''Iconos'' (''English: Icons'') is the eighth Spanish album and tenth

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

Marc Anthony Marco Antonio Muñiz Rivera (born September 16, 1968), known professionally as Marc Anthony, is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He is the top selling tropical salsa artist of all time. A three-time Grammy Award and six-time Latin Gra ...

which covers Latin ballads from the past and is the second Latin pop album by Marc Anthony after '' Amar Sin Mentiras''. The album was first released on May 14, 2010 in Europe through

Ariola Records Ariola (also known as Ariola Records, Ariola-Eurodisc and BMG Ariola) is a German record label. In the late 1980s, it was a subsidiary label of the Bertelsmann Music Group, which in turn has become a part of the international media conglomerat ...

, and May 25 in the US and UK with Sony Latin.

Album information

The album is produced by himself and Julio Reyes. It also features eight cover versions and two previously unreleased songs that were composed by Julio Reyes. The album includes covers by singers

José José José Rómulo Sosa Ortiz (17 February 1948 – 28 September 2019), known professionally as José José, was a Mexican singer and actor. Born into a family of musicians, José began his musical career in his early teens playing guitar and sin ...

Juan Gabriel Alberto Aguilera Valadez (; January 7, 1950 – August 28, 2016), known professionally as Juan Gabriel (), was a Mexican singer, songwriter and actor. Colloquially nicknamed as Juanga () and El Divo de Juárez, Juan Gabriel was known for his f ...

Roberto Carlos Roberto Carlos da Silva Rocha (born 10 April 1973), commonly known as Roberto Carlos, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who now works as a football ambassador. He started his career in Brazil as a forward but spent most of his care ...

La Mafia La Mafia is a five-time Grammy Award-winning musical group. It has its roots in the Northside neighborhood of Houston, Texas, and has charted a course as a Tejano music, Latin music band. History La Mafia was founded in 1980 in Houston, TX. ...

as well

José Luis Perales José Luis Perales Morillas (born 18 January 1945) is a Spanish singer and songwriter. He has recorded 27 albums and 50 million copies sold worldwide. His compositions have been recorded by singers such as Vikki Carr, Bertín Osborne, Ra ...

, singer and composer from the lead single. The first single released from the album was "Y Cómo Es Él" (''What Is He Like?''), a song which was first recorded and written by

. It was revealed on April 8, 2010, and released as digital download on April 12, 2010 through

Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainment ...

. The second single from the album was Abrázame Muy Fuerte (''Embrace Me Tightly''), a song from Mexican singer

. This is the second single by Marc Anthony where he covered a song by Juan Gabriel since his cover of

Hasta Que Te Conocí "Hasta Que Te Conocí" ("Until I Met You") is a song written, produced, and performed by Mexican singer-songwriter Juan Gabriel. It was released in 1986 as the third single from his studio album ''Pensamientos''. In the song, the protagonist lea ...

. About the difficulty of singing "

El Triste "El Triste" ("''The Sad One''") is a song written by Mexican composer Roberto Cantoral. It was performed for the first time on March 15, 1970, at the "Latin Song Festival II" (predecessor of the OTI Festival) by the Mexican singer José José. ( ...

", Anthony stated that "once you start to sing it you realize the magnitude, of that spectacular voice and special phrasing of José José and his incredible way to perform." Regarding the decision to make a tribute album, Anthony commented that these songs stood through the test of time and "they just don't write songs like this anymore... I wanted to celebrate artists that had the guts at the time to be so daring"."

Reception

Jason Birchmeier of

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

gave the album a mixed review. While he praised Marc Anthony's vocals and calling the album first-rate, he criticized Anthony for the lack of originality since ''Amar Sin Mentiras''. Regarding the single, "Y Cómo Es Él", Birchmeier noted that Anthony's passion for the album is evident in the single and concluded that "Anthony may not give fans what they want, but at least he gives them quality material".

Track listing

Chart performance

Sales and certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control Marc Anthony albums 2010 albums Spanish-language albums Sony Music Latin albums Albums produced by Julio Reyes Copello