Ni es lo mismo ni es igual

Ni Es Lo Mismo Ni Es Igual
Studio album by Juan Luis Guerra
Released December 15, 1998
Recorded 1997
Genre Merengue, Bachata, Salsa, Acoustic
Length 37:24
Label KAREN
Producer Juan Luis Guerra
Juan Luis Guerra chronology
Fogaraté
(1994)
Ni Es Lo Mismo Ni Es Igual
(1998)
Colección Romantica
(2001)
Singles from Ni Es Lo Mismo Ni Es Igual
  1. "Mi PC"
    Released: 1998
  2. "Palomita Blanca"
    Released: 1998
  3. "El Niágara en Bicicleta"
    Released: 1999
  4. "La Hormiguita"
    Released: 1999

Ni Es lo Mismo Ni Es Igual (Spanish: Neither Is It The Same Nor Is It Equal) is the eighth studio album released by Dominican singer/songwriter Juan Luis Guerra and his backup vocals 4-40 in December 1998. The album production and song writing were done by Guerra himself. The album peaked #4 on the Top Latin Albums and #2 on the Tropical Albums chart and received a gold certification for selling over 400,000 copies. Two singles from the album reached #1 on the Hot Latin Tracks chart. The album was well received by critics; it received two Latin Grammy Awards as well as a nomination for Album of the Year.

Background

Juan Luis Guerra stated that his style of music was influenced by The Beatles, American rock, folk, R&B, jazz, and traditional Dominican music.[1] His style of songwriting has been known to take on a poetic feel and address romantic and social issues.[2] Guerra started his career with the release of Soplando. His fifth studio album, Bachata Rosa, received a Grammy Award for Best Tropical Album.[3] KAREN, a Dominican-independent record label,[4] was involved with Guerra's previous albums and helped produced Ni Es Lo Mismo Ni Es Igual. According to Guerra, he remained with KAREN because they gave him the opportunity to set up his own recording schedule.[2]

Writing and composition

For Ni Es Lo Mismo Ni Es Igual, Guerra continues his aforementioned take on songs about love and social issues. "El Niágara en Bicicleta" takes on the impossibility of obtaining medical treatment in a third world hospital, and compares it to crossing Niagara Falls on a bicycle. He based the song on a trip to a hospital in which the equipment were either unavailable or broken down.[5] The song "Mi PC" combines lyrics and the sound of merengue to compare a woman to a personal computer.[6] "Quisiera" is a salsa theme song that was co-written by Guerra and Colombian songwriter Kike Santander.[7] Guerra also produced ballad songs for the album such as "Testimonio" and "Amapola".[8] In addition, Guerra remade "Amor de Conuco" from his album, Mientras Más Lo Pienso...Tú,[9] into a ballad version.[10]

Commercial release

Album

Ni Es Lo Mismo Es Igual was released on December 15, 1998, four years after his previous album, Fogaraté, in 1994. The album debuted and peaked at #4 on Top Latin Albums, where it remained for two non-consecutive weeks.[11] On the Tropical Albums chart, the album also debuted and peaked at #2 for four consecutive weeks, in which the #1 spot was being held off by Elvis Crespo's Suavemente.[12] As of July 2004, the album has sold over 400,000 copies.[13]

Singles

Four singles were released from the album. The first single, "Mi PC", reached #1 on Hot Latin Tracks and became his second song to reach #1 on the chart.[14] The second single, "Palomita Blanca" (Little White Dove), also reached #1 on the Hot Latin Tracks chart.[15] The third single, "El Niágara en Bicicleta", peaked at #2 on the Hot Latin Tracks chart.[16] The fourth and final single, "La Hormiguita" (The Little Ant), only made the Latin Pop Airplay chart, peaking at #33.[17]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[8]
Wilson & Alroy's[10]

Ni Es Lo Mismo Ni Es Igual was met with positive reaction from critics. Evan Gutierrez of Allmusic gave the album a five-star rating, commenting that "Guerra offers delightful surprise in song after song."[8] David Wilson of Wilson & Alroy's gave the album a four-star rating, stating that, "after four years off, Guerra's melodic and lyrical gifts hadn't dissipated at all."[10] On the other hand, he called the re-recording of "Amor de Conuco" a "devastating remake".[10] Guerra expressed his surprise at the success of the album and compared it to one of his earlier albums, Bachata Rosa.[2]

On the 42nd Grammy Awards, the album received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Latin Pop Performance, which it lost to Tiempos by Ruben Blades.[18] At the first Latin Grammy Awards in 2000, the album received two Latin Grammy Awards for "Best Merengue Performance" and "Best Engineered Album".[19] The album was also nominated for Album of the Year, which it lost to Luis Miguel's Amarte Es Un Placer.[20]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Juan Luis Guerra. 

