Genre
Salsa and bolero. The album marks a deliberate return to Blades's Panamanian roots, presenting sixteen tracks performed exclusively by Panamanian musicians under the direction of Panamanian bandleader Roberto Delgado. The programme ranges from salsa dura to romantic bolero, including a setting of verses from the pre-Columbian Mayan text Chilam Balam and a closing cover of Uruguayan composer Jaime Roos's "Amándote."
Release
Released in 1996 by Sony Tropical, distributed by Sony Music Entertainment. It was the first album Blades recorded with Roberto Delgado's orchestra, inaugurating a long-running collaboration that would continue into the 2020s.
Production
Produced by Roberto Delgado, who also played bass and contributed backing vocals throughout. The ensemble comprised Dino Nugent on piano, Samuel Vallejos on drums, George De León on timbales and percussion, Óscar Cruz on congas, Reynaldo Cruz on bongos, Juan Carlos López on trumpet, Marco Linares on guitar, and Guillermo Franco on percussion on selected tracks.
Reception
The album was welcomed as a significant return to form and a demonstration of Blades's continued vitality as both an interpreter and a songwriter - arriving two years after his unsuccessful presidential campaign in Panama - and contributed to the momentum that led to his Grammy-winning album Tiempos (1999).
Rubén Blades
Rubén Blades Bellido de Luna (born July 16, 1948, Panama City, Panama) is a Panamanian salsa singer, songwriter, actor, musician, and politician, widely regarded as one of the most important figures in the history of Latin music. He studied law at the University of Panama and later obtained a Master's degree in International Law from Harvard University. After arriving in New York in 1974 and working in Fania Records' mail room, he began recording with Willie Colón, producing the landmark albums "Metiendo Mano!" (1977) and "Siembra" (1978) - the best-selling salsa album in history. As a lyricist, he brought the political sophistication of "nueva trova" and "nueva canción" to "salsa", creating what critics described as thinking people's dance music. His acting career has encompassed roles in more than thirty films. In 1994 he ran for president of Panama, finishing second. He served as Panama's Minister of Tourism from 2004 to 2009. His accolades include nine Grammy Awards, a Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, an honorary Doctor of Music from Yale, and induction into the International Latin Music Hall of Fame.
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