Calexico had its origins in 1990 when Burns, who was studying music at the University of California, Irvine, met up with Convertino, who was playing drums with Howe Gelb in Giant Sand. Burns joined them, after first playing upright bass on a European tour.
Giant Sand moved to Tucson, Arizona in 1994. John and Joey formed the Friends of Dean Martin (later the Friends of Dean Martinez) which scored a record deal with Sub Pop. However, the pair split up with Bill Elm, the co-founder of The Friends of Dean Martinez in 1996. The band subsequently became a kind of indie rhythm section for hire, working with the likes of Victoria Williams, Barbara Manning and Richard Buckner before forming Calexico.
Calexico first recorded Spoke in 1995 for German independent label Hausmusik with a limited edition of 2,000 copies. At that point the band was still called Spoke and the album was technically self-titled. After the band signed with Quarterstick Records (a subsidiary of Touch and Go Records) and changed their name to Calexico, Spoke was reissued by that label in 1997. Burns and Convertino also collaborated with Gelb and Lisa Germano on the album Slush released under the name OP8 that same year.
Their second album The Black Light was released in 1998. This was a concept album about the desert of Arizona and northern Mexico and received excellent reviews, with the critic from the Wall Street Journal rating it as one of the best records of the year.
The band built their profile by touring as support acts for bands such as Pavement, the Dirty Three and Lambchop. Calexico has regularly played festivals such as the Bonnaroo Music Festival, the Hurricane Festival and All Tomorrow's Parties. The Road Map album was a limited recording released in 1999 for sale only at Calexico's live shows.
Calexico released its third album Hot Rail in May 2000 featuring the addition of horns and violin to their sound. The duo was busy in 2000 as they also appeared on a Giant Sand record called Chore of Enchantment as well as a tour only record Travelall.
At the end of 2000, Burns and Convertino joined with two French friends Naïm Amor and Thomas Belhôm to record "Tête A Tête" (Wabana Records, 2001) released under moniker ABBC (Amor/Belhom/Burns/Convertino). Calexico released two collections of rarities during 2001. Even My Sure Things Fall Through collected outtakes from previous albums, B-sides, remixes and material previously unreleased in the US. The album also featured Mariachi Luz de Luna who frequently played live with the duo. The Aerocalexico album was sold exclusively at their gigs in 2001.
The Scraping live album was released in 2002. Their next studio recording Feast of Wire was released in 2003 and made the charts for the first time appearing on Billboard's Heatseekers and Independent album chart. They made their first video for "Quattro (World Drifts In)" which was a single from Feast of Wire. They released a live DVD in 2004 called World Drifts In: Live at the Barbican. The song "Güero Canelo", from Feast of Wire, was featured in Michael Mann's Film, Collateral, starring Tom Cruise and Jamie Foxx, in which the band appears.
Calexico contributed the song "Burnin' Down the Spark" to Nancy Sinatra's self-titled album in late 2004. The album featured artists who cited Sinatra as a musical influence. The song was released in the UK as the second single from the album in early 2005.
In 2005, Calexico joined up with Miami-based band Iron & Wine. Howard Greynolds of Overcoat Records was responsible for bringing the two bands together having previously been responsible for Tortoise and Will Oldham recording together. The In the Reins EP was released in September 2005 and received a positive reception with an MSNBC review giving it honorable mention. It also made an appearance in the Billboard 200 album charts, becoming their first recording to make the album charts, and No. 12 on the independent charts. In October 2005, they commenced a US tour with Iron & Wine to promote the record.
Released in 2006, Garden Ruin is Calexico's fifth studio album and was produced by JD Foster. The sound strays slightly from earlier works, focusing less on the horn section, and placing more emphasis on guitar and vocal tracks, giving the whole album a more mainstream sound.
In 2007, Calexico was invited by Arcade Fire to record a cover of their "Ocean of Noise." This recording was used as the B-side for Arcade Fire's "Intervention" single, originally released on vinyl on May 21, 2007. Also in 2007, Calexico recorded a revamped version of the Bob Dylan song "Goin' to Acapulco" for the Dylan biopic "I'm Not There". The song featured Jim James of My Morning Jacket on vocals and was featured on the soundtrack of the film.
