonderful nordic trip (along with the liner notes and booklet photos) that is most memorable. From the aforementioned Metts�n Tytto and other upbeat numbers like Mit� Min� and Alkusanat, to the haunting, rootsy atmospheres of Ukkonen and Viima, this album weaves a spell that is hard to resist. Every track is worth hearing. It is probably also the most accessible of the band's albums for newbies, as their earlier albums such as Tr� and Kaksi! are more angular and experimental.
So if you are hesitating whether or not to get this disc, wait no more. This is a great example of nordic folk music -- with a heathen twist of course!

As a child, Finland was an enigma to me.The little impression I did have, suggested it to be quite bland, and the people reserved.As I grew older, the icey lands of our planet's north built in me a sub-conscious awe.Now, its well and truly in my awareness -the cold, the isolation, the constant wind, and the vast intact wilderness.This band introduced me to the people and culture of Finland (And on other albums, Sweden).The playfulness of spirit lives well in rural Finland, and this album shows it up well.
Hedningarna are usually quite aggressive, using 'scratchy' and 'drone-like' instruments.The females of the band usually sing like witches (but with perfect pitch).On this album though, all is sweet and pristine.The (acoustic)instruments are clear, and spaced apart.The female singers are playful and child-like.The melodies are quite subtle, but aluring.Hedningarna's other albums feel very Swedish, even in the presence of the Finnish elements.But this one feels like Finland.Apart from the quality of creation, and some tell-tale Hedningarna traits, this album is totally different to anything they've done before.
"Beautiful culture plays here."

Firstly, let's quell the rumor that Hedningarna is mere "world music". Sure, their tunes are based largely on traditional Scandinavian folk music. But Hedningarna takes those songs to an entirely different --and entirely modern-- level. New-agey types who get off on sanitized world muzakky note-stringing (of whatever pseudo-ethnic stripe) would be completely put off by these wildly innovative heathens.

The tone ranges from downright demented grunge to soaring flights of quasi-religious ecstasy, usually all within the space of a song. Underpinned by three masterful Swedish multi-instrumentalists, the two Finnish women vocalists take the listener on a tour of heaven, hell, and everything in between. The vocalists are really the icing on the cake, sometimes sounding like nothing so much as blood-drunk harpies circling a fresh kill, sometimes like God's private chorus. Dissonance and consonance are likewise blended into an unpredictable --but always delightful-- mix.

In terms of accessibility, this particular Hedningarna album may prove more accessible than their others. Having said that, if you're intrigued by Karelia Visa but can't find it, don't hesitate to try Tra, Kaksi and Fire (for a more rock/punk sound), or Hippjokk (for a club mix-like sound). Their first album, Hedningarna, I'll leave for the world music purists.

I'm tempted to recommend this for everyone, but it will probably only appeal to the musically intrepid. But to the courageous go the greater rewards, an aphorism that certainly applies here.

One of my all-time favorites.

This a great record. I've owned it since it first came out on LP more than thirty years ago. Message to WEA: Do us all a favor and issue the CD in this country. Its one of the best recordings of its time and sounds as good as ever.

I saw Linda in a club in Denver Colorado. She was wearing a dress made out of ...I think it was mylar. We sat and talked to her about her group (Black Russian), her time with David Bowie and her current love, a chubby ex-russian marine. I haven't seen her since, so this album was really sort of a reunion. Sometimes when I am lonely or sad I'll buy one of those balloons that says "happy birthday" or "congratulations" and put on the album and life is all right.
Thanks Linda. XXX OOO

Hi I am Linda's Brother and it's great to see all the rave reveiws about Linda's work. She is currently recording new material (and believe me it sounds great) Currently living in Surrey (UK) and doing fine. I think Lark is one of her best recordings. Check out the Web site (...)

"This product utilizes the latest brain research techniques and offers opportunities for interactive and cross-over techniques throughout the entire CD. I really enjoy using it in my workshops and children's story hours." Lisa Hoover, Educational Consultant and Children's Librarian

Some parents worry if a child is slow to show language recognition or skills. These books and the music teach how to encourage your baby to make early sounds, even before words are expected. The concept she describes is easy to learn and will give any baby a fast track to language skills. Alan Caruba, Bookviews.com

"Mark and Laura Dyer have come up with a 20 song collection of speech enhancing musical selections for infants and toddlers. This is a great way for moms, dads, and kids to have some good quality time for learning and having fun. Laura Dyer, a speech-language pathologist with a master's degree in communication disorders, provides a helpful guidebook on how to utilize each song as an educational device. The book also offers helpful hints and answers to the questions many parents may have about their child's speech and language development...
Reviewed by Katie Hoffmaster...