No. Title Length
1. "Mi PC"   3:16
2. "Vale la Pena"   3:27
3. "La Hormiguita"   3:04
4. "Quisiera"   3:50
5. "El Niágara en Bicicleta"   4:25
6. "Palomita Blanca"   3:44
7. "Testimonio"   4:18
8. "Amapola"   3:05
9. "El Primo"   3:47
10. "Sobremesa"   1:19
11. "Amor de Conuco (Bonus Track)"   3:09
Total length:
37:24

Credits and personnel

The following credits are from Allmusic. [21]

Performance credits

  • Edwin Bonilla Percussion
  • Ed Calle Baritone
  • Audrey Campos Vocals, coro
  • Frank Ceara Vocals, coro
  • Luis Enrique Percussion
  • Juan Luis Guerra Guitar, Arranger, Director, Producer, Vocal Arrangement
  • Lee Levin Drums, Programming
  • Mariela Mercado Vocals, coro

  • Jimmy Morales Conga
  • Juan Rizek Vocals, coro
  • Janina Rosado Writer
  • Arturo Sandoval Trumpet, Flugelhorn
  • Kike Santander Composer
  • Charlie Sierra Bongos, Timbales
  • Juan Valdez Piano
  • Eugenio Vanderhorst Writer

Technical credits

  • Carlos Alvarez Engineer
  • Scott Kirkland Assistant Engineer
  • Luis Mansilla Engineer
  • Carlos Ordehi Engineer
  • Eric Ramos Engineer
  • Eric Schilling Engineer, Mixing
  • July Ruiz Engineer

Chart performance

Chart (1999)[22] Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Top Heatseekers 24
U.S. Billboard Top Latin Albums 4
U.S. Billboard Tropical Albums 2

Sales and certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
United States (RIAA)[23] 2× Platinum (Latin) 200,000^

^shipments figures based on certification alone

References

  1. Small, Mark. "Juan Luis Guerra: Tropical Music Superstar". Berklee College of Music. Retrieved August 17, 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 Levin, Jordan (June 21, 2002). "Guerra's Music Mirrors Dominican Republic". The Miami Herald. Retrieved August 9, 2010. Bachata Rosa was so successful, I didn't believe I could ever do anything like that again
  3. "34th Grammy Awards - 1992". Rock On The Net. February 25, 1992. Retrieved August 17, 2010.
  4. Llewellyn, Howell (March 11, 2000). "Spain's GVM Picks Up 2 Labels' Distribution". Billboard (Nielsen Business Media, Inc.): LM-49. Retrieved August 17, 2010.
  5. Juárez, Celeste. "Juan Luis Guerra". in. Retrieved September 14, 2010.
  6. "Juan Luis Guerra Ni Es Lo Mismo Ni Es Igual CD". CD Universe. Retrieved August 18, 2010. The opening "Mi PC," for instance, sounds like a merengue, but the lyrics combine a subtle dose of eroticism with computer technology.
  7. "Quisiera". Allmusic. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
  8. 1 2 3 Gutierrez, Evan. "Ni Es Lo Mismo Ni Es Igual > Review". Allmusic. Retrieved August 6, 2010.
  9. "Mientras Mas Lo Pienso". Allmusic. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Wilson, David. "Wilson & Alroy's Record Reviews - Juan Luis Guerra". warr.org. Retrieved August 6, 2010.
  11. "Top Latin Albums – January 2, 1999". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. January 2, 1999. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
  12. "Tropical Songs - January 2, 1999". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. January 2, 1999. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
  13. "RIAA - Gold & Platinum". Gold and Platinum. RIAA. Retrieved 2008-11-06.
  14. "Mi PC - Juan Luis Guerra". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. December 26, 1999. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
  15. "Palomita Blanca – Juan Luis Guerra". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. March 20, 1999. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
  16. "El Niágara en Bicicleta- Juan Luis Guerra". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. May 29, 1999. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
  17. "La Hormiguita - Juan Luis Guerra". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. December 4, 1999. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
  18. Mangual, Rudolph (February 1, 2000). "The 42nd Annual GRAMMY Award Nominations.". Latin Beat Magazine. HighBeam Research. Retrieved August 17, 2010.
  19. Bashman, David (September 14, 2000). "Santana, Luis Miguel, Maná Lead Latin Grammy Winners". MTV. Retrieved August 17, 2010.
  20. Zahlaway, Jon (September 5, 2000). "'NSync, Son By Four, Jennifer Lopez, Gloria Estefan To Perform At Latin Grammys". MTV. Retrieved August 17, 2010.
  21. "Ni Es Lo Mismo Ni Es Igual - Credits". Allmusic. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
  22. "Ni Es Lo Mismo Ni Es Igual - Juan Luis Guerra y 440". Billboard.
  23. "American album certifications – Juan Luis Guerra – Ni Es Lo Mismo Ni Es Igual". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click Type, then select Latin, then click SEARCH
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