Several of Calexico's songs, usually their shorter instrumental pieces, have been used as interstitial and background music on Public Radio International's This American Life. Their songs "Ballad Of Cable Hogue" and "Service And Repair" were featured in the 2001 German comedy movie Lammbock.
Their sixth studio LP is called 'Carried to Dust', featuring Sam Beam of Iron & Wine, Douglas McCombs of Tortoise and Pieta Brown. It was released in the USA via Touch & Go Records on September 9, 2008. The album enjoyed solid reviews, with hometown paper the Arizona Daily Star praising the band's "ability to sweep you into its world, taking listeners to the American Southwest. This is one of the reasons Europeans love Calexico and others in this country are beginning to come around."
On October 16, 2008, a three-song live acoustic video performance premiered on LiveDaily Sessions, featuring Joey Burns performing the songs "Two Silver Trees," "Writer's Minor Holiday" and "Man Made Lake".
In 2009, the song Banderilla was featured in an episode of AMC's Breaking Bad.
In 2010, a new album of Calexico was released: the soundtrack of the documentary "Circo". The band also spent part of 2010 touring with Arcade Fire along the west US coast.
In May 2011, their song "Slowness" was dedicated by Gabrielle Giffords to her husband astronaut Mark Kelly as the wake up song aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour on its final flight.
Algiers was released 11 September 2012 on ANTI Records and CITY SLANG (Europe).
In April 2014, the band began referring to a new album on Twitter in posts from Mexico City, Coyoacan, Mexico, and Athens, Greece. Edge of the Sun was announced on 27 January 2015, and released on April 14, 2015. The album features guest appearances by various artists such as Sam Beam (Iron & Wine), Ben Bridwell (Band of Horses), Gaby Moreno, Carla Morrison and members of the Greek instrumental group Takim.
The current members of Calexico are:
Joey Burns – vocals, guitars, bass, cello, piano, keyboards, accordion, percussion, vibraphone
John Convertino – drums, percussion, piano, keyboards, vibraphone, marimba, accordion
Paul Niehaus – steel guitar, guitars
Jacob Valenzuela – trumpet, keyboards, vibraphone, vocals
Martin Wenk – trumpet, guitar, keyboards, accordion, glockenspiel, vibraphone, theremin (occasionally harmonica & French horn)
Volker Zander – standup bass, electric bass
Live tour 2013:
Joey Burns - vocals, guitars
John Convertino - drums, percussion
Sergio Mendoza - Keyboards
Jairo Zavala - bazouki, baritone guitar, vocals
Jacob Valenzuela – trumpet, keyboards, vibraphone, vocals
Martin Wenk – trumpet, guitar, keyboards, accordion, glockenspiel, vibraphone (occasionally harmonica & French horn)
Ryan Alfred - bass, vocals
Si Tu Disais
Calexico Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
If you said I'm sick of this place
I would listen to you
I wouldn't hesitate
And whether it's for a town
A godforsaken place
It wouldn't bother me
I'd be ready as if
If you said up to now
We've gotten by with the blues
I would agree
I would answer that it's true
Every wall, every crack
I am sick and tired of this place
If you said only this
I'd be ready as if
I was waiting
If you said let's go
If you said it was time
I would listen to you
I've been ready for a while
But you never say anything like that
You never decide
Never think of what we could do
I don't know why you're still here
In Calexico's song "Si Tu Disais," the artist reflects on the personal struggles of his relationship with someone who is hesitant to make a decision to move on from a stagnant situation. The song expresses a willingness to follow the lead of the other person, no matter the destination. The artist is waiting for the other person to express a desire to leave, whether it be from a "godforsaken place" or just a general sense of dissatisfaction with their current surroundings. The artist demonstrates a sense of readiness to embark on a new journey if given the chance.
The lyrics of the song convey a sense of patience and a desire for change. The repetition of "If you said" emphasizes the artist's eagerness to follow the other person's lead. While the artist is ready to leave, there is a sense of frustration at the other person's lack of decision-making. The line "you never decide, never think of what we could do" expresses a sense of difference and the hindrance that it is having on the relationship. The lyrics are delivered with a sense of longing and hope for a better future, emphasizing the depth of emotion that the artist is feeling.
