Marc Anthony can add another award to his collection after taking Best Tropical Album honors for Pa’lla Voy at last month’s Latin GRAMMYs ceremony. Anthony’s latest full-length recording is a celebration of all things salsa, according to the singer, who added album track “Mala” to his summertime sets in Europe and opened recent shows in South America with the title track as he makes his way back to the States for domestic dates and a Thursday night show at Michelob Ultra Arena inside Mandalay Bay.
Anthony would be doing fans who come for the hits a favor if he adds Pa’lla Voy’s “Gimme Some More” to his Marc Anthony Viviendo Tour. The song is an homage to “I Like It Like That,” first released in 1967 by Pete Rodriguez as a Latin-flavored boogaloo song during a year when the late salsa superstar Héctor Lavoe added vocals to Willie Colón’s album El Malo. That album became an international smash and was a ubiquitous sonic element in New York City’s Spanish Harlem when Anthony was born to Puerto Rican immigrants a year later.
Although Anthony was destined to become música tropical royalty, the music that was popular when he came of age was freestyle. He became in-demand as a session singer and formed a collaborative relationship with respected DJ Louie Vega before the lure of recording salsa became too strong to resist. By the time he released his fourth album, Contra la Corriente, in 1997, he was poised to ride the Latin music wave of the late ’90s and began scoring major hits such as the title track and “Y Hubo Alguien,” which have both been part of his sets this year.
His self-titled 1999 album was mostly recorded in English and became a crossover hit, while albums such as 2004’s Amar Sin Mentiras and 2013’s 3.0 would yield concert highlights “Valió la Pena” and “Vivir Mi Vida,” respectively. Anthony is less of a tabloid subject these days, eight years after his divorce from Jennifer Lopez, but the dance party energy released during his concerts hasn’t waned a bit.
Mandalay Bay, 8 p.m. Oct. 27, starting at $112, ticketmaster.com
Click here for your free subscription to the weekly digital edition of Las Vegas Magazine, your guide to everything to do, hear, see and experience in Southern Nevada. As part of your subscription, each week via email you will receive the latest edition of Las Vegas Magazine, full of informative content such as restaurants to visit, cocktails to sip and attractions to enjoy.
