Martin worked with producers KC Porter, Robi Draco Rosa, and Desmond Child to create the album.

Certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), it sold more than 888,000 copies in the United States, standing as the 10th best-selling Latin album in the country.

For promotion, Martin embarked on the worldwide Vuelve tour performing in Asia, Australia, Europe, Mexico, South America, and the United States.

Taken aback by the starkly different musical style, his record label executives felt the song would ruin Martin's career.

Despite this, "María" was chosen as the album's second single and became a breakthrough success, reaching number one in France, Spain, Germany, Belgium, Holland, Switzerland, Finland, Italy, Turkey, and the whole of South America.

"The Cup of Life") composed by KC Porter, Desmond Child, and fellow ex-member of Menudo Robi Draco Rosa.

[6] He worked on the album with producers Porter and Rosa, and recorded it in studios across the United States, Puerto Rico, and Spain.

In an interview with CNN en Español, he emphasized it was going to "reaffirm the internationalization of my career and I know that it will help me a lot to destroy the stereotypes that may exist with my culture".

[14][16] In a 2007 interview with Estudio Billboard, De Vita recalled he had been writing the song for 10 years when Martin asked him to compose a track for the album.

"Lost Without You") are ballads with "aching, slower-paced narratives", with the latter track being a "bedroom staple with a dreamy hook and a simmering feel".

[21] Vuelve also features the song "No Importa la Distancia", the Spanish-language version of "Go the Distance" by Michael Bolton from the movie Hercules.

[4] The song grew to be an international success, appearing on the charts in more than 60 countries,[4] and reaching number one in 30 countries,[38] including Australia,[39] Belgium (Wallonia),[40] Costa Rica,[41] El Salvador,[34] France,[42] Germany,[43] Italy,[44] Panama,[41] Spain,[45] Nicaragua,[34] Sweden,[46] Switzerland,[47] Venezuela,[48] as well as topping the European Hot 100 Singles chart.

[28][54][55] The album's fourth single, "Perdido Sin Ti", was released on August 18, 1998, and became Martin's second number one on the Hot Latin Songs chart.

Sony Music Japan launched the album in the label's native country on March 25, 1998, to coincide with Martin's advertisement campaign for Suzuki.

[69][70] The day after releasing the album, Martin held two sold-out concerts at the 30,000-seat Hiram Bithorn Stadium in Puerto Rico on February 13 and 14, 1998, respectively.

[77] Martin also participated in the second annual "Festival Presidente de Música Latino" in the Dominican Republic on June 26, 1997, where he had top billing for the event.

[88] Vuelve was met with generally favorable reviews from music critics with the uptempo tracks receiving with the most positive reactions.

[12] John Lannert of Billboard magazine compared Vuelve to A Medio Vivir as a "like-minded package of meaty, bitter-sweet romantic ballads and chest-pumping, upbeat numbers".

[92] Writing for Vista magazine, Carmen Teresa Roiz described the record as a metamorphosis for Martin; she regarded it as the culmination of his music career in "all his splendor".

[93] In the San Antonio Express-News, Ramiro Burr remarked Martin "took careful notes" following the success of "Maria" as Vuelve "continues in that same party fever vein but with more intensity".

[15] Burr complimented Porter for being able to maintain the "right balance between the gorgeous R&B drive of the horn and high-energy pop rhythms" on the production and commented that the ballads "serve only as breaks from dancing".

[15] David Wild of Rolling Stone touted the record's "extremely polished and infectious Latin pop that's immediately accessible even to dogged English-speaking types".

[12] Maldonado found the hook on the title track to be "instant and unforgettable" a sentiment shared by Roiz whereas Cobo criticized it as one of the weakest songs from the album and felt its choruses were "irritating" as they overshadowed Martin's voice.

[92][93][13] Burr's only complaint about Vuelve was the inclusion of "No Importa la Distancia", describing it as "sappy" which Tarradell similarly expressed as an "unwelcome dose of sugary pap".

[15][19] Tarradell also opined that the ballads "fell into excess" and called the instrumental version of "Casi un Bolero" an "overkill" although he praised "Vuelve" and "Perdido Sin Ti".

[10] In addition, he admired "Hagamos el Amor" for its "sly use of the orchestral passages, passionate delivery, and an overall mood that belongs only to an album by a real artist" despite recognizing the title of the song.

He complimented Martin's "soulful falsetto" on "Corazonado", the "sweetness" of "Perdido Sin Ti", and the "gospel-ish intensity" on the title track.

[11] At the 10th Annual Lo Nuestro Awards in 1998, Vuelve received a nomination for Pop Album of the Year, but lost to Me Estoy Enamorando by Alejandro Fernández.

[106][107] According to Nielsen SoundScan, Vuelve has sold over 888,000 copies in the US, making it the 10th best-selling Latin album in the country as of October 2017[update].

[68][126][127][128] In Turkey, Vuelve certified sextuple platinum for sales of 180,000 copies, making it the best-selling album in the country by an international solo artist.