Escape from Havana is the debut album by the American rapper Mellow Man Ace.[1][2] It was released on August 29, 1989, by Capitol Records. The album was produced by the Dust Brothers, Tony G, Def Jef, DJ Muggs, and Johnny Rivers. Escape from Havana peaked at number 69 on the Billboard 200 and spawned three singles: "Rhyme Fighter", "Mentirosa" and "If You Were Mine".
Escape from Havana garnered positive reviews from music critics who praised the production and lyrics for being a great mix of East Coast and Latin-flavored styles. A writer for People praised the language duality of Ace's lyrical flow, noting his Spanish delivery as being the better language, concluding with, "But it's when he drops into the loving tongue that his music becomes truly distinctive and exciting. Muy bien, Mellow Man."[6]The Philadelphia Inquirer opined that "Mellow Man languishes a tad too long on the ballads—though 'B-Boy in Love' is tolerable—and hits hardest with the Hispanic-pride 'Rap Guanco' and the B-movie homage 'Hip Hop Creature'."[4]
In a retrospective review, Alex Henderson of AllMusic praised the album's amalgam of hardcore tracks and mainstream love ballads that showcase Ace's ability as a bilingual rapper, concluding that "Ace, like a lot of rappers, spends too much time boasting about his microphone skills. Nonetheless, Escape From Havana is an individualistic, risk-taking work that's well worth hearing."[3] Matt Jost of RapReviews said that despite following late '80s hip-hop trends he praised Tony G and the Dust Brothers for their creative use of samples and Ace's lyrical delivery for crafting an album that's less exploitive of Latin culture and more inventive in its given genre, saying that "Pop or hip-hop, Mellow Man Ace was willing (and able) to cater to almost everyone except the gangsta segment. He could pen love songs, he could take a lyrical approach, he could be goofy, he could battle, and he managed to find different forms of expression depending on theme or track."[5]
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