Mi Tierra

Mi Tierra is Gloria Estefan's third studio and first Spanish-language album that was released on June 22, 1993 by Epic Records.
==Album Background==
Gloria Estefan had wanted to record a Spanish-language album reflecting her Cuban heritage since the beginning of her musical career. Before recording in English, she and her band performed at Latin nightclubs.
Music had an important role in Estefan's family; her paternal grandmother was a poet, and an uncle played the flute in a salsa band. She also remembered that her grandmother teaching her old Cuban songs. 
Estefan's desire to record an album in Spanish was also influenced by her son, Nayib because she wanted him to recognize his Cuban heritage.
===Production===
"Mi Tierra" was produced by Estefan's husband, Emilio Estefan, and fellow Miami Sound Machine members Clay Ostwald and Jorge Casas.
The album features notable Latin musicians, including Nestor Torres, Cachao López, Paquito Hechavarría, Chamin Correa, Paquito D'Rivera, Arturo Sandoval, Luis Enrique and Tito Puente. Additional performers include Sheila E. and the London Symphony Orchestra.
The album was recorded at Crescent Moon Studios in Miami, Florida. Celia Cruz was invited to perform, but she was unable to do so due to her touring schedule. The album's cover features Estefan in a black-and-white photo at a Havana nightclub before the Cuban Revolution.
==Tracklisting==
#Con Los Años Que Me Quedan	
#Mi Tierra	
#Ayer	
#Mi Buen Amor	
#Tus Ojos	
#No Hay Mal Que Por Bien No Venga	
#¡Sí Señor! ...	
#Volverás	
#Montuno	
#Hablemos El Mismo Idioma	
#Hablas De Mí	
#Tradición
==Chart Performance==
In the United States, "Mi Tierra" peaked at #27 on the Billboard 200 chart. It was the first number-one album on the Billboard Top Latin Albums chart, established when it was released.
The album spent a total of 58 weeks atop the chart, until it was displaced by Selena's album, "Amor Prohibido" the week of June 11, 1994. It was more successful on the Billboard Tropical Albums chart, where it spent 91 weeks on top.
The album debuted at number one on the Billboard Latin Pop Albums chart the week of July 10, 1993, but it was removed from the chart following week because it did not meet its criteria.
"Mi Tierra" ended 1994 as the best-selling Latin album of the year in the United States. It was certified 16× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America by Latin standards, for shipments of 1.6 million copies in the U.S.
As of October 2017, the album sold 1,232,000 copies in the U.S., making it the sixth bestselling Latin album in the country.
According to Billboard, most purchasers did not speak Spanish. In Latin America, the album was certified double platinum in Argentina and triple platinum in Mexico. It sold over 30,000 copies in Chile.
In Europe, "Mi Tierra" peaked at number fifty-nine in Germany, number nine in the Netherlands,[32] number one in Spain, number twenty-five in Switzerland and number eleven in the United Kingdom. The album was certified 10× platinum in Spain (for shipping one million copies) and certified gold in Switzerland.
The album also sold 200,000 in England. It was the 60th-best-selling album of the 1990s; by 2006, it sold over eight million copies worldwide.
==Critical Reception==
Jose F. Promis of Allmusic awarded the album four stars out of five, calling it "one of [Estefan's] most satisfying." He also described it as "a breezy, sunny album with moments of melancholy," and "one of her most consistent albums to date."
Achy Obejas of the Chicago Tribune gave the album four out of four stars, praised it as "dispensing with the brash sound of more contemporary salsa" and lauded Emilio Estefan for the album's production.
Anne Hurley of Entertainment Weekly said that the album "will whirl you through an intoxicating landscape of traditional Cuban rhythms and aromatic flavors," and applauded the guest musicians on the album.
Parry Gettelman of the Orlando Sentinel gave "Mi Tierra" four out of five stars, commending the album as "uncompromising, offering up songs and arrangements firmly rooted in Cuban traditions."
He compared it to Estefan's earlier recordings with the Miami Sound Machine, including her musical style and songwriting: "She ditches the synths and employs the London Symphony Orchestra's strings to graceful effect...abandoning melodrama for real color and emotional shading."
John Lannert described "Mi Tierra" for the Sun-Sentinel as "Estefan`s Latin 'unplugged' album" and her "most satisfying effort to date."
Category:1990s albums
Category:Latin
Category:Jazz