ECDL - "Top 30 Songs" on UK iTunes Music Store

Just a fairly random post, this one... I check the UK iTunes Music Store pretty much daily to see if they’ve added any new ECDL material (and I’ve left feedback asking for *all* albums, including the entire ‘En Directo’ series, plus the En Directo videos and all promo videos - why not also leave feedback asking for similar; let’s see if we can get a load better representation of the band up there! - You should find an option labelled “Provide iTunes Feedback” under the main “iTunes” dropdown menu in your iTunes menu bar...) and I happened to click on the ‘Top Songs’ link for the band, and this is what you get...

(*Click to enlarge...)

Perhaps unsurprisingly Peter Pan occupies the top spot (this rating is for the song download, not the video as far as I’m aware) and Eres Tonto comes in at number 2 and also at number 16 (via the single). Beyond that it’s a fairly solid list of all the popular tracks you might expect, with the albums Personas and Zapatillas particularly well represented, and with only one live track (from iTunes only ‘En Directo’ album - Sala Caracol) in the entire top 30.

Sympathy & Support

Just a short message to say how desperately sad it is to hear of the loss of Dani's sister Miriam. She was married with a daughter, and died on February 9th at the age of 34, it is believed of a stroke.

Sincere wishes of sympathy, strength and support to Dani, his family and friends at such a difficult time.

El Canto Del Loco On The iTunes Music Store (UK)

There isn’t a huge amount of ECDL material on the (UK) iTunes Music Store at present. Given that Sony-BMG is behind the band it would be nice to think that this would not be too hard to change and that we might see some more albums, singles and videos being added.
Nonetheless it’s probably worth running through what’s available at the moment and making a couple of recommendations for anybody starting a collection or exploring the band’s output.

So what’s there? Well curiously it’s almost all the albums, although there’s a crucial omission in that A Contracorriente isn’t there. And whilst the other studio albums - El Canto Del Loco, Estados De Animo, Zapatillas, and Personas - are there, there’s also a couple of peculiar choices in the availability of one (and only one) of the live “En Directo” series (En Directo - Sala Caracol 22-11-02) and also the single of Eres Tonto (basically only that one song though - no other tracks).
On the bright side, all the album choices (and Eres Tonto) are available as “iTunes Plus” - Apple’s high quality, DRM-free format. And there’s also our iMix for those of you who want to dip your toes in the water.

The jewel in the crown? Well for me it has to be the video for Peter Pan - a beautiful piece of work for a beautiful song; all in big, clean, widescreen glory. It looks superb fullscreen on an iPhone, believe me.

That’s really about it at the moment - It would, without question, be great to have more material on there (especially some of the bands other promo videos - and why not the live sets from the “En Directo” DVDs too for example?). We’ll obviously share any news of new arrivals in the iTMS as and when they happen here on ElCantoDelLoco.co.uk.

"De Cerca" on Youtube

The band have posted "De Cerca" on their El Canto Del Loco Youtube Channel.
De Cerca is a 15 minute movie that appears on the DVD in the "De Personas A Personas" set, and focuses on the band's 2008 - from launching the Personas album, pulling together a very very nifty stage show, promos, signings, the departure of Jandro, and some excellent live clips.
Highly recommended...
Sadly it's not possible to share the Youtube video here as they've diabled embedding on it, so you'll have to click here to go and watch it.

Translated Lyrics No1 :: Volvera

For English fans of a Spanish band, it's often difficult to enjoy the music on every level as the question of translation of lyrics gets in the way. As with English bands, there is always going to be a degree of colloquial wording and grammar, of abstract concepts, and probably some slang too. So a straightforward translation is always pretty unlikely.
We've tracked down some translations however (thanks to the website Ooltra) which don't seem bad at all and help convey a lot of meaning, which will hopefully enable you (and us) get more out of the songs.
First up is Volvera from the album Zapatillas. More will be posted over the coming weeks. Enjoy... :-)

