Esta Mañana y Otros Cuentos / Esta Manana y Otros Cuentos

A pleasant live recording highlighted by some superstar guests, Esta Mañana y Otros Cuentos was a welcome if curious way for Coti to follow up his 2004 album, Canciones Para Llevar. Curious because its release came only six months after the bonus-track-bolstered February 2005 re-release of Canciones Para Llevar. That was a nice little album of well-written and well-produced, if perhaps a little blandly performed, songs. It features a few really great songs, namely "Otra Vez," "Bailemos," and "Oleada," yet it wasn't as well received commercially as it probably should have been, considering its quality (and too, considering Coti's status as one of Latin music's leading hitmakers). Hence the value-added re-release as well as this live album, which seem intended by Universal Music Latino to push Coti onto music consumers a bit harder this go-round. Esta Mañana y Otros Cuentos does include several songs not previously released on Canciones Para Llevar, which is a draw, but the superstar guests who pop up on a number of songs are the real draw here. Chief among these guests are Julieta Venegas and Paulina Rubio, two grateful recipients of Coti's hitmaking talent. The two beautiful ladies duet with Coti individually and, best of all, they also join him on "Nada Fue un Error" for an all-star trio performance. While this song is far and away the best moment on Esta Mañana y Otros Cuentos — and no doubt the reason why a great many people will seek out this particular release in the first place — this is an album full of golden moments. Coti really is a great songwriter, and he pulls out all the standout songs from his debut album, most especially "Otra Vez," which he sings in conjunction with Rubio. As mentioned earlier, Coti's not the most colorful performer, which is why his music isn't as well appreciated as it probably should be, but if you don't expect fireworks from him as a performer, it's easy to enjoy him as a songwriter. And while that's fine, the fireworks brought to the overall performance by the assortment of guests do make Esta Mañana y Otros Cuentos an exceptional release by Coti. The all-star performance of "Nada Fue un Error" alone makes this release an event and thus more engaging than the sometimes ho-hum stretches of Canciones Para Llevar.