Man of many names, succeeds with his own

[MikeHunt]

Man of many names succeeds with his own

By Edna Gundersen, USA TODAY

Who he is: After writing hits for Ricky Martin, singer/producer/composer Robi Draco Rosa is living la vida solo. The 13-track Mad Love (12 tracks in English, one in Spanish), with its unbridled passion, driving Latin punk-rock rhythms and exotic jazz-tinged flourishes, could be Rosa's front-stage pass. Due March 30, it's his fourth solo effort, following 1994's Frio (later released in English as Songbirds & Roosters), 1996's Vagabundo and 2001's Libertad del Alma. (Related clip: Listen to a bit of Dancing in the Rain)

Don't worry that Robi Draco Rosa gave all his good songs away to Ricky Martin. The guy who wrote La Vida Loca has plenty of good material still up his sleeve.

Who else he is: Rosa, 33, has made several names for himself. Born Robert Edward Suarez Rosa on Long Island, he moved at age 7 to Puerto Rico, where he joined Menudo in 1983 and became the first to resign from the popular boy band three years later. He relocated to Brazil and recorded songs in Portuguese as Draco Cornelius. He founded funk-rock band Maggie's Dream under the moniker Robert Rosa. In the mid-'90s, he adopted nom de plume Ian Blake to collaborate with former Menudo mate Martin. He's Dolores del Infante on tracks he produced for Latin songbird Ednita Nazario. To son Revel, 9, he's simply Dad.

Background music: Rosa's eclectic tastes started in boyhood. His father relished salsa, Julio Iglesias and Frank Sinatra. His mother took Rosa to boxing matches at a community center, where The Who, The Beatles, The Doors and Marvin Gaye blared from speakers. Then silence fell. Rosa recalls, "When my mom passed away, my dad said, 'No more music for six months.' He was so traumatized. One night he started listening to Beethoven. It was the only music we could hear for a long time. I love symphonies. It's one of the few times you'll catch Draco crying."

Teen training: He doesn't regret his Menudo stint, though he downplays its role in his development. "Menudo taught me an appreciation for the process of recording a song," he says. "It's another brick in the wall." He cites other building blocks: Friedrich Nietzsche, Hieronymus Bosch and Charles Baudelaire.

The Ricky rocket: The co-writer and co-producer of Martin's breakthrough hits (Living la Vida Loca, The Cup of Life) didn't mind a role behind the scenes. "You're always in the theater whether you're in front or backstage or you're the actual curtain," Rosa says. "My goal was to rock for Ricky. Even people in my family said, 'Why don't you keep those songs for yourself?' My dad told them, 'Leave him alone, he knows what he's doing.' "

Falling in Mad Love: From the dreamy My Eyes Adore You to the sensual Dancing in the Rain, the new album is a valentine to Rosa's wife, actress Angela Alvarado. "In the past, I did love songs that were outside of me," he says. "Penelope was about Ulysses. Then Angela and I fell into this fiery romance."

:groovin: :D :rolleyes: