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Contigo en la Distancia
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Wikipedia article
"'Contigo En La Distancia'" ('With you in the distance') is a bolero which was written by the Cuban singer-songwriter Csar Portillo de la Luz when he was 24 years old. It was written in the year 1946.
Nowadays it is one of the most acclaimed boleros in Cuban music, having been interpreted by a multitude of singers such as Il Divo, Pedro Infante, Pablo Milans, Joan Manuel Serrat, Christina Aguilera, Luis Miguel, Caetano Veloso, Plcido Domingo, Jos Jos, Mara Dolores Pradera and Belinda, among others.The New
Background and composition
"Contigo en la Distancia" was written by Cuban guitarist Csar Portillo de la Luz. Born in Havana, Cuba to a cigar-roller, Portillo taught himself play the guitar. At first, he painted houses to earn his living and would listen to jazz while working. Portillo de la Luz was introduced to filin (a form of bolero music influenced by jazz) by 'trovador' musician Angel Daz when Portillo de la Luz was performing at a friend's house. Diaz invited Portillo de la Luz to perform with the rest of the filin musicians at the Callejn de Hemmel. In 1946, he made his debut as a professional guitar player on radio and a weekly slot on Radio Mil Diez followed, which increased his popularity. "Contigo en la Distancia", recorded in the same year, was released when filin was gaining popularity in Cuba. Portillo de la Luz's recording of the song was included on a compilation album titled 'Un Momento con Portillo de la Luz'.
Performers
Luis Miguel version
Mexican singer Luis Miguel released the 1991 album 'Romance', which was produced by Miguel and Mexican singer-songwriter Armando Manzanero, and included a selection of classic boleros. The success of the album revived the interest for bolero, even though the new musical arrangements of the songs make them unrecognizable. 'Romance' received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Latin Pop Performance (which it lost to Jon Secada's 'Otro Da Ms Sin Verte'), was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America and sold seven million copies worldwide. "Contigo en la Distancia" was released as the album's third single in Mexico in July 1992. The music video for song was directed by Pedro Torres and filmed in Miami, it features Miguel and an orchestra performing in front of a building. Mark Holston reviewed Miguel's cover version positively in the magazine 'Amricas' as "among the great ballads of all time and Miguel pays them full respect".
A live version of "Contigo en la Distancia" was included on the EP 'Amrica & En Vivo' in 1992 and its music video was added to the video compilation album 'Grandes xitos' in 2005.
Christina Aguilera version
In 2000, American recording artist Christina Aguilera covered "Contigo en la Distancia" on her second studio album 'Mi Reflejo' which was produced by Rudy Prez. According to Aguilera, she wanted to record the song after hearing Prez play it during a recording session break. Aguilera's cover received mixed reactions from music critics. In the review for 'Mi Reflejo', an editor for 'Billboard' called Aguilera's rendition the "most breathtaking cover" of the song while Eliseo Cardona of CDNow referred to it as the "album's finest moments". However, Ernesto Lechner of the 'Los Angeles Times' criticized her vocals in the song and felt she "turns a gem of understatement into bloated confection". Kembrew McLeod wrote for Sonic.net opined that the usage of the Spanish guitars did not make the song authentically "Latin" while Kurt B. Reighley from Wall of Sound also criticized Aguilera's vocals by calling it "over the top" and stated she "cranks up her volume to ear-shattering levels, trying to wring emotion from each syllable in the same way that ordinary mortals squeeze dishwater from a sponge".
In December 2019, Aguilera performed the song, along with "Falsas Esperanzas" and "Pero Me Acuerdo de Ti", during the Mexican leg of her concert tour, The X Tour. In July 2021, she performed "Contigo en la Distancia" for two nights at the Hollywood Bowl with Gustavo Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
Il Divo version
* Il Divo, the vocal quartet of male singers; Swiss tenor Urs Buhler, Spanish baritone Carlos Marin, American tenor David Miller and French pop singer Sbastien Izambard, along with Colombian producer winner of multiple Grammy Latino Julio Reyes Copello, recorded the song for the album 'Amor & Pasin' from 'Il Divo' (2015).
Other versions
Jos Jos
Contigo en la distancia is a cover of the Mexican singers Jos Jos for his album Jos Jos 40 Anniversary, Vol. 4 published on July 6, 1999, by the stamp BMG Entertainment.ITUNES music
Plcido Domingo
Contigo en la distancia is a cover of the Spanish tenor Plcido Domingo for his album titled 'Passion' published on January 29, 2013, produced by David Foster.+
Mara Dolores Pradera
With you in the distance is a cover of the singer Mara Dolores Pradera for his album titled sing You a bolero published in 2008 in collaboration with The Sabandeos. Later it goes back to record in 2013 for the disk Thanks to you to duet with Sole Gimnez.
Other interpreters
'Only it shows some of the most stood out interpretations'
* David Archuleta
* David Bisbal
* Andrea Bocelli
* Dyango
* Jos Feliciano
* Olga Guillot
* Pedro Infante
* Eugenia Leon
* Los Machucambos
* Armando Manzanero
* Ricardo Montaner
* Belinda
* Luis Salinas
* Susana Zabaleta
* Lucho Gatica
References
Category:1946 songs
Category:1992 singles
Category:Boleros
Category:Cuban songs
Category:Christina Aguilera songs
Category:Luis Miguel songs
Category:Spanish-language songs
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