El Cantante (Marc Anthony album)
El Cantante is the soundtrack album to the film of the same name, and the ninth studio album by American singer Marc Anthony.
Background
Marc Anthony plays the role of Héctor Lavoe in El Cantante, a film he had been wanting and waiting to make for many years. Lavoe was known, and is still considered a hero to salsa fans, famed for the artistry of his vocals and the intensity of his rhythm, as well as his involvement with famous salsa musician Willie Colón during the early '70s were high points for salsa, and they paved the way for many vocalists to come. The album is not only a soundtrack, but a tribute album to the famous salsa singer. Anthony's cover versions of "Aguanile", "Che Che Colé", "Mi Gente" and "El Cantante", have become chart topping hits on the United States Latin Billboard. Anthony also worked with Rubén Blades during the production of the film, as well as the soundtrack. The tenth track finds Jennifer Lopez, Anthony's wife in the film, performing a pop ballad titled "Toma de Mí," composed by Canadian singer-songwriter Nelly Furtado. The album was awarded Best Salsa Album at the Latin Grammy Awards of 2008 and Tropical Album of the Year at the 2008 Latin Billboard Music Awards.Commercial performance
The soundtrack debuted at number 1 on the Billboard Top Latin Albums chart and number 31 on the Billboard 200. In its second week it still peaked at number 1 on the Top Latin Albums but felt back 2 places to end at number 33 on the Billboard 200. It still peaked the Top Latin Albums in the third, fourth and fifth week and went on number 32, number 44 and number 55 on the Billboard 200.Track listing
- "El Cantante" — 6:47
- "Mi Gente" — 3:52
- "Escándalo" — 3:58
- "Aguanile" — 5:15
- "Che Che Colé" — 3:26
- "El Día de Mi Suerte" — 5:19
- "Qué Lío" — 4:24
- "Quítate Tú" — 4:24
- "Todo Tiene Su Final" — 4:56
- "Toma de Mí" — 4:2
Personnel
Performers
- Yomo Toro – Cuatro
- Milton Cardona – Vocals, coro
- Tito Allen – Vocals, Coro
- Bobby Allende – Conga
- Renaldo Jorge – Trombone
- Myung Hi Kim – Violin
- Ozzie Melendez - Trombone
- Suzanne Ornstein – Violin
- Ricardo Tiki Pasillas – Percussion
- Marc Quiñones – Timbales
- Laura Seaton – Violin
- Gene Moye – Cello
- Sergio George – Piano
- Ray Colon – Bongos, bells
- Raul Agraz – Trumpet
- Luis Quintero – Percussion, timbales
- William Castro – Arpa
- William Duval – Vocals
- Sarah Seiver – Cello
- José Tabares – Bass
- Peter Winograd – Violin
- Ramon B. Sanchez – Conductor
- Robert Rinehart – Viola
- Daniel Panner – Viola
- Elizabeth Dyson – Cello
- Jenny Strenger – Violin
- Wilson Cifuentes – Flute, gaita
- Katherine Fong – Violin
- Duoming Ba – Violin
- Minyoung Chang – Violin
- Sarah OBoyle – Violin
- Wen Qian – Violin
- Sein Ryu – Violin
- Mario Guini – Electric guitar
- Julio Reyes Copello – Piano
- Jose Mangual – Vocals, Coro
- Daniel Caro – Bandola
- Oriol Caro – Tiple
- Angélica Gámez – Violin
- Laura Ospina – Cello
- Urian Sarmiento – Percussion
Technical
- Marc Anthony – Producer, executive producer
- Sergio George – Producer
- Héctor Ivan Rosa – Engineer
- Jim Caruana – Engineer
- Luisito Quintero – Percussion overdubs
- David Kutch – Mastering
- Vlado Meller – Mastering
- Peter Wade Keusch – Engineer
- Bigram Zayas – Producer
- Alysia Oakley – Assistant music supervisor
- Maria Paula Marulanda – Art direction
- Matt Havron – Assistant Music supervisor
- Julio Reyes Copello – Arranger, programming, producer
Charts
| Chart | Peak position |
| Spanish Album Chart | 11 |
| Swiss Album Chart | 100 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 31 |
| U.S. Billboard Top Latin Albums | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Latin Tropical Albums | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Top Soundtracks | 4 |
;Year-end charts
| Chart | Peak position |
| U.S. Billboard Top Latin Albums Year-End Charts | 11 |
| U.S. Billboard Top Tropical Albums Year-End Charts | 2 |