''Segundo Romance'' () is the tenth

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

by Mexican singer

Luis Miguel Luis Miguel Gallego Basteri (; born 19 April 1970) is a Mexican singer and record producer. Born in Puerto Rico to an Italian mother and a Spanish father, he is often referred to as Honorific nicknames in popular music, ''El Sol de Mexico'' ...

, released on 30 August 1994 through

WEA Latina Warner Music Latina Inc. (formerly WEA Latina) is a record label part of Warner Music Group that focuses on Latin music. The record label was established in 1987. List of artists currently on Warner Music Latina *Alaya * Alex Ubago * Andrés Ca ...

. Like Luis Miguel's 1991 album '' Romance'', ''Segundo Romance'' comprises

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

s of

bolero Bolero is a genre of song which originated in eastern Cuba in the late 19th century as part of the trova tradition. Unrelated to the older Spanish dance of the same name, bolero is characterized by sophisticated lyrics dealing with love. It h ...

s (

Latin ballad Latin ballad () is a sentimental ballad derived from bolero that originated in the early 1960s in Los Angeles, California and Southern California. Some of the best known artists of the Latin ballad are Julio Iglesias, Mocedades, José Luis Rod ...

s) written between 1934 and 1993. It was produced by Luis Miguel with

Juan Carlos Calderón Juan Carlos Calderón López de Arróyabe (7 July 1938 – 25 November 2012) was a Spanish singer-songwriter and musician. Born in Santander, he was the author of "Eres tú", which, performed by Mocedades, came second in the Eurovision Song ...

, Kiko Cibrian and

Armando Manzanero Armando Manzanero Canché (7 December 1934 – 28 December 2020) was a Mexican musician, singer, composer, actor and music producer, widely considered the premier Mexican romantic composer of the postwar era and one of the most successful comp ...

and recorded in early 1994 at the

Record Plant The Record Plant was a recording studio established in New York City in 1968 and last operating in Los Angeles, California. Known for innovations in the recording artists' workspace, it produced highly influential albums, including the New York ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. Luis Miguel promoted the album with tours in the United States and Latin America from August to December 1994. Four singles were released: " El Día Que Me Quieras", " La Media Vuelta", "Todo y Nada", and "Delirio". The former two reached the top of the ''Billboard'' Hot Latin Songs chart in the United States. ''Segundo Romance'' received positive reviews from

music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on ...

, who praised its production, Luis Miguel's vocals and the choice of songs. It won several awards, including the Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop Performance. By 1995, ''Segundo Romance'' had sold over 4.5 million copies and achieved multi-

platinum Platinum is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a density, dense, malleable, ductility, ductile, highly unreactive, precious metal, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name origina ...

status in many Latin American countries and Spain, and was certified platinum in the United States. Like its predecessor, the album helped continue renewing mainstream interest in bolero music.

Background and recording

In 1991, Luis Miguel released his eighth studio album, '' Romance'', a collection of classic

s (slow

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and song of Great Britain and Ireland from the Late Middle Ages until the 19th century. They were widely used across Eur ...

s "endowed with romantic lyrics"). The album was successful in Latin America and sold more than six million copies worldwide. It revived interest in the bolero genre and was the first record by a Spanish-speaking artist to be certified gold in Brazil, Taiwan and the United States. Despite its success, Luis Miguel did not immediately release another album of boleros as the follow-up album. Instead, he recorded '' Aries'' (1993), an album comprising original pop ballads and dance songs with R&B influences. Four months after the release of ''Aries'', he confirmed that he would begin recording another collection of classic boleros in March 1994, with the working title ''Romance II''. Armando Manzanero2010

''Segundo Romance'' was recorded at the

in Los Angeles, chosen for its state-of-the-art recording facilities. Its title was announced in June 1994. Luis Miguel co-produced the album with

(who produced ''Romance)'',

(who produced Luis Miguel's albums prior to ''Romance'') and Kiko Cibrian (who co-produced ''Aries''). Manzanero helped with

arrangement In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orchestr ...

s and song selection, Calderón was involved with the

string section The string section of an orchestra is composed of bowed instruments belonging to the violin family. It normally consists of first and second violins, violas, cellos, and double basses. It is the most numerous group in the standard orchestra. In ...

and Cibrian with music direction. The song " Lo Mejor de Mí", composed by

Rudy Pérez Rudy Amado Pérez (born May 14, 1958) is a Cuban-born American musician, songwriter, composer, producer, arranger, sound engineer, musical director and singer, as well as entertainment entrepreneur, and philanthropist. His area of specialty is ...

