Published on May 29, 2000
After the massive success of Ricky Martin’s 1999 hit “Livin’ La
Vida Loca,” many were looking for the next big Latin success. Some
pointed to Jennifer Lopez, while others said Enrique Iglesias. Some
others also looked at this young nuyorican as the next Latin artist
that would strike it big in the English market. He was already a
big star in the salsa and pop markets and was well-known within the
Latin communities of the U.S. He wasn’t a complete newcomer, but
rather an established veteran who knew the demands of the American
scene.
Unlike Martin or Iglesias, who had established themselves as pop
artists who occasionally did salsa, Marc Anthony was mostly a salsa
artist. That, however, changed when Anthony recorded this, his
English debut. Longtime fans, I’m sure, might have been thrown for
a loop by the lack of salsa grooves and merengue beats that had
been his bread-and-butter in the Latin market.
To further complicate matters, the first single, “I Need To
Know,” is a perfect mix of salsa, pop and dance. That, I’m sure,
may have led some to think that the rest of this album follows
along the same lines. Let me be clear now: If you’re only looking
for more stuff like “I Need To Know,” then you might be better off
checking out his Spanish-language stuff or waiting for the
sophomore album. Aside from “I Need To Know,” you will find “That’s
Okay” as well as “Dimelo” (the Spanish version of “I Need To Know”)
and that’s as far as it goes in this album for salsa. I say all
this not to slight the album – both of those songs are very good
and very fun. It’s just that you might be shocked on a first listen
to find that this isn’t what the first single led you to
believe.
So then, if this isn’t a salsa album, what is it then? For the
most part this is a mid-tempo pop album. The majority of the album
follows along the lines of the second single, “You Sang To Me.”
Again, that is not meant to be a slight. “You Sang To Me” is a very
good pop song that works rather well. Other songs that go along
this vein are the very, very good “When I Dream At Night,” “Don’t
Let Me Leave” and “Love Is All.” Anthony manages to come up with
some emotion that makes the songs more worthwhile. You also get “My
Baby’s Been Good To Me” – a pop number that seems straight out of
the ‘N Sync catalogue. It isn’t bad, but it’s only good as a catchy
tune.
You might also be surprised at the level of personal feeling
some of these songs seem to carry. If you do, that’s to be
expected. At the time, Anthony was going through a divorce and that
tends to tinge how these songs play. Stuff like “Am I The Only
One,” “How Could I” and “Remember Me” plays like a catharsis. And
“My Baby You” seems to signal a shift of focus from wife to
daughter. While you may get caught by how formulaic it might sound,
I’ll defer to those who already have kids as to whether or not the
song sounds real. (AHEM: Mr. Thelen, that should be your cue.)
Does that mean that he is nothing more than a copycat or a
second-rate artist that managed to latch onto the juggernaut that
was Ricky ™? Nope. Not at all. Anthony, through his self-titled
debut, manages to establish himself as an artist on the road to
success. I do hope that for his next album, he brings more of the
salsa and dance sounds that make Latin music in general and his in
particular so popular. (Course, he could be busy. After all, he
just married a former Ms. Universe. Damn! Some people are just
lucky!)