There are not many albums that I can listen to without wanting to skip over a song or two, even when I am trying to subjectively dissect it. Another album comes to mind, Timbiriche 7, which has been debated on being one of, or even, the greatest Latin pop albums of all time. I can say, Fandango’s Hola, Que Tal comes pretty close.
As I sat in the car with the windows closed and the volume up, I turned on Hola, Que Tal, and began looking at each of the songs, openly and critically. I am not one to hold back on my comments about the music, even when it comes to people I love and I know. I think it almost makes me a little more critical. At one time, Patricia Manterola and I sat down and discussed her entire discography and I had to tell her that one of her albums was a complete piece of crap. She agreed. So when I look at Fandango, I don’t go into this review as a friend or a fangirl/boy. Honestly, I hate people who love an artist and think that everything they do is the best thing ever. I am not like that and will never be like that.
This brings me back to Fandango and the group’s third (or fourth depending on the way you look at it.). As I said, at no time during my listening did I want to turn off a song because of its lack of substance that it brought to the album as a whole? While there may be some weaker tracks, nothing screamed out at me like it did not belong.
Following up the success of the album, Autos, Moda Y Rock and Roll, EMI continued with their dream team of producers, Loris Ceroni, J.R. Florez, and Miguel Blasco. It worked once, it would work again. And it did. While the previous album was a summer party of songs, this new album bit a little harder and deeper. Many of the tracks had a harder beat and were not typical of what you would expect. Songs like “Demasiado Joven” and “Alta Tension” were just different enough to take the group to the next level, though those were not the songs that the girls performed on television during the promotion of the album.
The title track, “Hola, Que Tal” was the first single off the album. The girls followed up that song on television with “La Cuidad Es Un Oceano De Amor” and “Ricas Y Famosas,” both tracks that fans and the public could relate to this pop quintet. The songs are perfect pop hits that were catchy and ideal for the group. I remember the girls first debuting this album in orange and white matching outfits. It worked and they were just awesome.
Back when the album was released, I was not a big fan of the one ballad on the album but as an adult and more musically knowledgeable, the song has a place and a purpose. It showcases the angelical harmony that the girls had together but wasn’t overly sugar-coated like many ballads are. I wondered if I would have wanted to skip over it during this review; it fell at the perfect place and time on this album.
Overall, if I wanted to show someone why I love the group Fandango, I would start with this album. While the song, “Autos, Moda Y Rock and Roll” may be their anthem, this album is the showcase of everything that makes Fandango great.
Since that day, I have been study Latin pop and rock music and have become a Latin pop music historian through the publishing of articles, fanzine, and websites. My goal is to teach people about Latin pop music and the history behind it with my website, Siempre En Domingo.
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