, was considered for inclusion on the album, but Luis Miguel decided against recording it as he felt the song would work better as a ballad for his next album, rather than as a bolero.

Musical style

''Segundo Romance'' comprises 11

s of classic boleros, the oldest dating to 1934. The arrangements consist of

string String or strings may refer to: *String (structure), a long flexible structure made from threads twisted together, which is used to tie, bind, or hang other objects Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Strings'' (1991 film), a Canadian anim ...

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to p ...

solos, and a piano. Other styles include covers of

Carlos Gardel Carlos Gardel (born Charles Romuald Gardès; 11 December 1890 – 24 June 1935) was a French-born Argentine singer, songwriter, composer and actor, and the most prominent figure in the history of tango. He was one of the most influential inter ...

and Alfredo Le Pera's

tango Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries from a combination of Arge ...

" El Día Que Me Quieras", which uses a

bandoneon The bandoneon () or bandonion is a type of concertina particularly popular in Argentina and Uruguay. It is a typical instrument in most tango ensembles. As with other members of the concertina family, it is held between the hands, and played ...

(an

accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German language, German ', from '—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a Reed (mou ...

from Argentina), and the

ranchera Ranchera () or canción ranchera is a genre of traditional music of Mexico. It dates to before the years of the Mexican Revolution. Rancheras today are played in the vast majority of regional Mexican music styles. Drawing on rural traditional fo ...

-bolero "La Media Vuelta" by José Alfredo Jiménez, which features horns, strings, and Spanish guitars. The album features covers of three songs composed by Manzanero: " Somos Novios", "Cómo Yo Te Amé", and "Yo Sé Que Volverás".

Singles

"El Día Que Me Quieras" was released as the album's

lead single A lead single (or first single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. A similar term, "debut ...

on 5 August 1994. It reached number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot Latin Songs chart in the United States for the week of 17 September 1994, and remained there for five weeks. The track also topped the ballads chart in Mexico. Its

music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...

was directed by Kiko Guerrero and filmed at the

Palacio de Bellas Artes The Palacio de Bellas Artes (Palace of Fine Arts) is a prominent cultural center in Mexico City. It hosts performing arts events, literature events and plastic arts galleries and exhibitions (including important permanent Mexican murals). "Bella ...

in Mexico City with Luis Miguel and a 36-piece orchestra. "La Media Vuelta", the second single, was released in November 1994 and reached number one on the Hot Latin Songs chart for the week of 26 November, topping the chart for three weeks. It became the second single to reach number on the ballads chart in Mexico. The song's music video, directed by Pedro Torres and filmed in black-and-white, features Luis Miguel reminiscing at a bar about a woman who deceived him. The third single, "Todo y Nada", reached number three on the Hot Latin Songs and number one on the ''Billboard'' Latin Pop Airplay charts in the US and number three on the ballads chart in Mexico."Todo y Nada" was featured as the main theme for the Mexican

telenovela A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning "novel"). Similar Drama (film and television), drama genres around the w ...

'' Imperio de cristal'' (1994). "Delirio", the fourth single, peaked at number 16 on the Hot Latin Songs chart; its music video was filmed in Brazil.

Promotion

To promote the album, Luis Miguel began his Segundo Romance Tour in August 1994 with 16 shows at the

National Auditorium National Auditorium () is an entertainment center at Paseo de la Reforma #50, Chapultepec in Mexico City. The National Auditorium is considered among the world's best venues by specialized media. It was designed by Mexican architects Pedro Ram ...

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

, which drew a total audience of more than 155,000. Luis Miguel performed throughout Mexico, the United States, Peru and Argentina until 31 December 1994, when the tour concluded in

Acapulco Acapulco de Juárez (), commonly called Acapulco ( , ; ), is a city and Port of Acapulco, major seaport in the Political divisions of Mexico, state of Guerrero on the Pacific Coast of Mexico, south of Mexico City. Located on a deep, semicirc ...

