Live & Off the Record (CD & DVD)

Live & Off the Record (CD & DVD)

It's been three years since <I>Laundry Service</I> transformed Shakira into an international rock diva, and we're still waiting for the official follow-up. As she toils away on her next studio album (due later this year), the Colombian temptress has kept fans distracted with a <I>Washed and Dried</I> special edition of her English-language breakthrough and a <I>Grandes Exitos</I> collection of her Spanish hits. Now comes <I>Live & Off the Record</I>, a lush CD/DVD package chronicling Shakira's 2003 <I>Tour of the Mongoose</I>. It's a must-have for Shakira fans and features her second live CD effort (following 2000's stellar <I>MTV Unplugged</I>). The real treat, though, is the DVD, which was filmed at a tour stop in the Netherlands. Shakira tears through tracks such as "Si Te Vas," "Inevitable," "Rules," and "Ready For the Good Times" with equal parts sensuality and animalistic ferocity. Her stage presence is positively electric. The accompanying documentary is also a revelation, capturing Shakira at her most honest and vulnerable. Highlights include the singer's bout with tendonitis (brought on by belly-dancing), an early-morning mariachi serenade from her boyfriend on Valentine's Day, and a backstage visit from novelist Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Fans' appetites should be whetted--for a little while. --<I>Joey Guerra</I>