"I have to give it to Celia Cruz for taking the risk in coming out with a dancemix cd of songs that have made her a household in the salsa world and for giving her all. The CD itself is not bad at all, taking under consideration that all of this tracks were originally salsa songs and the good thing here is that the salsa feeling does not get lost in the mix and for that I really cherish this album, cause, it stays true to the roots of the original recordings, but, makes it more fresh, more enjoyable and for sure more fun to all of us that we enjoy that 'dance' beat.I personally think that the remix for LA VIDA ES UN CARNIVAL is one of the best ones in this cd and a very good dance club mix of LA NEGRA TIENE TUMBAO that I personally prefer the spanish version rather than the english one as well as QUE LE DEN CANDELA which will make you desire to be in South Beach under the warm sand and blue skies.I'm sure Celia Cruz die hard fans will find this cd as an insult and will hate it, but for a new fan like me... this is heaven and I would have never even consider her if she would have not come out with a dance mix cd like this one. Now, I can go back to her original songs and make a decision on what sounds better, but, for the moment what I have playing in my stereo sounds very good and all I have to say is AZUCAR!!!"
Azucaaar!!!!!
Javier Lopez | Peru | 08/08/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"It's incredible that she's not with us any longer but her memory and music will always survive.
"Hits mix" it's an album that contains some of her many, many hits. The remixes are very good, there's a fusion between salsa and dance music. The production starts with one of her biggest hits that happened to be her last, I'm talking about "La negra tiene tumbao", the remix is very good as the spanglish version.
My favorite song is the 1995 hit "Que le den candela", but you'll have fun also with songs like: "La sopa", "La vida es un carnaval" and the covers from Santana and Gloria Gaynor ("Oye como va" and "Yo vivire").
If your looking for something essencial from Celia. This is one."
Shake it up Baby!
Martha Villafana | Los Angeles,CA | 07/23/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I was just sitting at my computer checking out tunes on Amazon.com when KA POW!!!!! This album had me moving every bone in my 50 year old body. I am ready for the day! Wow! If this album doesn't wind you up, I don't know what will. Celia is "Da Bomb". No pude contener mi cuerpo, hice mas ejercisio al eschuchar este album que en muchos meses. Celia Vive!!!"
Celia Cruz
R. Vitale | Queensbury, Ny, USA | 07/01/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"fantastic latin artist lots of cuban/afro/latin rhythms, a must for anyone who loves salsa, latin, etc."
The oldest have heard no one like her, and the youngest neve
Owen Hatteras | Austin, Texas. An oasis in a desert of imbecillit | 06/30/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Arturo Toscanini, renowned conductor of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra during the 1940's, once told the opera soprano Marian Anderson, "A voice like yours comes but once in a century!" The very same could be said of Celia Cruz, "La Reina de Salsa". It was not just her ability that has placed her within the pantheon of immortals such as Enrico Caruso and Edith Piaf, but her greatness of spirit, which left its mark on everything she did.
I only discovered her at her death; the coverage of her passing on English and Spanish-language television networks included file footage of her performing and being interviewed. Even to such a clod as I (and with only a moron's understanding of Spanish), her vivacity and charm were instantly apparent. I can only compare it to an electric current. Intrigued, I first purchased the album "Havana Days", made up of music she recorded in the 1950's; then this album, "Hits Mix". One of the great charms of her work was her willingness to experiment with changing the form of her music while preserving the content. That is to say, she was willing to alter her music for a new generation of fans while maintaining its essence throughout. From her earliest works to her last, nothing vital is ever lost while it is being continuously renewed. This is certainly on display in this album where her songs are recast as dance numbers and include some modern electronic flourishes. While purists may shudder, all I can say is that she succeeds brilliantly at something I would have judged impossible had I not heard it for myself.
Centuries from now, if humanity is not destroyed by natural or human-induced catastrophe, I would like to think that--if they remain human at all--some will hear these songs and feel the same strange and amazing exhilaration they bring to me. If you have never heard her music, select an album of hers and order it-not tomorrow, but today. If you are a native speaker of Spanish--whether from California, Texas, New York, Spain, or anywhere else--you cannot consider youself civilized until you have sampled the music of one of the greatest singers in your mother tongue. A new and fantastic pleasure awaits you all!"