Mi Jardin
Azul: Las Canciones Favoritas is a collection culled from
Linda Ronstadt's three Spanish-language recordings: Canciones
De Mi Padre (1988), Mas Canciones (1990), and Frenesei (1992).
In addition it features the self-penned cut "Mi Ranchito,"
from the 1976 album Hasten Down The Wind. While the compilation
contains no new tracks, its issue makes sense because Ronstadt
won Grammy's for each of her Spanish language outings. It's
remastered sound, personal notes and photographs that annotate
the selections make for a fine travelogue through this aspect
of the singer's long career. It is worth mentioning too,
for those who never encountered Ronstadt's forays into Spanish
language and Latin music, that these titles are all among
the most interesting and compelling in her catalogue. There
is no hunt of revisionism or novelty in their presentation
or articulation. They are works of popular art that reflects
not only her heritage, but a kind of intimate history of
this music in North America-while many of the songs here
are well known in their communities of original, this was
their first hearing for most Anglos which brought them,
via their individual album's popularities, into the canon
of mainstream music and paved the way for artists like Los
Lobos to make albums such as La Pistola Mi Corazon (one
of their finest outings ever)-Ronstadt proved it could work
making the major label corporate interest open to such projects.
Musically, this set is gorgeous; full of life, passion,
and brimming with stunning moments in both vocal performance
and arrangement. Wonderful. |