Volverá

It Will Return

Me acuerdo y pienso en el tiempo Que llevábamos sin vernos. Dos niños pequeños Que lo sentían todo Y lo sigo sintiendo hoy por ti Recuerdos que tengo y no entiendo Que dejáramos de vernos. Buscando mil besos Que no son nuestros besos. Deseo estar contigo hasta morir Coro: { Desesperándome Te buscaba en mis sueños Y ahogándome. Volverá Seguro que volverá. Lo sigo sintiendo y te echo de menos ¿Qué acabe mi soledad? Volverá Te juro que volverá Ese amor verdadero De cuando era pequeño. Seguro que volverá. Volverá } Te miro en el tiempo y siento Que tú eres lo que quiero. Mi niña, mi sueño Todo eso que no tengo Y que sigo sintiendo hoy por ti Incluso en mis sueños Me invento y me creo que te tengo Que toco tu cuerpo Y sé que eso no es cierto Y que estoy acojonándome sin ti {Coro} x 2

I remember and I think of the time That we used to spend without seeing each other. Two small children That used to feel everything And I keep on feeling it for you today Recollections that I have and do not understand That used to stop us from seeing each other. Looking for a thousand kisses That are not our kisses. I desire to be with you until death Chorus: { Waking myself up I was looking for you in my dreams And suffocating. It will return I am sure that it will return. I keep on feeling it and I miss you What would end my loneliness? It will return I swear to you that it will return That true love From when I was small. I am sure that it will return. It will return } I look at you over time and I feel That you are what I want. My girl, my dream All that which I do not have And that I keep on feeling for you today Even in my dreams I imagine and believe that I have you That I am touching your body And I know that that is not certain And that I am daunted without you {Chorus} x 2

Lyric translation by Ooltra.net
If you reckon you can offer improvements then do please get in touch.

El Canto Del Loco "Taster" iMix on iTunes

If you're something of a newcomer to the world of El Canto Del Loco, then you may want to get a good general idea of their sound and style before going out and buying all of their albums.
To try and address this I pulled together an iMix (effectively a "playlist" that you can buy through the iTunes Music Store) and have put it online at iTMS.
It's 15 tracks drawn from Personas, Zapatillas, and Estados de Animo (ie: the albums available on iTMS), and it clocks in at a mere £11.85. There's a nice mix of styles, from the ballady Ya Nada Volvera A Ser Como Antes and the punky Zapatillas through to the more outright rock/anthemic Volvera and Sera.
I hope you'll find it a good introduction if you're dipping your toes in the water.
And don't forget to rate it...
Click here to jump to "An ECDL iMix" in iTunes...

Video: "La Pelicula" Trailer on Youtube

This is the trailer for El Canto Del Loco's big screen documentary "La Pelicula" which was released in Spanish cinemas in the new year.
There's now also a bunch of other clips from the film up on the band's Youtube channel - and we'll be sure to share any news of it cropping up on DVD on Amazon or eBay in due course (as we very much hope it will!)

"Personas" Tops Spain's 2008 Album Sales

According to Billboard.biz Spain’s top selling album in 2008 was El Canto Del Loco's "Personas" (Sony Music), which moved 187,000 units. This was followed by Miguel Bosé's "Papito" (Warner), with 153,000 units sold; that set was also Spain's top-selling album of 2007. Amy Winehouse was third, with 147,000 sales of "Back To Black" (Universal). Only four other albums sold more than 100,000 units.

For ECDL and for ECDL fans, it was a ray of sunshine against a fairly bleak outlook for Spain's music market, which continued to slump in 2008, falling by 10.4% in combined physical and digital sales value to €254.4 million ($338 million). It was the eighth consecutive music sales drop... at the beginning of the decade, annual physical sales totalled more than €600 million ($796.6 million) in value. An 8.1% increase in digital sales in 2008 to €29.2 million ($38.8 million) was not enough to make up for a 12.4% fall in physical sales to €225.2 million ($299.3 million), according to figures released by labels' body Promusicae.
"The results are devastating," according to Promusicae president Antonio Guisasola. "The culture of 'everything is free' and 'zero scruples' remains alive and well in the Spanish Internet, while the authorities have still not taken any measures to protect the music sector."

