Record Rack

*** Marco Antonio Solis, “Mas De Mi Alma,” Fonovisa. The thing about kitsch is that if you are brave enough about it, you can get away with murder. Someone in the business of writing sappy love songs who attempts to maintain respectability will probably be laughed at. Take kitsch to its ultimate level, however, embrace its excesses without any apology, and you may be the stuff of legend.

The prolific Mexican singer, composer and multi-instrumentalist tackles amor with such wide-eyed sincerity that it’s hard not to succumb to his no-nonsense declarations of passion. The fact that he comes up with some pretty wicked melodies doesn’t hurt the cause. In the production of Bebu Silvetti, Solis has found an ideal backdrop of crystal-clear violins, macho drumming and histrionic female choruses that envelop his hooks in a cloud of digital heaven.

At times, Solis’ rhythms evoke Latin folklore, as in the airy “En Desventaja.” For the most part, however, he favors the school of sweet, international pop pioneered in the ‘60s by singers such as Roberto Carlos and Leonardo Favio. On the gorgeous “Boca de Angel,” Solis combines the innocence of yesteryear with the slick sounds of a new century.

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Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent). The albums are already released unless otherwise noted.