. The first part of Luis Miguel's

set list A set list, or setlist, is typically a handwritten or printed document created as an ordered list of songs, jokes, stories and other elements an artist intends to present during a specific performance. A setlist can be made of nearly any materi ...

featured pop songs and contemporary ballads; during the second half he sang boleros from ''Segundo Romance'' and ranchera songs, before closing with "Será Que No Me Amas", the Spanish version of

the Jackson 5 The Jackson 5, later known as the Jacksons, are an American pop band composed of members of the Jackson family. The group was formed in Gary, Indiana in 1964, and originally consisted of brothers Jackie, Ti ...

's " Blame It on the Boogie". In October 1995, Warner Music released the '' El Concierto''

live album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track or cassette), or digital. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th centur ...

and video, a compilation of Luis Miguel's performances at the National Auditorium in Mexico City and his concert at the

José Amalfitani Stadium The José Amalfitani Stadium (also known as El Fortín de Liniers or Estadio Vélez Sarsfield) is a association football, football stadium located in the Liniers neighborhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina, near Liniers railway station. The venue is t ...

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

praised its production and Luis Miguel's performance.

Critical reception

AllMusic critic Jose F. Promis gave ''Segundo Romance'' four-and-a-half stars out of five, calling it "a first-rate collection of timeless Latin American standards" and praised Luis Miguel's vocals and the production. According to Promis, the album "further established Luis Miguel as a first-rate balladeer, and enhanced his immense international popularity, not only with the youth market, but with an older, more sophisticated market as well." Enrique Lopetegui of the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' gave the album three stars out of four, saying that it contained "updated, well-produced versions of classic romantic bolero and tango songs". In ''Americas'' magazine, Mark Holston described ''Segundo Romance'' as a "superb encore", citing "El Día Que Me Quieras" and "Historia de un Amor" as "memorable songs". Though ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' reviewer Paul Verna wrote that it offered "few surprises," he praised Luis Miguel's "scrumptious,

sophisti-pop Sophisti-pop is a pop music subgenre that developed during the mid-1980s out of the British new wave era. It originated with acts who blended elements of jazz, soul, and pop with lavish production. The term "sophisti-pop" was coined only afte ...

take of 'Nosotros' and 'Delirio'." Mario Tarradell of the ''

Miami Herald The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by McClatchy, The McClatchy Company and headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Founded in 1903, it is the fifth-largest newspaper in Florida, serving Miami-Dade, Broward County, Fl ...

'' was less pleased with the album, writing that it "pales in comparison to the original". Tarradell criticized Luis Miguel's vocals being "on autopilot" compared to his "rich, sophisticated hues" on ''Romance'' and called the singer's production a "bad idea".

Accolades

In Argentina, Luis Miguel received the ''Asociación de Cronistas del Espectáculo'' award for Latin Ballad Album by a Male Solo Artist in 1994. At the 1995 Grammy Awards ''Segundo Romance'' won the

Best Latin Pop Performance The Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for releasing albums in the Latin pop genre. Honors in ...

award despite competition from Cristian Castro,

Juan Gabriel Alberto Aguilera Valadez (; 7 January 1950 – 28 August 2016), known professionally as Juan Gabriel (), was a Mexican singer-songwriter and actor. Colloquially Honorific nicknames in popular music, nicknamed Juanga () and El Divo de Juárez, ...

, La Mafia and

Plácido Domingo José Plácido Domingo Embil (born 21 January 1941) is a Spanish opera singer, conductor, and arts administrator. He has recorded over a hundred complete operas and is well known for his versatility, regularly performing in Italian, French, ...

, the latter who was favored to win by John Lannert of ''Billboard'' for his album '' De Mi Alma Latina''. At the seventh Lo Nuestro Awards that year, Luis Miguel won Pop Male Artist of the Year, Pop Album of the Year, and Video of the Year for "La Media Vuelta"; "El Día Que Me Quieras" was nominated for Pop Song of the Year. ''Segundo Romance'' won the award for the Pop Album of the Year by a Male Artist at the 1995 ''Billboard'' Latin Music Awards, and was named Best Album of the Year by the Association of Latin Entertainment Critics. Luis Miguel was the Best-Selling Latin Artist of the Year at the 1995

World Music Awards The World Music Awards was an international award show founded in 1989 under the patronage of Albert II, Prince of Monaco and co-founder/executive producer John Martinotti. The event was based in Monte Carlo. Awards were presented to the worl ...

