In 1976 he started with a group of amateurs in Puerto Rico, and his first recording was with the Mario Ortiz Orchestra. He then moved on to Orquesta La Grande, and during the two years Gilberto was with them, he met Mr. Elias Lopés who later helped mold and polish the promising young singer, releasing three recordings.
In 1980, he got an important opportunity recording "Homenaje a Eddie Palmieri" with the Puerto Rico All Stars. He then went on to record with Tommy Olivencia. From 1981 through 1986 he was with the Willie Rosario Orchestra where he recorded six albums.
Santa Rosa then signed with Ralph Cartagena's Combo Records. In 1986, he debuted on Good Vibrations fronting his own salsa orquesta. After releasing three more albums on Combo, including "De Amor y Salsa", he switched to CBS Records and issued the chart-topping salsa romantica set Punto De Vista in 1990, which went platinum and spawned the smash hits "Vivir Sin Ella" and "Perdoname". Santa Rosa's 1991 CBS/Sony follow-up, Perspectiva, was another monster hit.
Since the mid-80s, the mainstream salsa recording industry in Puerto Rico and the USA has been largely preoccupied with developing and marketing the images of "good looking" young male vocalists, rather than producing solid, stimulating music performed by swinging soneros (improvising salsa singers). Santa Rosa, however, who was one of the first of this new crop of solo singers, is regarded as being amongst the small number who deserve to be called a sonero.
In 1990, Santa Rosa was in the illustrious company of Andy Montañez and Pedro Brull (from Mulenze ), as one of the contemporary soneros assembled by bandleader Don Perignon for his all-star La Puertorriqueña project. In 1990, he won the Billboard Lo Nuestro award for Best Male Singer. He has also performed at New York's prestigious annual salsa festival. But 1990 was an important year in other respects. Santa Rosa made acting debut in the play "La pareja dispareja", where he was joined by Rafo Muñiz and Luis Vigoreaux.
He visited Japan in 1995 as Puerto Rico's musical ambassador and sang one of his songs, "De cara al viento" in Japanese in his effort to bridge the cultural barriers. Since then Santa Rosa's fame reached across borders and continents; commanding recognition as salsa artist in most demand. In 1996 he released yet another smash album Esencia which included hit songs such as No Quiero Nada Regala'o.
Santa Rosa's recent work has not been limited to soloist recordings. He joined other artists in the First President's Festival in the Dominican Republic; Andy Montañez in New York's Lincoln Center, in 1997; and Olga Tañon in the Universal Studios Amphitheater in Holloywood, in 1997.
In 1999, he released Expresión, which reinforced his international fame. The album included the hit song "Que alguien me diga", written by Omar Alfanno, which was at the top of Billboard‘s latin chart for various weeks. The album also included the song Fulana, unlike his well known salsa, demonstrating his wide range of interests and ability. The album was selected as one of the 20 best recordings of the year by the National Foundation Popular Culture of Puerto Rico.
Para vivir
Gilberto Santa Rosa Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Que esta unión de nosotros le hacia falta carne y deseo también
Que no bastaba que me entendieras y que murieras por mi
Que no bastaba que en mis fracasos yo me refugiara en ti
Y ahora ya vez lo que ahora paso al fin nació al pasar de los años
El tremendo cansancio que provoco yo en ti
Y aunque es penoso lo tienes que decir
si asi no hubiera sido yo habría seguido jugando hacerte feliz
y aunque el llanto es amargo piensa en los años que tienes para vivir
que mi dolor no es menos y lo peor es que ya no puedo sentir
y ahora tratar de conquistar con vano afán ese tiempo perdido
Que nos deja vencidos sin poder conocer
Eso que llaman amor para vivir (para vivir)
Para vivir
The lyrics of Gilberto Santa Rosa's song Para Vivir speak of a relationship that ended due to the lack of passion and desire. The singer confesses to his partner that he warned them before entering into this union that it needed more than just understanding and loyalty to thrive. However, they both went through with it, but as the years passed, the couple grew tired of each other, which resulted in the end of their relationship.
The singer acknowledges his partner's pain but suggests that they both have years ahead of them to live life to the fullest. He regrets not being able to feel anything anymore and wishes he could regain the lost time they spent together. However, the singer accepts his mistakes, and even though he cannot change the past, tries to start anew.
Line by Line Meaning
Muchas veces te dije que antes de hacerlo había que pensarlo muy bien
I advised you many times to think carefully before making any decisions
Que esta unión de nosotros le hacia falta carne y deseo también
Our relationship needed passion and desire, not just understanding
Que no bastaba que me entendieras y que murieras por mi
Just understanding me and being devoted to me was not enough
Que no bastaba que en mis fracasos yo me refugiara en ti
During my failures, relying on you for comfort was not enough
Y ahora ya vez lo que ahora paso al fin nació al pasar de los años
Now you see what happened after all these years
El tremendo cansancio que provoco yo en ti
The fatigue that I caused you
Y aunque es penoso lo tienes que decir
Even though it's painful, you have to say it
Por mi parte esperaba que un día el tiempo se hiciera cargo del fin
I hoped that one day, time would take care of our ending
si asi no hubiera sido yo habría seguido jugando hacerte feliz
If it wasn't so, I would have continued playing the role of making you happy
y aunque el llanto es amargo piensa en los años que tienes para vivir
Although your tears may be bitter, think about the years you have to live
que mi dolor no es menos y lo peor es que ya no puedo sentir
My pain is no less equivalent, and the worst part is that I can't feel anything anymore
y ahora tratar de conquistar con vano afán ese tiempo perdido
Now, trying to win back lost time is a futile attempt
Que nos deja vencidos sin poder conocer
It leaves us defeated without being able to understand
Eso que llaman amor para vivir (para vivir)
That thing they call love to live (to live)
Para vivir
To live
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Pedro Pablo Milanes Arias
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Noelia Guzmán-Nâf
Para los que dan un salto al vacío en el amor, a sabiendas de que no va a funcionar. Amar no es suficiente amigos, amar no es suficiente...
Ericka Rocca
😅😅😊
#la_b@llena_de_pelos
Un madrazo al corazón, gran interpretación...
Begoña Simón González
Te amo Gilberto..en tu voz la música se vuelve ORO..💋💋❤️❤️❤️🌹🌹🌹
Jennypher Martinez
Eres mi artista favorito Gilberto, te amo
Maikel Alexander España Hernandez
De la autoria del maestro Pablo Milanes en una majestuosa interpretación dle Caballero Gilberto Santa Rosa, magistral sin duda alguna, trajo una renimisencia a mi vida 💛
Noelia Guzmán-Nâf
Pablo Milanés es único en la pluma y el canto, pero yo me quedo con esta adaptación. Simplemente magistral. Tan emotiva, sentimental, única. Gracias Gilbertito ❤️
Maddy Ebanks
Así mismo, Gilbertito! Bella canción y voz!
Antonio Manzanillo
Cuanta calidad en la voz de ese caballero. Excelencia en la versión de esta hermosa canción .
DERECHO PENAL COLOMBIANO VIRTUAL
Hermosa canciòn