Line by Line Meaning
If you said let's go
If you expressed a desire to leave.
If you said I'm sick of this place
If you stated that you are fed up with this place.
I would listen to you
I would pay attention to what you have to say.
I wouldn't hesitate
I would act immediately.
And whether it's for a town
Regardless of the destination.
A godforsaken place
An undesirable location.
It wouldn't bother me
It wouldn't trouble me.
I'd be ready as if
I would be prepared as though.
I was waiting
I have been waiting for this moment.
If you said up to now
If you acknowledged the present situation.
We've gotten by with the blues
We have been coping with sadness or depression.
I would agree
I would concur with you.
I would answer that it's true
I would respond to reinforce that statement.
Every wall, every crack
Every aspect of this place.
I am sick and tired of this place
I am extremely dissatisfied with this place.
If you said only this
If you only made this one statement.
I'd be ready as if
I would be prepared as though.
I was waiting
I have been waiting for this moment.
If you said let's go
If you expressed a desire to leave.
If you said it was time
If you acknowledged that it is the appropriate moment.
I've been ready for a while
I am already prepared to leave.
But you never say anything like that
However, you have never made such remarks.
You never decide
You never make the choice.
Never think of what we could do
You never consider the possibilities.
I don't know why you're still here
I cannot comprehend why you continue to stay.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: PIERRE JEAN GABRIEL BONDU, DOMINIQUE ANE, GAETAN JEAN MARC CHATAIGNER, ALEXANDRE JOEL TOOROP
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Javier Martinez
Lyrics in Spanish:
Si tú dijeras vamos
si dijeras estoy harta de este lugar
te escucharía
no dudaría
y tanto si es a una ciudad
O a un lugar perdido
no me importaría
estaría preparado como
esperando
si tu dijeras hasta ahora
nos apañamos con la tristeza
estaría de acuerdo
diría que es cierto
cada muro, cada grieta
ya no soporto este lugar
si dijeras solo esto
estaría preparado como
esperando
si dijeras vamos
si dijeras es hora
te escucharía
he estado preparado mucho tiempo
pero tú nunca dices
nada así
nunca decides
nunca piensas en lo que podríamos hacer
no sé por qué todavía estás aquí
Lena Kan
Why is this so very criminally underrated? It slaps me with nostalgia, I was little when my parents put this on 💙
Javier Martinez
Lyrics in Spanish:
Si tú dijeras vamos
si dijeras estoy harta de este lugar
te escucharía
no dudaría
y tanto si es a una ciudad
O a un lugar perdido
no me importaría
estaría preparado como
esperando
si tu dijeras hasta ahora
nos apañamos con la tristeza
estaría de acuerdo
diría que es cierto
cada muro, cada grieta
ya no soporto este lugar
si dijeras solo esto
estaría preparado como
esperando
si dijeras vamos
si dijeras es hora
te escucharía
he estado preparado mucho tiempo
pero tú nunca dices
nada así
nunca decides
nunca piensas en lo que podríamos hacer
no sé por qué todavía estás aquí
Maz Hender
These guys are so underrated....
TheGarabella
Beautiful version! Thank you! :)
Rando Ceglar
This is my favorite version of the song there is a French gal who sings it too. Calexico is one of my favorite bands to listen when i smoke some pcp and eat a huge pot of menudo. JUST KIDDING .
firstbornsecond
This is good, but Breut's version is glorious.
BilisNegra
This is simply mesmerizing, whatever and ever anybody might ever fucking say...
Evyenia Bartzeli
ο ορισμος του κεραυνοβολου ερωτα ... και μαντεψε ! πανω εκει που ελεγα δεν θα το ξαναζησω ... it's happening now ... the definition of love at first sight !!! love is in the air again !!!!!!
famashs
και πως πηγε αυτο? :)
nightimelady
yeah! i wondered why it wasnt on here.. it is on daily motion though... i like the benjamin biolay version too