I grew up listenning to La Fania thanks to my older brother....at first i thought it was music for people of bad deeds...then i started to listen to the lirycs when Hector was singing and i realized this man was for real,ever since then i have been a big fan of him....i saw him 3 times in New York ,once after his accident at the Club Broadway and he was joking like nothing had happened.I guess all his life he told his life story through his music
He ,Hector,was trully the last of the soneros...there is no one out there that can sing with that style,Ruben is an intellectual, Hector is EL BARRIO
For those who do not know him...check him out and compare him to the pretty "salsa"boys that are out there earning bucks through comercials and not talent
Before Hector there were many good ones...but after him...
he was the very last of that school
LIKE HIM NO ONE ELSE EVER!!!

Que puedo decir, cresi escuchando este se?or al principio no me gustava para nada,hasta que un dia la vida me ense?o a ver atravez los ojos que vei hector lavor no soy sabio ni soy experto de la salsa .. solo soy uno mas de aquellos como hector lavoe.dicen que fue el cantante de los cantante pero para mi fue solo el mejor( the bestone entre muchos buenos. y cuidado que el nos escucha.

HECOTR IS NOT ONLY "EL CANTANTE DE LOS CANTANTES", IT IS THROUGH HIM THAT SALSA HAS BECOME WHAT IT IS TODAY. SO MANY ARTIST SHOULD PAGE HOMAGE TO THIS MAN, FOR IT WAS HIM THAT INSPIRED MANY. I CAN ONLY DREAM OF STARTING A SALSA BAND AND PLAYING THE CONGAS, BUT FOR NOW I AM HAPPY ENOUGH WITH PLAYING ALONG TO ALL MY FAVORITE HECTOR LAVOE SONGS, WHICH IS LIKE ALL OF THEM. IF YOU WANT TO HEAR TRUE SALSA, THERES ONLY ONE....HECOTR LAVOE. THE GREATEST SALSERO! I AM TO YOUNG TO SAY THAT I HAVE SEEN HIM OR EVEN HEARD HIM LIVE, BUT WHEN I FIRST PICKED UP ONE MY FATHERS OLD SALSA ALBUMS, I WAS HOOKED. SINCE THEN I NEVER STOPPED LISTENING. HE LIVES ON, AND ALWAYS WILL BE CANTANTE DE LOS CANTANTES! WEEEEPAAAAAAAAA!

Living Proof is her best cd yet! But the Japanese version is so much better, it also has two songs on it that the US version didnt and those songs are..."the look" which is a HOT song, I LOVE IT!!! And the other one is, "you take it all" which is also another awesome song! I have both the US version and the japanese version and i highly recommend the Japanese version, it has better vocals and its just AWESOME!! The only thing is, is that the Jap version doesnt have the song on it called "when you walk away" but its on the US version! I guess either way you cant go wrong! She is indeed LIVING PROOF! LOVE YA CHER!

If you want the best quality of CHER?s greatest album living proof, you have to buy this japanese edition.
there?s a better quiality in music and vocal fx?s than the U.S.A, Germany, M?xico, Singapore and Istambul editions.
This edition is a gold item to my cher?s cd collection (80 cd?s).
(I want more).

I really would have not thought of Cher being able to surpass herself with this release.
But if you like BELIEVE, then you will most certainly be falling in love with LIVING PROOF.
She is sticking to the dance formula, but this time around she's not just having Metro on board supervising the album (although they appear to b the exec producers).
You can hear their influences in two very dissimilar tracks: both the European leading single THE MUSIC'S NO GOOD WITHOUT YOU (plain dancefloor-oriented) and the American one A SONG FOR THE LONELY (more electric guitars, reminds me a bit of a remixed U2 song).
Their best effort comes through in LOVE IS A LONELY PLACE WITHOUT YOU...it's very emotional, very deep meaning - it was the song playing in my head as Sakis and I said goodbye for the last time in December 2001.
But then she also has some great fun with Chicane (ALIVE AGAIN)and Tony Moran (BODY TO BODY, written by Diane Warren, but probably the weakest track off the whole album...).
A LOVE SO HIGH and WHEN THE MONEY'S GONE are written and produced by Bruce Roberts, and bring back some good old pop.
Stargate-produced/written A DIFFERENT KIND OF LOVE SONG is made for the discos of the world...
And the Japanese version i own has an extra track called THE LOOK: it is not the cover of Roxette's hit, but a brand new composition by Metro, that borders a lot towards Latino influenced tracks (got the feeling this must have been written with Ricky Martin or Enrique Iglesias in mind as performers, and then later changed to Cher).
The lady will be knocking you off your feet once again...i am so excited to see what she will come up with next!