Read the full article here...

El Canto Del Loco - Downloads

Desktop Wallpaper - "Personas"

(Widescreen format)

Click here to download 1440x900 version (JPEG)

Click here to download 1280x800 version (JPEG)

El Canto Del Loco - Weblinks

Here's some links to other useful El Canto Del Loco resources on the web; some of them are official and some are unofficial. Please feel free to contact us with new links and info...

El Canto Del Loco Official Website (*Spanish)
El Canto Del Loco Myspace Page
El Canto Del Loco Youtube Page
El Canto Del Loco Merchandise
El Canto Del Loco On Facebook
UK Fans Of El Canto Del Loco On Facebook
El Canto Del Loco Lyrics In English
El Canto Del Loco Fansite (*Spanish)

El Canto Del Loco - Discography

(*Not currently including 'Live' sets)
Click for further information and track listings...

De personas a personas

28 November 2008

19 Tracks (60:10)

Personas

01 April 2008

13 Tracks (49:17)

Arriba el telón

17 December 2007

Ineditas CD = 14 Tracks (45:06)

Zapatillas

21 June 2005

13 Tracks (41:31)

Estados de ánimo

22 May 2003

12 Tracks (39:37)

A contracorriente

01 March 2002

12 Tracks (40:07)

El Canto del Loco

16 June 2000

12 Tracks (41:47)

ALBUM: De personas a personas

De personas a personas

Release Date: 28 November 2008

Label: Sony BMG

Length: 60:10

Synopsis

Limited edition of 'Personas' + DVD

- 6 new songs 

- A DVD with a documentary, the 3 videos for Eres Tonto, the video for Peter Pan, a Making Of the nude photo-shoot in la Plaza de Toros de Las Ventas by the photographer Rubén Martín.

- A poster of the nude photo-shoot.

- A blank diary for fans.

- A diary written by the band and the technical team.

Track Listing

1 :: Personas

2 :: Quiero ser

3 :: Corazón

4 :: Acabado en A

5 :: Eres tonto

6 :: Peter Pan

7 :: Madrid

8 :: La vida

9 :: Vivir a ras de suelo

10 :: La suerte de mi vida

11 :: Un millón de cicatrices

12 :: Todo lo hago mal

13 :: Foto en blanco y negro 2008

14 :: Fin de semana

15 :: Eh tú!!!

16 :: Cruce de caminos

17 :: Gigante

18 :: Gracias

19 :: H.D.P.

ALBUM: Personas

Personas

Release Date: 01 April 2008

Label: Sony BMG

Length: 49:17

Track Listing

1 :: Corazón

2 :: Acabado en a

3 :: Eres tonto

4 :: Peter Pan

5 :: La vida

6 :: Personas

7 :: Fin de semana

8 :: Eh tú

9 :: Todo lo hago mal

10 :: La suerte de mi vida

11 :: Un millón de cicatrices

12 :: Gigante

13 :: Gracias

ALBUM: Arriba el telón

Arriba el telón

Release Date17 December 2007

Label:Sony BMG

This is an extensive collection of the band's work, including:

- El canto del loco

- A contracorriente

- Estados de ánimo

- Zapatillas

- CD with rarities and b-sides (see track list)

- A DVD with interviews and a preview of the new CD

Track Listing for 'Ineditas' CD

1 :: Loco

2 :: Chica de ayer (discarded song for A contracorriente)

3 :: Soledad (version of Volverá)

4 :: Y si pudiera tenerte (Sin Fin soundtrack)

5 :: 7 Vidas (opening tune of the series from 2004 on)

6 :: Siempre cerca (version of the song with a different refrain)

7 :: Sentada en esta vida (discarded song for Estados de ánimo)

8 :: Puede ser (Dani only)

9 :: Como dice el aire

10 :: A los ojos (discarded song for Estados de ánimo)

11 :: Tu diablo (discarded song for Estados de ánimo)

12 :: Entonces (Sin Fin soundtrack)

13 :: Besos G.P. (version changed for MotoGP)

14 :: Pot ser (Catalan version of Puede Ser for La Marató de TV3)

