Wednesday, September 25, 2013
"Billboard" celebrates Julio's 70th Birthday
Julio Iglesias turns 70 today (Sept. 23), and pop music's archetypal Latin lover is still busy romancing fans around the world.
Julio
Iglesias turns 70 today (Sept. 23), and pop music's archetypal Latin
lover is still busy romancing fans around the world. The first U.S. date
on his current international tour will be at Miami's American Airlines
Arena next February. He goes to Romania next month, and will finish up
the year with concerts in Indonesia and Hong Kong.
Iglesias made this year's Guinness Book of World Records.
Citing sales of 300 million albums in 14 languages, Guinness named him
"the biggest selling Latin artist in the world," including him in the
book for the second time. His albums have sold a total of 5.3 million
copies in the United States, according to Nielsen Soundscan.
While no other U.S. dates have been announced as yet, tickets for Iglesias' Feb. 22 show in Miami are now on sale.
We celebrate Julio's birthday by remembering a few of his most enduring songs:
"La Vida Sigue Igual"
The song that started it all for the former soccer player and law school grad: the then-unknown Iglesias won the 1968 Benidorm International Song Contest with "La Vida Sigue Igual." Here a young -- and barely tan -- Julio sings a live big band arrangement of his first hit, complete with a string section. Without the dramatic synthesized accompaniment that has become his trademark, his easy vocal delivery paired with a shy smile are testament to his early seduction of massive (mostly female) audiences.
The song that started it all for the former soccer player and law school grad: the then-unknown Iglesias won the 1968 Benidorm International Song Contest with "La Vida Sigue Igual." Here a young -- and barely tan -- Julio sings a live big band arrangement of his first hit, complete with a string section. Without the dramatic synthesized accompaniment that has become his trademark, his easy vocal delivery paired with a shy smile are testament to his early seduction of massive (mostly female) audiences.
"Gwendolyne"Catch Julio on the soccer
field in footage of Franco-era Madrid in the intro to this video from
the 1970 Eurovision song contest, his first big TV appearance. Although
the singer finished 4th in the competition, this song about his love
affair at age 20 with a French girl went to no. 1 in Spain.
"Hey"
The title track of Iglesias' 1980 album is perhaps his most memorable song of all time, ushering in the sweeping chords and warbling voice that have defined his career.
The title track of Iglesias' 1980 album is perhaps his most memorable song of all time, ushering in the sweeping chords and warbling voice that have defined his career.
"To All the Girls I've Loved Before"
Willie Nelson's vocals overpowered Julio's in this performance of the hit duet at FarmAid II in Austin in 1986, where the Spaniard's preppy ensemble of double breasted blazer, button down and boat shoes seemed a bit, well, foreign, at the all-American event - even if he was wearing red, white and blue. Despite a struggle with his in-ear monitor, Iglesias smiled through it, seductive as ever.
Willie Nelson's vocals overpowered Julio's in this performance of the hit duet at FarmAid II in Austin in 1986, where the Spaniard's preppy ensemble of double breasted blazer, button down and boat shoes seemed a bit, well, foreign, at the all-American event - even if he was wearing red, white and blue. Despite a struggle with his in-ear monitor, Iglesias smiled through it, seductive as ever.
Saturday, September 7, 2013
"Y Anque Te Haga Calor" Alternate Version (YouTube Video/Song)
An alternate version of "Y Antque Te Haga Calor" from the album "Calor"
(Source: YouTube)
Sunday, September 1, 2013
Julio in Amman
Julio Iglesias’ live performance Thursday at the Amman Citadel confirmed one more time the enduring appeal of Latin romantic tunes; even more so when delivered by a great, charming voice such as his.
The celebrated Spanish crooner had no trouble getting to the hearts of an audience estimated at more than 3,500 — a rather exceptional number at the Citadel.
All elements came nicely together to create a wonderful, most entertaining atmosphere and a delightful evening.
The highly professional accompanying musicians, the three backing vocal singers/dancers, the smart choice of songs and the quality of the sound, all blended naturally with the unique, distinguished voice of the great Iglesias to mesmerise the audience.
Few artists are as effective as Iglesias at singing romantic songs. Suffice it to see the reaction of the female part of the audience; clearly the majority that night.
Singing mainly in Spanish — understandably the language that suits him best — but also very well in English and by moments in French or Italian, Iglesias sailed with ease and genuine grace from “Amor” to “A medialuz”. “Natalie” was interpreted with the superb melody of the Russian folk song, “Dark eyes”.
