I like all kinds of music. Techno, Rock, Classical, Pop... it goes on and on. But in general I don't really care for Spanish music. Then why does this album get such a high rating from me, you might ask?

When I was six years old my father got a brand new high-fi sound system with huge, miraculously clean and rich sounding speakers. CD players were relatively new at the time, and we only had a few cds. One of the ones he used to play was this one. I have memories of listening this cd with him and being absolutely mezmorized by the vocals, which can only be described as magical. Since then I have heard many more vocals by the great Linda Ronstadt (perhaps most notably her unbelievable singing in the movie version of The Pirates of Penzance). But this album holds a special place in my heart. This cd was made back the days when high-fi really WAS high-fi. When the crystal-clear cd-audio was used to full effect. This cd is perfectly balanced, perfectly mastered. Truly amazing.

The vocals on this cd are just plain mind-blowing. They are what makes Linda Ronstadt one of my favorite singers. She can hold huge high notes with just the right amount of vibrato (at the top of her lungs) for what I would consider an insanely long period of time. But she doesn't sing just to impress. She sings from her heart.

If you love Linda Ronstadt, you need this album. If you love classic Spanish music, you need this album. If you just appreciate great singing, you need this album. Truly of the all-time greats.

I bought this CD when I started listening to Mexican music a short while ago and love it so much I ordered Mas Canciones within the month, just got Frenesi today. I read one or two reviews putting her down for this...why? Putting down the 'ay ay ay's" ...why? This is mariachi! I like her better doing this than country or 40's, it really rings true.The songs are lovely, lyrical, will make you cry even if you can't understand them. Try listening to Dos Arbolitos and you'll be won over! Her 2 brothers are also fabulous on this and on Mas Canciones. They should put out an album of their own. You'll love it. Buy it.

Though Linda Ronstadt's singing career has led me through an exhaustive exploration of many different styles of music, I never tire of growing along with her. This album and its follow-up, Mas Canciones, are cultural masterpieces and an homage to Linda's own Mexican heritage.

The songs are alternately sad and joyful, heart-rending and exuberant. When my kids were younger and we'd pack them 3-across in the backseat of our little Toyota, where they'd scream at each other and jockey for space, I would put on one of the two Canciones cassettes and Linda's music would never fail to bring them in line and have us all singing "Toro, toro, toro-o-o-o-!" or one of the other great ranchera songs that Linda introduced to us.

There has never been anyone in popular music who has so enriched our culture as Linda Ronstadt has. From early rock and folk rock to country-rock and pure C&W, from Gilbert & Sullivan to Puccini, from Nelson Riddle pop standards to lullabies and kids'-movie theme songs, and from Guadalajara to Havana and back, Linda seems to have no fear of blazing new trails for the modern American senses. How boring these past 35 years of popular music would have been without her!

I don't think Linda Ronstadt has ever received the recognition she deserves for just pure musical courage and an absolutely priceless taste in genres and styles. Buy Canciones de Mi Padre now, and grab a copy of Mas Canciones while you're at it!

I've had this album for years and I recommend it. And I've created a special category called "bringing a genre to the entire universe," for which I award Linda a 10.

But, I think it's important to have a context for where things come from and here it is: Buy Canciones, but also buy Miguel Aceves Mejia, something like Serie 20 Exitos, which contains some of the same songs. Please sit down before listening to Mejia (especially his version of Rogaciano) because your heart will stop and you will not be able to breathe. I guarantee you will die happy in a fit of goose bumps (with Linda you'll be happy but you'll live).

Nevertheless, the production quality on Canciones is solid, the mark of Ruben Fuentes evident, the song selection and liner notes are great and it's a wonderful introduction to this genre of beautiful traditional music. Ask for Tu Solo Tu in a restaurant in Oaxaca and you'll no longer feel like a tourist.

I am so blessed to have a copy of this beautiful album, recorded by Linda Ronstadt and the world reknown Mariachi Vargas (an amazing mariachi band). Though, Linda Ronstadt's transition from pop music into the mariachi repertoire of her father (a very talented mariachi musician) was dismissed as a novelty by some, it is beautiful music to my ears (as well as many others who have heard Ronstadt's interpretations of well-known mariachi songs). For starters, Linda has an expressive and clear range as a vocalist and it is evident that the influences of mariachi have moved her deeply as an artist. She has a wonderful, "fat" mariachi voice (what I mean by that is that she has the ability to really stretch out the long notes in a song that accent them with great feeling). This is a hallmark of mariachi vocalists, men and women alike. The most well-known songs are heard here. They include "Por Un Amor," "Tu Solo Tu" (recorded by Pedro Infante, and, later, by Selena, among many other artists), "Y Andale" and "Los Laureles."

From what I have heard, Linda Ronstadt immersed herself in mariachi as part of her research for this album (as well as MAS CANCIONES) and it shows. You can tell that she did her homework! Yet, Linda also succeeds at sounding distinctive and not merely like she is imitating the performances of others. What's more, Ronstadt and Mariachi Vargas sound as though they had been performing together for many years. The collaboration is terrific. If you aren't familiar with mariachi, its glorious melodies, beautiful instrumentation (with guitarron, guitar, and violin), this is a great introduction. I guarantee you will fall in love with this beautiful style of Mexican music after just hearing the first couple of tracks. Gorgeous.