La Vida... Es un Ratico

Juanes | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 23, 2007)
• Original Release Date: 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Universal Latino
• ASIN: B000VXRCFM
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #18,568 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #12 in Music > World Music > South & Central America > Colombia
  • #44 in Music > Latin Music > Latin Rock

Editorial Reviews

People en Español

The career of this singer/songwriter has made huge strides in the last five years, and it shouldn’t surprise anyone that the Colombian singer’s style has become unique. If this were his first CD, Juanes could be labeled as genial, because no sound can even get close to what we hear here. But this is his fourth album, and it sounds exactly as the previous ones. Produced by Gustavo Santaolalla, La vida has a fantastic sound and an impeccable production. Yet originality is not precisely its mark. --Ernesto Sánchez (People en Español )

La carrera de este cantautor ha crecido a pasos agigantados en los últimos cinco años y no es como para extrañar a nadie, el colombiano tiene un estilo que lo hace único. Si este fuera el primer disco de Juanes se podría catalogar como genial, porque no hay nada que suene parecido, pero este es el cuarto álbum del colombiano y suena exactamente igual que los anteriores. Hay que decir que el disco, que es una producción de Gustavo Santaolalla, tiene un sonido fantástico y una producción impecable. Pero la originalidad no es precisamente su sello. --Ernesto Sánchez (People en Español )

Product Description

La Vida...Es un Ratico (Life is a moment) is the follow up to Juanes' globally multi-platinum release Mi Sangre. In La Vida...Es un Ratico, Juanes once again teams up with co-producer Gustavo Santaolalla, Double-Oscar/Grammy winner. In his first single "Me Enamora," Juanes shows us his intimate personal thoughts on love and relationships. In songs like "Minas Piedras" and Bandera de Manos" he tackles themes of both the hope for peace and social change. With this release, Juanes works to continue to perfect his distinctive fusion of rock with traditional Colombian rhythms and other international styles.

Despues del exito de "Mi Sangre", Juanes nos presenta "Me Enamora" el primer sencillo de su tan esperado nuevo lanzamiento "La Vida...Es un Ratico. "La Vida...Es un Ratico" fue producido nuevamente por Juanes y Gustavo Santaolalla, ganador de dos premios Oscar y multiples Grammy's. Juanes escribió letra y musica de todos los temas durante los dos ultimos años, entre la etapa final de la gira de "Mi Sangre" y un periodo sabatico en el que se concentro en la composición de "La Vida...Es un Ratico". En "La Vida...Es un Ratico" hay canciones que hablan de temas sociales como "Minas Piedras" y "Bandera de Manos" y otras como el primer sencillo "Me Enamora" relacionadas a temas personales y del amor. En este lanzamiento Juanes consolida sin duda alguna su idea musical de fusionar rock con ritmos Colombianos, y ritmos internacionales.

Juanes Photos

More from Juanes

La Vida...Es un Ratico CD/DVD Limited Edition

Mi Sangre

Mi Sangre Limited Deluxe Edition

Un Dia Normal

Fijate Bien

El Diario de Juanes (DVD)

See all Editorial Reviews

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Juanes' melodious and evocative musical return......, October 29, 2007

By 

D. Pawl "Dani" (Seattle) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: La Vida... Es un Ratico (Audio CD)

For those of you unfamiliar with Juanes [as well as longtime fans], LA VIDA ES UN RATICO (Life is a Brief Moment) is quite possibly his best and strongest album to date. This beautiful CD is filled with tunes that combine infectious rock hooks with traditional Colombian rhythms and melodies. Juanes has had a gift for blending those two musical worlds together for as long as he has been making music, and his 2007 release is no exception. It starts on a determined and uplifting note with "No Creo en el Jamas" ("I Don't Believe in Never"). Many of the songs were inspired by his brief break-up with wife (and model) Karen Martinez. We can hear Juanes' tenderness (as well his pain) in his music and it truly speaks to you, whether you are fluent in Spanish or only in the language of music (a universal form of communication that all of us share). We hear the uptempo cumbia, emotional ballads, African-inspired beats (particularly on the irrerepressible "Bailala") and even a duet with fellow rocker Campino that starts out in Spanish and then is intermixed with verses in German.

