Sings Gardel

1	Tomo y Obligo 3:22
2	Soledad 3:28
3	El Día Que Me Quieras 4:47
4	Por Una Cabeza 3:11
5	Volver 4:07
6	Mano a Mano 3:43
7	Cuesta Abajo 4:40
8	Golondrinas 3:44
9	Melodia de Arrabal 3:08
10	Caminito 3:09
11	Volvió una Noche 4:32
12	La Cumparsita 4:36
13	Mi Buenos Aires Querido 3:08

Barnes & Noble

In the complex history of the Argentine tango, two figures stand out from the crowd: Carlos Gardel (1890-1935) and Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992). Gardel, a singer and songwriter, brought the traditional tango to its expressive peak in the 1920s and '30s. Piazzolla, grand master of the bandonéon, infused elements of jazz and classical music into the traditional form to create tango nuevo. The recent tango craze has focused almost entirely on this new tango style, as classical superstars such as Yo-Yo Ma, Gidon Kremer, Daniel Barenboim, and the Kronos Quartet have discovered Piazzolla's emotional power. But Gardel is not to be forgotten, certainly not by Argentineans, and particularly not by Argentinean singers. Like most of his countrymen, Marcelo Álvarez grew up with Gardel's voice in his ears. On this album, the up-and-coming tenor sings 13 tangos -- including 11 penned by Gardel himself -- accompanied by a quintet of today's foremost tango players (including pianist Pablo Ziegler and violinist Fernando Suárez-Paz, both former members of Piazzolla's quintet). Álvarez is wise not to try to imitate Gardel's lean, high sound; after all, this is a tribute, not an impersonation. By using his full voice, Álvarez exposes the music's operatic roots in the verismo style of Mascagni, Leoncavallo, and Puccini. (What better way to express sentiments of longing and melancholy?) On the final track -- "Mi Buenos Aires Querido," Gardel's signature tune -- Sony's engineers extracted Gardel's voice from the original 78 recording, allowing the two singers to join their voices in a fervent paean to the city where the tango was born. Hopefully, Álvarez's passionate advocacy will inspire his fans to search out Gardel's own recordings and the rich repertory of the traditional tango. Andrew Farach-Colton

All Music Guide

At a time when Latin pop heartthrobs are big in the music business, with stars like Ricky Martin and Marc Anthony, it's rather remarkable to come across a singer celebrating the work of a tango crooner who died nearly 60 years ago. Alvarez's dramatic tenor is suitably strong and passionate throughout. Unfortunately, the producers fall in the rather morbid trap of setting up a duet between Alvarez and Gardel using a recording of "Mi Buenos Aires Querido" from 1934, which sounds particularly forced here. Other than that, this is a moving labor of love by a very gifted singer. Tim Sheridan