Ancora

1	All by Myself (Solo Otra Vez) 3:54
2	Isabel 4:16
3	I Believe in You (Je Crois en Toi) 4:01
4	You Raise Me Up (Por Ti Seré) 4:01
5	Si Tú Me Amas 4:09
6	Hasta Mi Final 3:36
7	Heroe 4:17
8	En Aranjuez Con Tu Amor 3:51
9	Esisti Dentro Me 3:50
10	Pour Que Tu M'Aimes Encore 3:53

Barnes & Noble

Propelled by the enormous commercial success of their first two albums, the sensational pop-opera quartet Il Divo present their third surefire chart-topper in less than a year. Fans who savored the romantic allure of the group's 2005 debut (and their heartwarming holiday collection) will take just as much pleasure in Ancora, which has already proved a smash hit in Europe before this US release. Moving decisively into poignant, Spanish-language songs of love and loss that are a perfect vehicle for their expressive voices, the group keeps one foot in the classics with adaptations of themes from the masters -- "All By Myself (Solo oltra vez)," based on Rachmaninoff, and Rodrigo's "En Aranjuez tu amor," a favorite of Sarah Brightman and Andrea Bocelli -- while also staking a claim to the more up-to-date with arrangements of Mariah Carey's "Hero" and Josh Groban's "You Raise Me Up," boosting the romantic fervor through heartfelt Spanish lyrics. As a bonus, Celine Dion makes a guest appearance on "I Believe in You (Je crois en toi)" -- a gesture Il Divo reciprocates with the closing number, "Por que tu m'aimes encore," a touchstone of the Celine songbook. Backed by piano and lush string arrangements, with the added coloration of Spanish guitar on "Si tú me amas," Il Divo's latest ups the ante while staying true to the sentimental, operatically-inflected style that has thrust these four into "popera" stardom. EJ Johnson

All Music Guide

Unbearably handsome opera-pop quartet Il Divo deliver another amorous collection of European housecleaning ballads with Ancora, an album so riddled with Cupid's arrows that it requires its own storage unit. Once again, David Miller, Sébastien Izambard, Urs Buhler, and Carlos Marin bring the love in Spanish, English, and Italian, emoting over classical and opera standards, as well as some notable contemporary compositions. They fawn over Celine Dion -- who can barely contain her own affections -- on "Isabel," and make Mariah Carey's "Hero" sound like the rolling of credits over a Jerry Bruckheimer action/tragedy blockbuster, all the while maintaining the perfect pitch and impeccable showmanship that are their stock-in-trade. Fans who flocked to Il Divo's self-titled debut and 2005 Christmas Collection need no reassurances that their boys are in top form, as a recent appearance on Oprah brought the quartet into the homes of millions of potential converts, but in this age of manufactured goods over artisan rusticity, it's hard not to look at Ancora as the classical crossover equivalent of a bistro-style TV dinner. Reverend Lee Power