Born Aug 22, 1961 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, he began his professional musical career at the age of 17 playing keyboards in Raíces.
In 1981 he incorporated to one of the main bands of the Argentinean '80s rock scene: Los Abuelos de la Nada. Although the band was led by the brilliant Miguel Abuelo, Calamaro composed most of the band's hits, like "Mil Horas," "Así es el calor," "Sin gamulán" and "Costumbres Argentinas."
In 1984 he made his solo debut with Hotel Calamaro. The album was a bizarre mix of styles and musicians, and didn't gain public or press support.
In 1985 he left Los Abuelos de la Nada and registered his second album Vida Cruel. Inspite of the important musicians and guests, such as Luis Alberto Spinetta and Charly García, the album was a disappointment: both commercially and artistically. But if as a songwriter the luck was out of reach, he had an intense and successful work as a producer of bands like Los Enanitos Verdes, Los Fabulosos Cadillacs and Don Cornelio y la zona. He also worked and collaborated with many artists of different styles and genres, a constant attitude through his whole career. The third album Por Mirarte showed Calamaro in a better shape with an established band. Released in 1988 it contains some outstanding songs such as "Con los dientes apretados" and "Me olvidé de los demás," while others like "Cartas sin Marcar" and "Loco por tí" helped the album to get popular.
When Calamaro released in 1989 Nadie Sale Vivo de Aquí, Argentina was living it's worst economical crisis: few albums were released. The album title suggest it all: Nobody comes out alive from here. The LP production was paralyzed, and the few that could make it were almost ignored. That was Calamaro's case. This situation lead the singer to settle in Spain, following a road taken by many Argentinean rockers. Out there in Spain he met Ariel Rot y Javier Infante, former members of Tequila. They formed Los Rodríguez in 1991, a pop-rock band that was very popular in Spain and Latin America: Calamaro's songs began to be popular like in the early '80s: the hit maker was on the road again. Curiously, from Spain, he was conquering Argentina. While being part of the band he didn't release any new solo material, just Grabaciones Encontradas 1 y 2, a couple of CDs that contained unreleased and rare material from the '80s.
After the split of Los Rodríguez, Calamaro returned to his solo career recording Alta Suciedad in 1997, an album produced by Joe Blaney. This album brought him the commercial success that seemed to fail in his previous solo efforts, and sold 300.000 copies just in Argentina. That is certainly a huge amount for the country's small market. No doubts, that album helped him to be placed between the star legends of the national rock scene. Before that album Calamaro was considered an important character, appreciated by other musicians, but not a main one. After he broke up with his spanish girlfriend he released in 1999 the double CD Honestidad Brutal. Recorded when he was 37, it contained 37 songs of despair, love loss, drugs and regret. It was not as successful at the previous album, but showed a new Calamaro: desperate, decadent and often elegant at the same time, with a new and raw lyrical approach. El Salmon followed in spring 2001.
Calamaro's next proyect, El Cantante, was released in 2005. A delicious mixture of tango, rock n'roll and flamenco guitars (mostly played by spanish prodigy El Niño Josele).
After a break, he returned to the stages with a tour full of classics that gave birth to a live album called El Regreso on 2005, recorded with members of Bersuit Vergarabat as a backing band. This album was very well received for the charts as well as for the critics, wich lead him to different awards. One year later, on 2006, Andres published a new album from the roots of tango with the collaboration of guitarrists Niño Josele and Juanjo Dominguez. On 2007 El palacio de las flores was published, although it was recorded on 2006. The album had the collaboration and musical influence of argentine composer Lito Nebbia and was also recorded on his studio. This was the return to a classic Calamaro album with new songs and hits.