ALBUM: Zapatillas

Zapatillas

Release Date21 June 2005

Label:BMG

Length:41:31

Track Listing

1 :: Canciones

2 :: Volverá

3 :: Zapatillas

4 :: Será

5 :: Besos

6 :: Vuelve

7 :: Despiértame

8 :: Úsanos

9 :: El pescao

10 :: Qué caro es el tiempo

11 :: Desaparece

12 :: Tal como eres

13 :: Por ti

ALBUM: Estados de ánimo

Estados de ánimo

Release Date: 22 May 2003

Label: Sony BMG

Length: 39:37

Track Listing

1 :: Volver a disfrutar

2 :: La madre de José

3 :: Ya nada volverá a ser como antes

4 :: Insoportable

5 :: Dentro de mí

6 :: Otra vez

7 :: Siempre cerca

8 :: Como un perro ladrando

9 :: Ekix

10 :: Una foto en blanco y negro

11 :: No voy a parar

12 :: Te recuerdo (bonus track)

ALBUM: A contracorriente

A contracorriente

Release Date: 01 March 2002

Label: Sony BMG

Length: 40:07

Track Listing

1 :: Son sueños

2 :: Preguntas

3 :: Vámonos

4 :: Puede ser (duet with Amaia Montero)

5 :: A contracorriente

6 :: Una salida

7 :: Contigo

8 :: Tremendo

9 :: Súper héroe

10 :: Para siempre

11 :: Crash

12 :: Aquellos años locos (bonus track)

ALBUM: El Canto del Loco

El Canto del Loco

Release Date: 16 June 2000

Label: Sony BMG

Length: 41:47

Track Listing

1 :: Pequeñita

2 :: Llueve en mí

3 :: Eres un canalla

4 :: Pasión

5 :: Traidora

6 :: He vuelto a caer

7 :: Sin mitad

8 :: No quiero nada

9 :: El agricultor

10 :: Y si el miedo

11 :: Busco la vida

12 :: Vivir así es morir de amor

El Canto Del Loco - Biography

Hailing from Madrid in Spain, El Canto Del Loco was started as a project by two acting students who shared a passion for Spanish power pop / rock. Daniel Martin Garcia (aka Dani Martin) and Ivan Alejandro Ganchegui were soon joined by guitarist David Otero, drummer Alejandro Velazquez Insua (Jandro), and bassist Jose Maria Ruiz Cesares (aka Chema Ruiz).
After recording a demo and asigning with BMG-Ariola, El Canto Del Loco recorded a self-titled album produced by Alejo Stivel, featuring the band’s first hit “Pequiñita”, and a cover of Camilo Sesto’s “Vivir Asi Es Morir de Amor”.

The band’s second album A Contracorriente (2002) was produced by Nigel Walker (who also produced La Oreja de Van Gogh among others) and sold over 85,000 copies, reaching number 10 on the Spanish charts.
After this album Ganchegui departed the band, leaving a four man line-up.
Their third album, Estados de Animo, also produced by Nigel Walker, was released in 2003 and hit number 4 in the charts after selling more than 100,000 copies and going platinum.
En Directo Sala Bikini, a recording of a live set in Barcelona, was released at the beginning of 2004.

The next year El Canto Del Loco released their fourth studio album, Zapatillas, featuring the title track as a single. This effort cemented the band’s reputation; it reached the top of the chats after selling over 100,000 copies in the first week of its release. With this album the band joined Hombres G for a tour around Spain.
After the release of two more live sets, Directo Sala Caracol and Directo Sala Oasis - and a combo box set of 3 CDs and 3 DVDs of all the Directo albums - Pequeños Grandes Directos, their fifth studio album, Personas, was released in April 2008 amidst great expectations and to huge critical acclaim and commercial success, becoming Spain’s top selling album of the year.

Jandro left the band in the summer and the remaining three - Dani, David & Chema - released an extended special edition box, De Personas A Personas towards the end of the year, featuring several extra tracks and a DVD of bonus material centring on the release, promotion and touring of Personas.