Mm, yes - difficult to know what to make of this
one! What we have here is essentially a mini-album of 8
bite-sized cover versions of pop classics from the late-50's and
'60's. I'm not sure what the thinking behind this was but I
can tell you how it looks from afar - and it looks for all the
world like a stop-gap album, this is to say a collection of songs
quickly put together by Melody Records to cash in on the success
of BYE MAMA and keep our new Pop Diva in the public eye until
enough original quality material could be written and recorded to
form the next album (which would eventually be ETERNAMENTE
BELLA). They obviously knew they were onto a good thing when
they signed up this pocket-diva!
As covers albums go however, it's actually not bad in a sort of
play-it-safe way. I've heard better. I've also heard a
lot worse but I won't go into that here. DAME TU AMOR has
the similar sort of poppy backtrack sound to BYE MAMA,
synth-sounding drums an' all. In addition, many of these
tracks are backed by a horn section. There are undoubtedly
some quality moments on this album. However, 'No Seas Cruel' isn't
quite one of them. It's pulsing intro is akin to Billy
Idol's 'To Be A Lover', but that's as far as the invention
goes. The song quickly becomes a sugary pop version of a
true rock 'n' roll classic. It's certainly not the way The
King would have done it. It isn't bad but it does tend to
bring our Ale across as the Shirley Temple of Rock - which
probably was never part of her Masterplan! 'Diana' is
equally cutesy. It's the Paul Anka classic that doesn't
stray too far from it's original blueprint. As far as I can
tell, there have been no lyrical concessions to the fact that it's
a female on lead vocals here. Our singer is still professing
deep affection for our Diana! 'Twist & Gritos' (the
song probably made most famous by The Beatles) is better, and it
is one that benefits from those horns. It's fun and
ultimately disposable - as is 'Popotitos' which is damned catchy
and, once heard, is difficult to get out of your system. For
some odd reason, 'Popotitos' reminds me of that ditty on the TV
commercial for 'Shack-N-Vac' - the carpet freshener (though this
Brit-ad will probably mean nothing to you Americans!)!
Fortunately, there are some real gems to be find here, like the
Animals classic 'La Casa del Sol Naciente'. This one brings
out the maturity in Ale's voice and she sounds every bit as raw
and bluesy as Eric Burden on the original. 'Soy Tuya Mi
Amor' is another one that shines. This version, complete
with those horns which gives the song that funky edge, puts me in
mind of English band The Stranglers and their version of 'All Day
and All of the Night' - which sort of proves that you can't go far
wrong with The Kinks.
Listening to this version of The Stones' 'Satisfaccion',
it's not hard to see where Ale's classic 'Reina de Corazones'
might have got it's inspiration from. That historic and
irresistible riff remains intact here, and again those funky horns
give the song that extra dimension. The title track, 'Dame
Tu Amor' is actually quite gutsy and is one of the best cuts on
offer here. I'm not sure who sang on the original - and
believe me, I've been scratching my head like crazy trying to find
out. My brain keeps telling me Tommy James and the Shondells
but I'm pretty certain that it's wrong! (It often is!) But
regardless of who sang it, Ale's version sounds like early
Blondie post-punk pop and one where she truly does sound like a
rock vocalist (unlike on 'No Seas Cruel'). 'Dame Tu Amor'
also featured in the Mexican hit movie 'Verano Peligroso'.
I have to admit to having experienced a certain novelty value
in listening to these Spanish translations of English language
classics when I first got my hands on this album. But that
novelty value soon wears off after a couple of plays. Then
you have to take the album for what it is, and you get the feeling
that it was never meant to be taken seriously - and believe me it
shouldn't, not in a million years! This is a fun and
half-disposable collection of tracks which young Shirley... er,
sorry.... Alejandra delivers with a lot of enthusiasm. I've
no doubt that Ale really does have a genuine affection for these
classics. It's just that, personally, I wish she'd found the
time to record a few more to flesh things out a bit and, at least,
make this 'feel' like a proper album.
This is an enjoyable (albeit brief) collection, but to be
honest, when held against the rest of her highly impressive body
of work, DAME TU AMOR has about as much relevance as that novelty
machine chained up outside your local supermarket. It's
there because the kids like it! However, if you haven't got
this album yet but have the chance of getting hold of a copy, then
by all means do so. It's worth seeking out for that
excellent title track alone, which as far as I'm aware hasn't been
made available on any current compilation releases.
And that's about it really. This collection is what it
is - a mini-album of cover versions. Not bad, not great but
enjoyable. There isn't much left to say, except that I wish
it had been longer. Some of us have CDsingles in our
collection with a longer running time than this!