“Come home, come back…”: the (secret) voice of the El Almendro nougat went to Eurovision and worked with Luis Miguel

2023-12-24 20:30:50

In a cafeteria in the busy center of Madrid, a girl waits anxiously. She drinks hot chocolate that, every time she looks up at the door, her daughter splashes with her fingers. Then, she grabs a napkin so it doesn’t stain the phone she’s fiddling with. They have been sitting for 15 minutes, watching videos that do little to calm her nervousness. Sometimes they laugh. And others hum. The mother takes advantage of the advertisements to rearrange the little girl’s bangs. And, by the way, she plants a kiss on her forehead. Suddenly, she applauds fervently. She looks like she recognizes the tune she just started. On the other side of the screen, Maisa Hens sings the song that has been illuminating for 43 years the encounters that only Christmas is capable of fostering: “Come home, come back…”. However, there is something bittersweet about the scene. “We all have a father, a friend, an uncle or a grandmother to welcome with open arms at this time. And, for every meeting, this topic is magical. “I feel privileged to have been able to accompany so many people,” she says. In the hard and the mature.

At 67 years old, Maisa has not lost any of the vitality that catapulted her into advertising. Restless, affectionate and creative, she immediately shows why everyone wanted to count on her for their projects. “I’m still just as effervescent. I have not lost my hope,” she says with a laugh. In front of the well-kept fir tree that crowns her living room, she shows one of the vinyls that were released with the ballad that today leads her to star in this interview. She keeps it like a treasure… and no wonder: “It opened the doors to a wonderful world for me. I am still surprised to see that something so beautiful has lasted. It is tender to know that many people have incorporated it into their memory.” Since 1980, the nougat brand El Almendro has only missed its appointment in 2020 for contravening (paradoxically) the Health instructions against covid-19. With this exception, its endearing theme has become another symbol of these holidays.

David Crosby, Carole King and Bob Dylan were Maisa’s references when he started playing the guitar. Assigned

“Do you want me to tell you the story?” Maisa asks enthusiastically. It’s funny because, despite recognizing her voice, almost no one has put a face to it yet. Or, at least, consciously. Well, throughout her career, she has worked with the most important artists of each era. “I was born in the best breeding ground to dedicate myself to music. My mother played instruments and my father provided the vocals just for fun. They did it with such naturalness that the five children followed in his footsteps. It was normal for us. Now, over time, some of us feel uneasy about making a profession of it. My dream was to be a singer. I remember standing on the stairs of my grandmother’s house in Ronda and singing songs. When I turned 14, I became interested in the guitar and, right then, that was when I began to be interested in a specific style.” David Crosby, Carole King, Bob Dylan and Paul Simon took him by the throat in the concerts he performed at different colleges. At par, his sister Yolanda led Objective Burma and his brother Carlos set up Los Elegantes.

“As I knew I wasn’t going to eat a cake doing English versions, I made a decision: sing commercials,” he explains. It was the composers Julio Seijas and Luis Gómez-Escolar who gave him the first opportunity: he would be part of the group that performed the choirs of Sesame Street. There, as an anecdote, he met the singer-songwriter Cecilia. “I discovered a dynamic industry in which retention, agility, refinement… and, especially, speed were needed. I passed the acid test and, immediately, they started calling me. In fact, there were days when I had up to three recordings,” she says. They recommended it to Álvaro Nieto, one of the most prolific authors of that time. Theirs are, for example, the jingles of Hay de Pravia, the aroma of your home, Pescanova, good things come out well o Domecq, the harvest has finally arrived. To get hold of the El Almendro campaign, had to submit a unique proposal to the competition. So, in search of a peculiar vocal timbre, he commissioned Maisa to perform Comes back.

From Massiel to Rocío Jurado

In order to find the definitive version, the artist had to repeat the song several times. They wanted to give it a specific nuance and, to do so, they had to experiment until they found it. “We were nervous, we didn’t know if it would be enough for the agency. We crossed our fingers and, a few days later, they gave us the news. We had to wait a few months until they issued it. I will never be able to forget that afternoon. I was sitting on the couch with my daughter when, without anticipating it, it started ringing and she turned around strangely. Of course, she had heard me rehearse it so much that she recognized me instantly. I experienced it with a unique emotion.” Since then, For 12 consecutive seasons, his voice preluded Christmas as it does today (every time before) Mariah Carey. Later, other names took up her witness. However, the public is loyal to the original version. “They have told me, yes. Although I think it is because of the love they show me,” admits Maisa, grandmother of six grandchildren.

‘Vuelvo a casa’ has been playing on television since 1980, when the advertisement was broadcast for the first time. Alba Vigaray

At that time, advertising moved large sums of money. And the commitment to television was key. “He earned a lot. It makes me sad that no rights have been generated for either the authors or the performers. And, look, the number of times we have heard it. However, we lived very well. That allowed me, luckily, to combine work with family,” he says. Already in the market, Maisa had no shortage of offers. He did commercials for Coca-Cola, Galerías Preciados, Fanta, El Corte Inglés, Schweppes… Without forgetting, in 1982, the campaigns of all political parties. And from there to the small screen: “The first time I was an extra for Mari Trini, but I quickly started doing the choruses. Miguel Bose, Rocío JuradoLuis Miguel, Massiel, Jose Manuel Soto, The Union, The Prodigious Decade, Dove St. Basil, Sara Montiel e Isabel Pantoja, among others”. Both live and in the studio.

He introduced himself to ‘The Voice’

A platform that led him to step on some of the most cutting-edge programs: Hermida’s program, Calf Marathon, The solidarity night, With you Pedro Ruiz… “I connected a lot with Ana Belén. First we did the musical La Bella Helena, which we premiered at the Roman Theater in Mérida under the direction of José Carlos Plaza. And, later, we shared the stage on the tour The pleasure is our along with Miguel Ríos, Víctor Manuel and Joan Manuel Serrat. She is extraordinary. I met her family and, even today, we keep in touch. I have been very lucky,” she is sincere. A Eurovision arrived in 1986 from Cadillacthe band of José María Guzmán and Eduardo Ramírez: their Valentino came in 10th place with 51 points in an edition that Belgium won with I love life by Sandra Kim. “We traveled to Norway, where they took us to see the fjords or ride the cable car. There was a leveling,” he agrees. The next year, represented Costa Rica at the OTI Festival. A feat that he repeated with Álex and Christina shortly after in Spain.

Maisa performed concerts and musicals with artists of the caliber of Ana Belén and Miguel Ríos. Assigned

At the turn of the century, Maisa decided to slow down and dedicate himself to his other passion: interior design. “I was taking a few steps in a store when, without thinking about it, I found a universe full of possibilities,” she says. His house is a good example. The taste with which he has decorated it is a true reflection of the talent that has always pursued it. In music, she continues to contribute her grain of sand. In addition to providing backing vocals on two Morgan albums, In 2019 he participated in The Senior Voice: “My grandchildren encouraged me, so I showed up at the hotel where they were casting. It was the first of my life. I passed it and got to the blind auditions, but they didn’t turn around. Although I was disappointed, I received an immense wave of affection.” Like the one that she herself has been provoking since 1980. Finally, the mother and daughter who were waiting in the bar in Madrid paid the bill and left. His appointment didn’t arrive. But, as Maisa emphasizes, they have each other. And that should be enough. There are those who do not need to separate to meet again every day.