Propelled by the enormous commercial success of their first two albums, the sensational pop-opera quartet
Il Divo present their third surefire chart-topper in less than a year. Fans who savored the romantic allure of the group's 2005
debut (and their heartwarming
holiday collection) will take just as much pleasure in
Ancora, which has already proved a smash hit in Europe before this US release. Moving decisively into poignant, Spanish-language songs of love and loss that are a perfect vehicle for their expressive voices, the group keeps one foot in the classics with adaptations of themes from the masters -- "All By Myself (Solo oltra vez)," based on Rachmaninoff, and Rodrigo's "En Aranjuez tu amor," a favorite of
Sarah Brightman and
Andrea Bocelli -- while also staking a claim to the more up-to-date with arrangements of
Mariah Carey's "Hero" and
Josh Groban's "You Raise Me Up," boosting the romantic fervor through heartfelt Spanish lyrics. As a bonus,
Celine Dion makes a guest appearance on "I Believe in You (Je crois en toi)" -- a gesture Il Divo reciprocates with the closing number, "Por que tu m'aimes encore," a touchstone of the Celine songbook. Backed by piano and lush string arrangements, with the added coloration of Spanish guitar on "Si tú me amas," Il Divo's latest ups the ante while staying true to the sentimental, operatically-inflected style that has thrust these four into "popera" stardom.
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