Customer Reviews

Mejor De Rca Victor

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The problem with reviewing any of the dozens of Libertad Lamarque CD anthologies is the endless repetitions of the same material by BMG. For years this firm has antagonized fans and collectors by releasing haphardously selected material from Miss Lamarque's recordings and then re-releasing it in countless "greatest hits" CDs.

They shock your ears by listing in no chronological order whatsover and without any warning, Libertad's recordings from the late 20s mixed with performances from the 1990s, then go back to the 1940s and jump to the 1960s. Obviously they are ignoring the fact that Miss Lamarque recorded from 1926 until the late 1990s and that her voice changed dramatically through the decades.

They are also ignoring most of Libertad's recorded output and giving consumers the same old stuff over and over again. If you are a Miss Lamarque collector you probably own most of the recordings on this double-disc so, at this point, you shouldn't bother. If you are interested in owing ONE anthology of Libertad's best recordings I suggest you consider this one for the following reasons:

1. Disc 1 contains some of Libertad's greatest hits from the mid 1930's through the late 1940s includig such "must have" tunes as "Madreselva", "En Esta Tarde Gris", "Sombras Nada Mas", etc. all tangos recorded in Argentina.
2. Disc 2 moves on to Mexico in the 1950s with a generous sampling of her legendary Maria Grever selections ("Cuando Vuelva A Tu Lado", "Jurame", etc.)as well as cuts from her excellent album "La Novia de America" with standards from every Latin American country including "En Mi Viejo San Juan", "Mis Noches Sin Ti", and "Maria de la O."

In short this is a decent Libertad Lamarque anthology for the beginner as long as you remember that over 60% of her best recordings remain unedited and locked in the BMG vaults.

This set of CDs with 40 songs should be of interest to Libertad Lamarque fans.
CD 1 contains mostly tangos such as: Besos Brujos, Caminito, La Cumparsita, A Media Luz, Uno and Madreselva which are my favorites but there are other good renditions.
Although the sung tango is largely the domain of male artists such as Carlos Gardel and Hugo del Carril, Libertad Lamarque more than holds her own in this musical form.
CD 2 has Jurame, Cuando Vuelva a Tu Lado, Cielito Lindo, and Maria La O. plus other Latin American favorites.

My mother loves it, did you know she was self taught to be a singer? I am looking for movie titles now with her in it for my mother she likes this artist and many others like her. She was also born with natural red hair and green eyes, uncommon among Mexican citizens.

The stength of the CD is that 40 Spanish and Latin American songs are included. The weakness is in Ms Lamarque's rendition. She has a small nasal voice that shatters at the top of the range when tested (hear the Maria la O track). Interpretation wanders all over the place and she does better in the Argentine repertoire. In the Latin repertoire her interpretation varies from idiosincratic to laughable (hear "Echame a mi la culpa").
You can do better with other artists.