Pop: Shakira

I've discovered that most of the visitors at La Onda are male, so let's have a post about the lovely Shakira ;) Hips Don't Lie, her duet with Wyclef Jean, is quickly becoming the world hit we predicted it would be. Anyway, here's the Spanish version of the song: it's called "Sera Sera", and as usual she sings a lot better in her native language. Wyclef on the other hand... ;)
At least two artists wrongly accuse Shakira of plagiarism. Seems she did ask for permission after all... Though if you listen to this (Jerry Rivera- Amores Como El Nuestro) and this (Fernando Villalona - Baila en la Calle), you can't argue with them: it's exactly the same.

We all know Shakira's recent albums (Fijacion Oral 1, Oral Fixation 2, and Laundry Service) but you can find some real jewels on her previous work. MTV Unplugged (2000), Donde Estan Los Ladrones (1998) and Piez Descalzos (her 1996 breakthrough album) emphasize a more sensitive, more girlish Shakira. If you never heard Ojos Así (where she honours her Libanese roots with a part sung in Arab) or latin pop classic Inevitable, you haven't heard the real Shakira.

But the other day I found this remarkable post on Raw Like Sashimi, an Indian(!) music blog. It's Shakira's 1991 debut album "Magia", out of print and ripped from an original copy (in bad quality though). A few days later he posted more: the 1993 album "Peligro", also out of print.
Both albums are very, very cheesy, with an 80s-early 90s beat much like Miami Sound Machine used back in the days, and cheap synthesizer tunes. Though her vocal talents are already very obvious, it's clear Shakiras only a girl here, singing about boys, love and her quince años fiesta. Too bad the songs are so outdated.

(By the way, I don't like mp3 blogs that offer full album downloads (it's against the principle of "discovering music") but in this case it's perfectly legal as they're out of print!)

Shakira ft. Wyclef Jean - Sera Sera mp3