Julio Iglesias, Las Vegas Sun, April 27, 1999

To All the Songs he’s Sung Before Lisa Ferguson Tuesday, April 27, 1999 | 9:57 a.m. What's it like to be a new father at age 56? Don't ask Julio Iglesias. "Who told you I was 56? I'm 55. Who told you that?" the Spanish crooner jokingly (we think) demanded when this reporter accidentally flubbed his age during a recent conversation. Well, excuuuse me! But one wonders why Iglesias -- an international recording giant who has sold more than 200 million records, and whose silky sounds continue to make women swoon -- is so sensitive about his age? "One more year in my life is like 20 years more in yours," he explains. Understood (sort of). Now, back to the question -- rephrased, of course: What's it like to be a new father at age 55? This, Iglesias -- who opens a five-day stint at Caesars Palace Wednesday -- will answer. "He's a cute baby," he said of his infant son, Rodrigo, born earlier this month. It's his second child (his other son is a toddler) with girlfriend Miranda Rijinsburger. "The little kids, yes, they make me run," he said. "They make my brains crazy and they make my body crazy." Iglesias' older sons (from his marriage to Isabel Preysler) are also singers who, coincidentally, are following in their father's high-profile footsteps. Julio Iglesias Jr., 25, recently released his debut album, "Under My Eyes," in Asia, and it's scheduled to hit stores stateside in mid-August. In May, he will perform the single "One More Chance" during the Miss Universe Pageant. His brother, 24-year-old Enrique Iglesias, has seen his three albums top the Latin music charts. He has won several Latin music awards. His hits have included "Si Tu Te Vas" ("If You Leave") and "Enamorado Por Primera Vez" ("In Love for the First Time"). "I have good genes, maybe. I don't know," the patriarch said, referring to his sons' success. Meanwhile, rumors abound that Julio Sr. and Enrique suffer from a strained relationship. In 1997, father and son were both nominated for a Grammy award in the Best Pop Latin Performance category -- Enrique for "Vivir," Julio for "Tango." (Luis Miguel took home the trophy for his offering, "Romances.") "That's a marketing thing," the elder Iglesias said of the rumors. He blames "yellow" journalism for perpetuating such fodder about the family. "We read, we laugh. "If you are a bad father," he said, "you don't want to be a father again. I've been a father again. I adore the idea (of having) kids. I am very proud of them." Enrique Iglesias also denied the rumors after he was reported as having said that because he sells more records than his father, the two no longer speak. "I never said that!" he told the Boston Globe earlier this year. "I don't know where they got that from. It would be stupid of me to say that." Children are also the reason Julio Iglesias devotes his time to charity. He has spent the past 11 years serving as a cultural ambassador for UNICEF. "I do things for kids because if not, I'll go to hell," he joked. "Life (has given) me so many things, so I do for the kids ... and they laugh and they smile and they're beautiful. "I'm rich, rich, rich, rich, rich. People give me so much. I cannot sleep in a bigger bed. I cannot have more houses. I give a lot to the kids and I love the kids." Another point of pride for Iglesias should be his latest release, "My Life," a greatest hits compilation. The two-disc, bilingual offering features no less than 37 tracks led by -- what else? -- "To All The Girls I've Loved Before," his mega-hit duet with country music star Willie Nelson. In the disc's liner notes, penned by Rolling Stone magazine Senior Editor David Wild, Iglesias explained the song's history: "I was looking for songs, preparing to record what would become the '1100 Bel Air Palace' album. ... I instantly like the melody -- the lyrics I didn't really understand at first because my English was so very, very bad then. Willie recorded his part, and then I found I couldn't speak a word to him. He said, 'This guy doesn't speak English.' He was so funny about it. " 'To All the Girls I've Loved Before' is so funny and it gets inside your head. Without a doubt, this was the hit that allowed me to still sing in English today. 'To All the Girl's I've Loved Before' was a miracle." "My Life" also features covers of such notable tunes as Elvis Presley's "Can't Help Falling in Love," Patsy Cline's "Crazy" and Frank Sinatra's signature song, "My Way," penned by Paul Anka. "I was looking for the songs that people like the most," he said of the the selections. In the liner notes, Iglesias explained how Anka called, asking to sing "My Way" as a duet with him. "I said, 'Of course.' I thought to sing 'My Way' with the writer of the song was a beautiful idea. Like so many records I've made in my life, this is a great song. I was honored to be able to sing it." Other duets featured on the disc include "All of You" (with Diana Ross), "My Love" (with Stevie Wonder), "When You Tell Me That You Love Me" (with Dolly Parton), "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" (with pop group All-4-One) and "Summer Wind" (with Sinatra). "I adored Sinatra," Iglesias said in the liner notes. He first met him while singing at a celebrity-studded Hollywood party. "I sang for him and when I finished, he came to the stage and said, 'Now I understand why my wife and Kirk Douglas talk about you all the time.' Afterwards, when the party was over, I went to his table, went down on my knees and kissed his hand. I thanked God for the chance to actually meet him." Reflecting on his successful career, Iglesias said, "If you don't improve yourself every year ... you don't play anymore." He's also grateful for his dedicated fans. "The people are in command," he said. "An artist can prove himself, he can learn," he added, but whatever the public demands is the deciding factor. "Everything I have is because I wake up in the morning and people say, 'OK, Julio, you are still doing well.' That's what it's all about. The rest doesn't count because if you want to be a singer, you sing in your shower and nobody listens to you. Success, for me, means to pull people together, and that's the reality."