I Will Survive
Andrés Calamaro Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I was petrified
Kept thinking I could never live
Without you by my side
But I spent so many nights
Thinking how you did me wrong
I grew strong
I learned how to carry on
From outer space
I just walked in to find you here
With that sad look upon your face
I should have changed my fucking lock
I should have made you leave your key
If I had known for just one second
You'd be back to bother me
Go on now go walk out the door
Just turn around now
'cause you're not welcome anymore
Weren't you the one who tried to hurt me with decide
You think I'd crumble
You think I'd lay down and die
Oh no, not I
I will survive
As long as i know how to love
I know I will stay alive
I've got all my life to live
I've got all my love to give
And I'll survive
I will survive
It took all the strength I had
Not to fall apart
Kept trying hard to mend
The pieces of my broken heart
And I spent oh so many nights
Just feeling sorry for myself
I used to cry
Now I hold my head up high
And you see me
Somebody new
I'm not that chained up little person
Still in love with you
And so you felt like dropping in
And just expect me to be free
Now I'm saving all my loving
For someone who's loving me
The song "I Will Survive" by Andrés Calamaro is actually a cover of the classic disco hit by Gloria Gaynor. The lyrics are about a woman who has just ended a relationship and is determined to move on and survive without her ex-partner. The song starts with the woman acknowledging that she was afraid and petrified when she initially broke up with her partner. She thought that she would never be able to live without them by her side. However, through time, she learned to grow strong and carry on with life.
In the second verse, the ex-partner suddenly returns, expecting to find the woman waiting for them. However, the woman has moved on and no longer wants anything to do with them. When the ex-partner tries to hurt her again, she stands strong and tells them to go. She has the strength to live and love again, and won't crumble or die because of their absence. The woman has faced her fears and overcame them, and she knows that she will survive.
The song is not only about surviving a breakup, but about empowering oneself and rising above the challenges that come with a broken relationship. It serves as a reminder to never rely on anyone else for happiness, and to always have the strength to carry on with life even when things get tough.
Line by Line Meaning
First I was afraid
At the beginning, I was scared of facing life without you
I was petrified
I was extremely frightened and unable to move
Kept thinking I could never live
I believed that I would not be able to survive on my own
Without you by my side
I thought that I needed your presence to get through life
But I spent so many nights
During countless evenings,
Thinking how you did me wrong
I reflected on how you hurt me
I grew strong
Over time, I became more resilient
I learned how to carry on
I discovered how to keep going despite your absence
And so you're back
Now, you have returned
From outer space
From some distant, far-off place
I just walked in to find you here
When I entered the room, I discovered that you were present
With that sad look upon your face
You had a mournful expression on your countenance
I should have changed my fucking lock
I should have altered the lock on my door
I should have made you leave your key
I ought to have insisted that you give me your key
If I had known for just one second
Had I been aware, even for a brief moment
You'd be back to bother me
That you'd return to cause me trouble
Go on now go walk out the door
You should leave immediately
Just turn around now
Simply pivot and exit
'cause you're not welcome anymore
Because I don't want you here anymore
Weren't you the one who tried to hurt me with decide
Weren't you the same person who attempted to harm me by cheating?
You think I'd crumble
You believed that I would fall apart
You think I'd lay down and die
You thought that I would give up and perish
Oh no, not I
But, the opposite is true
I will survive
I will persevere
As long as i know how to love
Because I understand how to love others
I know I will stay alive
I'm confident that I'll continue living
I've got all my life to live
I have my entire existence ahead of me
I've got all my love to give
I'm willing to offer all of my affection to others
And I'll survive
I will overcome whatever challenges come my way
It took all the strength I had
It required all my physical and emotional energy
Not to fall apart
To keep from breaking down and losing control
Kept trying hard to mend
I continuously attempted to fix
The pieces of my broken heart
The fragments of my shattered emotional state
And I spent oh so many nights
I have spent countless evenings
Just feeling sorry for myself
Only experiencing self-pity
I used to cry
I used to weep and feel sorrow
Now I hold my head up high
But now, I retain my dignity
And you see me
You observe me
Somebody new
As a new and improved person
I'm not that chained up little person
I'm no longer that oppressed, meek individual
Still in love with you
But, I used to be in love with you
And so you felt like dropping in
So you thought you'd stop by
And just expect me to be free
And assume that I'd have nothing holding me back
Now I'm saving all my loving
But, I'm saving all my love
For someone who's loving me
For someone who truly loves and values me
Contributed by Sarah M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.