Commercial performance

''Segundo Romance'' was released on 30 August 1994. Within two days, the album sold more than one million copies worldwide. In the United States, it debuted at number 29 on the ''Billboard'' 200 the week of 10 September 1994, the highest debut on the chart at the time for a Spanish-language album. That week, ''Segundo Romance'' also debuted at number seven on the ''Billboard'' Top Latin Albums chart; it reached number one a week later, replacing

Selena Selena Quintanilla-Pérez (; April 16, 1971 – March 31, 1995) was an American singer-songwriter. Known as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Tejano Music", her contributions to music and fashion made her one of the most cel ...

's '' Amor Prohibido''. It spent a total of 29 nonconsecutive weeks atop the chart, and was the second-bestselling Latin album of the year behind ''

Mi Tierra ''Mi Tierra'' (''My Homeland'') is the third studio album by Cuban-American recording artist Gloria Estefan, released on June 22, 1993, by Epic Records. Produced by husband Emilio Estefan, it is a Spanish-language album and pays homage to her Cu ...

'' by

Gloria Estefan Gloria María Milagrosa Estefan (; ; born September 1, 1957) is an American singer, actress, and businesswoman. Estefan is an eight-time Grammy Awards, Grammy Award winner, a Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, and has been named one of t ...

. The album topped the ''Billboard'' Latin Pop Albums chart for 30 weeks, and was the highest-selling Latin pop album of the year in the U.S. According to

Nielsen SoundScan Luminate Data, LLC (formerly MRC Data and P-MRC Data) is a provider of music and entertainment data. Established as a joint-venture in 2020, it brought together Nielsen Music, Alpha Data (formerly BuzzAngle Music) and Variety Business Intellige ...

, the record has sold 603,000 copies in the US , making the 21st bestselling Latin album in the country. ''Segundo Romance'' was certified platinum for shipping one million copies, making Luis Miguel the first Latin artist to have two certified platinum albums in the U.S. following ''Romance''. The album was also successful in Spanish-speaking countries. It was certified quintuple platinum in Mexico, triple platinum in Paraguay and Uruguay as well as in Central America; double platinum in Bolivia, Colombia, Peru, Spain and Venezuela, and platinum in Ecuador. In Brazil, ''Segundo Romance'' was certified gold for sales of 100,000 copies. The album reached number one on the Chilean album charts, and was certified diamond for shipping 250,000 copies. In Argentina, it was certified 11× platinum and later received a diamond award for sales of 500,000 copies. By 1995, ''Segundo Romance'' had sold over 4.5 million copies worldwide.

Legacy

Like its predecessor, ''Segundo Romance'' helped to revive interest in bolero music. Mark Holston wrote that the album "proves again that the bolero is back, its heart beating as strongly as ever, its soul alive with tropical passion, a music for every time and all times". According to Enrique Lopetegui of the ''Los Angeles Times'', both albums "created a revival for the bolerothe old-fashioned, string-based romantic messages of

unrequited love Unrequited love or one-sided love is love that is not openly reciprocated or understood as such by the beloved. The beloved may not be aware of the admirer's deep affection, or may consciously reject it knowing that the admirer admires them. Me ...

were embraced even by young listeners". Ed Morales wrote in his book ''The Latin Beat: The Rhythms and Roots of Latin Music from Bossa Nova to Salsa and Beyond'': "Beyond merely being a revival, ''Romance'' and its 1994 follow-up, ''Segundo Romance'' was a significant update of the genre". ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

'' editor Achy Obejas noted that the albums "scored in such unlikely places as Saudi Arabia and Finland". ''Segundo Romance'' was followed by two more bolero albums: '' Romances'' (1997) and '' Mis Romances'' (2001). In 1998, ''Romance'', ''Segundo Romance'', and ''Romances'' were compiled on '' Todos Los Romances'', released by WEA Latina.

Track listing

All tracks produced by Luis Miguel, Manzanero, Calderón, and Cibrian.

Personnel

The following information is from AllMusic and from the ''Segundo Romance'' liner notes.

Performance credits

Technical credits

Charts

Weekly charts

All-time charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

References

{{Authority control 1994 albums Albums produced by Juan Carlos Calderón Albums produced by Luis Miguel 1990s covers albums Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop Album Luis Miguel albums Sequel albums 1990s Spanish-language albums Warner Music Latina albums