The sixth song, “El placer de amar”, also written by Calzado, provides a change of pace from the tour de force of the first five. One of the first examples of the Timba R&B ballad, the only thing “Latin” about this track is the Spanish language, but along with Bamboleo’s “Tú y Yo, Somos una Misma Cosa” and Paulito’s “Desacuerdo”, it’s one of the best pop ballads to come out of Cuba. The songwriting is masterful, squeezing out an escalating series of dramatic hooks without ever suffering an anticlimax; a continuous flow of melody from start to finish. The introduction has a gorgeous vocalization at 0:18 [audio example 46] which captures the magic of Brian Wilson at his peak, although it’s likely that CH was one step further removed from Wilson and drew their direct inspiration from the many beautiful ballads of their favorite American band, Earth, Wind and Fire. From here on, Leo Vera takes over and sings brilliantly, belting out each line with his heart on his sleeve, but never losing control.

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