Natalie Cole en Español Natalie Cole Verve/Universal It's been four years since Natalie Cole received a kidney from a Salvadoran donor, and the singer says it not only connected her to Hispanic culture, but it also gave her the desire to record her first post-operation album - totally in Spanish. "I don't believe in coincidences. I believe everything happens for a reason. Because this was a Latin family, I feel like I'm part Latino now. That [made] the desire to make this record even stronger," Cole says of Natalie Cole en Español. Produced by Cuban-American Rudy Perez, the 12-track album is a compilation of Latin American classics, plus a Spanish-language version of the Beatles' And I Love Her . It includes such titles as Solamente Una Vez by the late Mexican singer Agustin Lara, El Dia Que Me Quieras by Argentine Carlos Gardel and a medley of Voy a Apagar la Luz and Contigo Aprendi by Mexican Armando Manzanero, as well as two duets: Besame Mucho with Italian Andrea Bocelli, and Bachata Rosa with Dominican music legend Juan Luis Guerra. The album title is reminiscent of her famous father Nat King Cole's Cole Español , which brought him love and recognition in Spanish-speaking countries. In fact, a recording of Nat doing Acércate Más in 1956 was recently discovered, and father and daughter sing a "duet" of the song on this new album.
