Muñequito De Trapo (English: Rag Doll) is the fourth album released by Selena y Los Dinos and the second album that Selena recorded with GP Records. Released on June 29, 1986, it was produced by Manny R. Guerra. It was preceded by the lead single "A Million to One", which initially gave the album its title.
The songs and hard work that went into this album helped Selena win another Tejano Music Award for Female Vocalist of the Year and several other nominations at various award shows.
In the year 2007, the album was reissued within a series under the name of Classic Series, Vol. 2, by the record company Q Productions. In this, the tenth song "El Circo" was substituted (because it is an instrumental solo), being changed by the original version of 1986, "Aunque No Salga El Sol", recorded later in 1990 for the second studio album. with EMI, Ven Conmigo.
Background[]
In 1986, the family group already had the idea of recording a next album. For this, Abraham Quintanilla was in charge of bringing together the most famous composers of those times (most of whom were born in Corpus Christi, TX). In that same year, when Selena was 15 years old, one of her favorite singers was Rocío Dúrcal. Selena heard it for the first time performing the song "Diferents" and it immediately became one of her favorite songs. When the time came to choose the songs for this album, Selena made sure that this song would be among the songs to be recorded.
Composition[]
After their debut album Selena Y Los Dinos, the group had not had the opportunity to record another song in English. It was because of this that they decided to record the song "A Million to One", a cover of singer Jimmy Charles and written by Phil Medley. This song became the second official single from the album. Another famous songwriter who made an appearance on the album was Johnny Herrera (credited on the album as Juan H. Barrón), who composed 4 of 10 songs. Another famous interpretation was the song "Enamorada de Ti", written by Daniela Romo and Danilo Vaona and performed for the first time by Romo in 1984. Juan Gabriel also gave the green light for the group to perform his composition "Diferentes", which would make it known. Durcal. "El Ramalazo" was written by the famous Mexican composer, Tomás Méndez. It was originally recorded by Luis Aguilar in the 60's.
Production and recording[]
Like the previous album Alpha, this album was produced by Manny R. Guerra. It was recorded between November 1986 and January 1987 at "Amen Studios" in San Antonio, Texas. The recording and mixing were carried out by Manny Guerra and Abraham Quintanilla, while the musical arrangements and final touches were in charge of the members of the band (A.B. Quintanilla, Ricky Vela and Roger García).
Promotion[]
"Muñequito De Trapo" is the first radio single released from the album. It was released on local radio stations on February 20, 1987, exactly six days before the release of the full album. This single was nominated in the "Single of the Year" category at the Mike Chavez Awards of 1986.
"A Million to One" was the second and final radio single from the album. Like the first, it was sent to local radio stations on July 29, 1987. The song is a cover of American singer Jimmy Charles, recorded in 1960. It was written by composer Phil Medley. This single earned a nomination in the "Single of The Year" category at the 1986 Mike Chavez Awards.
Tracklisting[]
| # | Title | Length | Writer(s) | Featured Guest(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brindis De Amor | 2:53 | Juan H. Barron | |
| 2 | A Million To One | 3:07 | Jimmy Charles | |
| 3 | El Ramalazo | 2:43 | Tomas Mendez | |
| 4 | La Mirada | 2:47 | Juan H. Barron | |
| 5 | Rama Caida | 3:50 | Juan H. Barron | |
| 6 | Diferentes | 2:50 | Juan Gabriel | |
| 7 | Munequito De Trapo | 2:53 | Juan H. Barron | |
| 8 | Cuando Despierto | 3:44 | Ricky Vela | |
| 9 | Enamorada De Ti | 3:13 | Abraham Quintanilla III & Pete Astudillo | |
| 10 | El Circo | 2:48 | Ricky Vela |
Trivia[]
- On November 5, 1996, the first remix album entitled "Siempre Selena" was released. The song "A Million to One" was compiled on it and modified for an R&B version. It was mixed by A.B. Quintanilla and produced by Abraham Quintanilla.
- "A Million to One" appeared on the compilation "The Selena Collection" in 1997.
- On April 7, 1998, Selena's second remix album entitled "Anthology" was released. For this album, the songs "El Ramalazo", "Diferentes" and "Rama Caída" were taken, all in new mariachi versions. In addition, the song "Enamorada de Ti" was remixed in a cumbia version.
- "Muñequito de Trapo" was compiled on the compilation album "All My Hits, Vol. 2", released on November 4, 2000.
- The songs "Rama Caída", "Diferentes", "La Mirada", "El Ramalazo", "Cuando Despierto" and "Brindis de Amor" were selected for the Q-Productions compilation, Selena Y Sus Inicios, Vol. 2 , published on March 9, 2004. The song "Enamorada de Ti" was released on Selena Y Sus Inicios, Vol. 3 on August 24, 2004, while the songs "A Million to One" and "La Mirada" appeared again on Selena Y Sus Inicios, Vol. 4 on November 2, 2004.
- Although the song "Aunque No Salga El Sol" is not exclusive to this album, it was added to its 2007 reissue. The song was recorded and released in 1986 as part of a series of singles under Cara Records. In 1990, the song was re-recorded for her second solo studio album Ven Conmigo.