Contra La Corriente (Marc Anthony Album) - Critical Reception and Legacy

Critical Reception and Legacy

Contra la Corriente received mostly positive reviews from critics, who praised Marc Anthony's singing. Terry Jenkins of Allmusic gave the album a 4.5 out of 5 and praised Anthony's vocals as being "sexy" and "near-flawless" though he felt that it "doesn't quite match the dizzying heights of his breakthrough Todo a Su Tiempo". David Wilson of Wilson & Alroy's Record Reviews called the tunes "solid" and praised Anthony's voice but criticized Peña's production as being "slavishly" similar to the previous album. Achy Obejas of the Chicago Tribune names Contra la Corriente as Anthony's best album and felt that the influence of Cuban music was prominent "in the rhythms and harmonies" in comparison to Los Van Van. Ernesto Lechner of the Los Angeles Times, who was more critical of the album, gave it two-out-of-four stars criticizing the arrangements as "unbearably soapy" and called the album a "flawed masterpiece in the saccharine genre of salsa romantica." An editor for Billboard magazine felt Anthony should "build on his towering reputation" reputation with another radio-appropriate package". Contra la Corriente was named the eighth best album of 1997 by Time magazine stating that "...whether you habla espanol or not, Anthony's talent comes through, no translation needed".

At the 41st Grammy Awards, Contra la Corriente was given a Grammy Award for Best Tropical Latin Album. Billboard awarded the album "Tropical Album of the Year by a Male Artist", citing that the album became the highest selling salsa album when it charted the Billboard 200. The single "Y Hubo Alguien" received a Billboard Latin Music Award and a Lo Nuestro award for "Tropical Song of the Year".

This would be the last time that Anthony worked with the RMM label. After disputes with Ralph Mercado over business practices, he left the record label and later signed on with Columbia Records to record his first self titled English album.