If you buy one CD this year, it should be LA VIDA ES UN RATICO. I guarantee if you hear this album it will change the way you hear music (not just Latin Rock--a category that claims Juanes as his own). The language of music has never been expressed in a more beautiful (or personal) way.

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Juanes comes back big with a message!, October 23, 2007

By 

Daniel Fernandez (Sydney, New South Wales Australia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: La Vida... Es un Ratico (Audio CD)

Mi Sangre was a great album, Un Dia Normal was his masterpiece and one of the greatest rock/pop albums in any language of all time.

How good is this album? Better than Mi Sangre and may just be as good as Un Dia Normal, that's how good this album is.

One of the things I first noticed was his voice. He is singing better than he ever has... His voice has more range than it ever has and he has worried much more about phrasing this time around.

Lyrically this album is closer to 1st album Fijate Bien than anything. It is full of message songs. He touches on topics such as terrorism, peace, making a difference, poverty, unity, etc. It is just amazing lyrically this album. I guess he decided that he'd done two albums on love and it was time to bring on the social message again. Thank god he did!!!

The other thing I noticed was the guitar solo is back this time around! Remember back in the 80's just about every song had a guitar solo. Juanes wants to bring it back, this album is full of them and they are all fantastic to listen to. He flexes his guitar playing muscles and does a great job.

The other amazing thing is the absolute diversity of the tracks, probably his most diverse album musically. But the diversity is heard in the chords he is playing rather than in the instruments themselved. Instrument wise it's the same Juanes, mainly guitar-drum-bass setup. But listen to the chords he is playing and he is playing blues, bossa nova, country, as well as his normal Columbian infused rhythm, etc. It is just fantastic. You'll also hear the odd hammon organ, slide guitar, and accordion throughout the album in subtle ways to compliment rather than overpower.

Alot of people no doubt want to know if there is another Camisa Negra or A Dios Lo Pido... there are... Me Enamora, Tres (which is as vallenato as Juanes will ever get), Clase de Amor.

As much as I love those songs (and they will be played all over the place) it's his quieter tunes that really linger in your head...
- The gorgeous bossanova rhythm'd Hoy Me Voy.
- The grandiose message song La Vida Es Un Ratico with a haunting piano arrangement.
- Another message song in Minas Piedras with a beautiful slide guitar, banjo, and violin arrangements.
- Bandera de Manos, yet another message song... with a faster rhythm behind it.

Go out and buy this. If you don't understand Spanish, buy it because of the musical brilliance. Si hablas Espanol compralo porque es el mejor disco del ano. Tenemos que dar apoyo a artistas latinos como Juanes que estan sacando discos de tan gran calidad.

BEST ALBUM OF THE YEAR!!!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent!, October 25, 2007

By 

Sui Generis (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: La Vida... Es un Ratico (Audio CD)

It's easy to see that Juanes will be on Latin rock scene for a long, long time. Continuing the emergence of the "Colombian Renaissance" of big-name music acts (check out Cabas and Carlos Vives for other genres), Juanes does not disappoint in the least with this latest effort.

Personally, I wanted a CD that was similarly driven as the powerhouse "Mi Sangre," but at the same time it is fantastic to see an artist evolve and grow, and this CD provides musical and vocal innovations that delight. The lead singer's voice has matured quite a bit over the last two CD's, though on this CD there's one tiny vocal misfire (the falsetto attempts on the -ando verbs in "Tres").

If you are new to Juanes, don't start with this CD, IMO. I'd start with something like "Un Día Normal," then continue with "Mi Sangre' before listening to this one. That way, you can appreciate Juanes' artistic evolution as we all do.

A solid album that's worth the money.