On the French side, Iglesias did three covers of well-known songs: “Ne me quitte pas” (Jacques Brel), “J’aioublié de vivre" (Johnny Hallyday) and “Mamy blue” (Nicoletta). Other covers like “Caruso” (in Italian), “Always on my mind”, “My way”, “Crazy”, “Careless whispers”, “Falling in love with you” and “Fragile” came nicely to complement Iglesias’ usual Latin repertoire.
Tango music was particularly well represented with “La Cumparsita” and “A media Luz”, not only with the crooner’s fine singing, but also with first-class tango dancing by an elegant couple.
Iglesias managed to win the audience's participation on many an occasion and must have been happy to see how many knew the lyrics of his songs. He delighted with his voice, his talent and with his stage presence. All the familiar traits were there, including the way Iglesias tends to close his eyes almost all the time when singing, as if in deep introspection.
Prior to the concert, Iglesias said he was looking forward to performing “at one of Jordan’s most prestigious archaeological sites, the Amman Citadel".
"And I can't wait to meet the Jordanian audience. See you, my friends, on August 22,” a statement from the organisers quoted him as saying.
With over 300 million album copies sold worldwide, Iglesias is ranked as one of the top-five best-selling artists of all time. Over the course of 45 years in the music business, he received hundreds of globally-acclaimed awards and accolades, and performed in front of more than 60 million fans at 5,000 concerts in 600 cities across the world, according to the statement.
The entire event was first-class, enhanced by the clear, beautiful summer sky over Amman. It came within the scope of the Amman Citadel Festival, organized by Friends of Jordan Festivals. The festival continues through September 10, with concerts by the Palestine Youth Orchestra and members of the Amman Symphony Orchestra, Jordanian soprano Dima Bawab and the Choir of London, and Lebanese singer and oud player Marcel Khalife.
(Source: http://www.albawaba.com/entertainment/julio-iglesias-amman-concert-515774)
The celebrated Spanish crooner had no trouble getting to the hearts of an audience estimated at more than 3,500 — a rather exceptional number at the Citadel.
All elements came nicely together to create a wonderful, most entertaining atmosphere and a delightful evening.
The highly professional accompanying musicians, the three backing vocal singers/dancers, the smart choice of songs and the quality of the sound, all blended naturally with the unique, distinguished voice of the great Iglesias to mesmerise the audience.
Few artists are as effective as Iglesias at singing romantic songs. Suffice it to see the reaction of the female part of the audience; clearly the majority that night.
Singing mainly in Spanish — understandably the language that suits him best — but also very well in English and by moments in French or Italian, Iglesias sailed with ease and genuine grace from “Amor” to “A medialuz”. “Natalie” was interpreted with the superb melody of the Russian folk song, “Dark eyes”.
On the French side, Iglesias did three covers of well-known songs: “Ne me quitte pas” (Jacques Brel), “J’aioublié de vivre" (Johnny Hallyday) and “Mamy blue” (Nicoletta). Other covers like “Caruso” (in Italian), “Always on my mind”, “My way”, “Crazy”, “Careless whispers”, “Falling in love with you” and “Fragile” came nicely to complement Iglesias’ usual Latin repertoire.
Tango music was particularly well represented with “La Cumparsita” and “A media Luz”, not only with the crooner’s fine singing, but also with first-class tango dancing by an elegant couple.
Iglesias managed to win the audience's participation on many an occasion and must have been happy to see how many knew the lyrics of his songs. He delighted with his voice, his talent and with his stage presence. All the familiar traits were there, including the way Iglesias tends to close his eyes almost all the time when singing, as if in deep introspection.
Prior to the concert, Iglesias said he was looking forward to performing “at one of Jordan’s most prestigious archaeological sites, the Amman Citadel".
"And I can't wait to meet the Jordanian audience. See you, my friends, on August 22,” a statement from the organisers quoted him as saying.
With over 300 million album copies sold worldwide, Iglesias is ranked as one of the top-five best-selling artists of all time. Over the course of 45 years in the music business, he received hundreds of globally-acclaimed awards and accolades, and performed in front of more than 60 million fans at 5,000 concerts in 600 cities across the world, according to the statement.
The entire event was first-class, enhanced by the clear, beautiful summer sky over Amman. It came within the scope of the Amman Citadel Festival, organized by Friends of Jordan Festivals. The festival continues through September 10, with concerts by the Palestine Youth Orchestra and members of the Amman Symphony Orchestra, Jordanian soprano Dima Bawab and the Choir of London, and Lebanese singer and oud player Marcel Khalife.
(Source: http://www.albawaba.com/entertainment/julio-iglesias-amman-concert-515774)