in 1974 i was lying on a beach in rio de janeiro. missing the U.S.(america!), when on my little transistor came a song that blew my mind. it was RAINBOW SONG and to this day its still one of my all-time favorite songs. tom scott's saxophone at the end is truly amazing. it wails. upon arriving back to this wonderful country i bought the album, it was my first america album. although i quickly filled out my collection with their first two and subsequent more pop hooked albums this one stands as a special one. it captures the desert and a western loneliness in sequenced splendor. their MUSKRAT LOVE is the only one i can stomach and WINDWAVE is america at their most beatle-esque. in my opinion, their third was a charm.

Not much to add to what has already been said. It's just quite amazing that they self-produced this gem. There is some delicious production here. Perhaps they didn't need George Martin to come in at all the following year.

Do not be too judgemental about "Muskrat Love" - just because C&T made it a mega-hit later on. Listen to it again with an open mind. It's a lovely arrangement too. I'm curious about its inclusion though. Did Warner's need to promote a potential radio hit? It's the only song not written by the boys, but they do make it 'theirs' (not unlike "Head and Heart" from the previous album).

It saddens me that this effort has not had the commercial success it deserved. There's not a bad tune on this record (just as their two previous albums). Later on, like during the declining years from 1976 and on their was quite a bit more "filler" material. But if you're a fan like me, you will explore some great songs from the forgotten later years.

My only recommendation is that this material gets remastered. The sound is overall fine and the ear adjusts to the close balance, but it needs just a hint of more air around the sound like wonderfully sounding "Homecoming" album - especially with all of this incredible production. Overall, Not bad at all for a simple guitar-based band. Not bad indeed!

(By the way, on a final note, I have burned car copies from the store bought CD's. Homecoming and Hat Trick fit nice and snuggily together on to one CD, as well as Holiday and Hearts - AND - Hideaway with Harbor. Give it a shot for yourself!)

When I first purchased this album in 1974, it was more out of curiousity than any real expeactation that the songs would grab my attention in the same manner as the first two America LPs did. Of course, I was a child of the 1970's AM music period and my musical tastes were shallow and driven by the repetitive sound of the 3 minute single.

It is only in the last 5 years that I have come to realize, based on my evolving musical tastes, that this is easily the most accomplished and fully layered CD that America produced. Yes, Muskrat Love is a throwaway song, which the Captain & Tennille turned into AM hit several years later. But the fact that Dewey, Dan and Gerry had the moxie to self produce a record that features a nearly 9 minute "Hat Trick" offering ala the Beatles side 2 of Abbey Road, shows the group's yearning to be more than a singles artist. There are several polished pieces on this disc, most notably Dewey's Rainbow Song and Wind Wave, Gerry's Submarine Ladies and She's Gonna Let you Down and Dan's It's Life as well as his opening 2 minute offering from Hat Trick. Some of the songs cover the same ground as the first 2 releases, and the lyrics can sometimes by simple, even underwhelming, however the group stretches itself here as they never would again, as many of these songs attempt in the studio what the band could never perform on stage. I would venture that this record's tag is - the whole is better than the sum of the parts. It is only after repeated listenings that the ambiance, mood and individual and collective influences grab hold and you find yourself replaying snippets of the music in your mind at the most unpredictable and spontaneous moments.

After producing the first 2 discs in 1972, this offering was not released until the end of 1973, nearly a year after Homecoming. Given what I have read about their rather laid back working pace, it is not surprising, as they have said that George Martin put them on a schedule when he began to produce the group in 1974. I am thankful he was not involved in this production as the final product would have been different from what it is today.

Although Hat Trick may not be ground breaking in the scheme of rock records, it stands the test of time as a ground breaking 40 minutes for America.

A commercial disappointment, this collection of songs bears up well under the scrutiny of time. It would have made for an interesting change of career direction, if the record had been a success on the charts. Unfortunately, we will never know the outcome, given the course of history.