Yes before we go any further, this video collection from the star of Latin pop music is all in Spanish. If you like his music then this won’t make too much difference, but if you are looking for a collection of his standard chart toppers then this is not it.

Now for those that are still here, here’s a brief rundown of the phenomenon that is Ricky Martin, are you ready? Un, Dos, Tres!

Ricky Martin first found fame as a 12 year old back in 1984 in Latin America with the boy band Menudo. The Puerto Rican was the lead singer with the band for five years and they became popular both within Latin America and internationally. He returned home to Puerto Rico in 1989 to complete his high school education and then decided to move to New York. After taking a break for a few months he returned to the entertainment industry and acted on stage in Mexico for a year. 1991 saw the release of his first solo album, which received huge success. The self-titled album was co-written with fellow ex-Menudo member Robi Rosa. His second album Me Amaras followed in 1993 and achieved even greater success than the first. In 1994 he joined the cast of soap opera General Hospital in the role of Miguel Morez. From the success of this role he went on to perform on Broadway in the hit musical Les Miserables, earning much acclaim.

1995 saw the release of his third album A Medio Vivir and although still featuring the standard Latin themes, it also contained a harder edge. Album number four was Vuelve in 1998 when Ricky Martin had now established himself as a leader in Latin American music internationally. He had a huge international hit with Maria even though it was predominantly in Spanish and followed this with the release of his first English album in 1999, this was again self-titled. Sound Loaded was released in 2000 which included the smash hit She Bangs, again placing him at the top of the world charts.

As mentioned, La Historia is a collection of the Spanish language videos of Ricky Martin. There are some well known hits here, but don’t expect the standard “Spanglish� versions that are so prominent on the charts. This is not a bad thing though, after all he is Latin American, but please be warned that this is not a collection of the videos seen on TV video chart shows, well not entirely.

Track listing:

With a running time of 58:34 this is an entertaining collection from the Latin sex bomb. Highlights are of course the better known songs, but fans will be delighted to see videos that otherwise would never be aired in this country. Ricky Martin is a born entertainer and although he has the looks, he backs this up with a fine singing voice and terrific showmanship. Fans should be more than pleased with this collection.

Being a collection of video clips, the transfer quality varies as you might expect, but generally it is very good. The picture is sharp throughout with the only minor problems being some grain and the odd instance of aliasing. Colours are mostly natural and detail is also good. These are basically what you would expect to see on any music video television program. The majority of clips are in full frame and therefore not 16x9 enhanced and there are no subtitles supplied.

Audio supplied is a choice of English PCM Stereo or Dolby Digital 5.1 surround. Now I say English even thought these music clips are the Spanish versions because a couple of them are “Spanglish� and therefore contain some English lyrics - not many but some. The PCM track is very good and of CD quality, offering a nice full sound. The DD 5.1 track is much better, keeping the main vocals across the front speakers and using the rears well for balance. The subwoofer gets a fair bit of use through the bassy Latin sounds and synch is never a problem, apart from the odd miming issue.

There are a couple of nice extras here for fans. First is a video biography in either English or Spanish. This featurette runs for 11:22 and includes interviews with Ricky and looks at his popularity. Next is a photo gallery consisting of ten pictures of Ricky in typical poses. Timeline is the next extra, and it's made up of several text pages covering Ricky's career year by year. This feature is also available in Spanish with the title La Historia. Lastly there's a discography containing pictures of each album with a track listing.

Overall this is something that Ricky Martin fans will enjoy, not only for the music but to see his ever changing hairstyles, going from clean cut to mullet in no time at all. His Latin driven music is very addictive, so even non fans will enjoy this release, however some may be disappointed that it doesn't feature his better known English versions. Personally I feel it is a welcome relief to see artists such as this singing in their native tongue rather than the more commercial English, thankfully Ricky Martin can offer both, just not on this DVD.