Catalan singer-songwriter Joan Manuel Serrat got involved in music at the age of 17, when he got his first guitar, to which he dedicates one of his earliest songs, "Una guitarra."
In early 60's the young artist participated in a pop band playing along with classmates at Barcelona's Agronomy School, doing mainly Beatles stuff and Italian 'pop-of-the-era' songs translated to Spanish.
In 1965, while singing in a radio show called Radioscope, host Salvador Escanilla helped him to get a record deal with local label Edigsa where he recorded his first EP, as well as became part of Els Setze Jutges, a group of Catalan artists aiming to promote a renaissance of Catalan culture after Spanish Franco's dictatorship and make it spread into popular classes.
Joan Manuel Serrat's first live stage performance in 1967 at the Catalan Music Palace, established definitely his name as one of the most important artists inside the 'Nova cançó' ('New Song') movement in Catalonia.
Next year, Spain originally entered Serrat in the Eurovision Song Contest 1968 to sing "La, la, la", but he asked to sing it in Catalan, to which the Spanish authorities would not agree. This would be the first time he came into conflict with the language politics of Francoist Spain, because of his decision to sing in his native Catalan language, repressed by Franco. After the incident, Serrat was hurriedly substituted by Massiel, who won the contest with her Spanish-language version. By that time Serrat's songs were banned and his records burned in the streets. He then traveled to South America and participated in the Rio de Janeiro's World Music Festival, where he took first place with the song "Penélope."
In 1969 Serrat released an album containing songs with texts of Antonio Machado, a well known Spanish poet of late 19th-early 20th century. This album gave him immediate fame in all Spain and Latin America though, in spite of this, his decission to sing in Spanish was still criticized in some nationalistic Catalan circles.
The release of 1971's Mediterráneo LP consolidated the artist worldwide. In 1976, Joan Manuel Serrat was acclaimed for the first time in the U.S.A. while performing in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York.
In late 1974, Serrat was exiled in Mexico due to his condemnation of arbitrary executions under Franco's regime. It wasn't until Franco's death (November 20, 1975) that Serrat was able to return to his homeland.
In January of 1995, the Spanish government gave him a medal for his contribution to the Hispanic culture. That same year, a tribute album called Serrat, Eres único was made to honor his career, featuring artists such as Diego Torres, Ketama, Rosario (Flores), Joaquín Sabina, and Antonio Flores. In the year 2000, the Spanish Association of Authors and Editors (SGAE) awarded him with one of ten Medals of the Century.
In October 2004 he revealed that he had been undergoing treatment for cancer of the bladder and in November that year he cancelled a tour of Latin America and the USA in order to undergo surgery in Barcelona, where he still lives. By that time, his wonderful song "Mediterráneo" was selected as the most important song of the 20th century in Spain.
His recovery was satisfactory, and in 2005 he went on a tour again ("Serrat 100×100") around Spain and Latin America with his lifelong producer and arranger, Ricard Miralles.
A second volume of Serrat, eres único was also released this year, featuring Alejandro Sanz, Estopa, and Pasión+Vega. Around the same time, Cuban artists such as Silvio Rodríguez, Pablo Milanés, Chucho Valdez, and Ibrahim Ferrer came together to make another tribute CD, Cuba le canta a Serrat.
Source: Wikipedia®
Tu Nombre Me Sabe A Yerba
Joan Manuel Serrat Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Porque te quiero,
Cerré mi puerta una mañana
Y eché a andar.
Porque te quiero a ti
Porque te quiero,
Dejé los montes
Y me vine al mar.
Tu nombre me sabe a hierba
De la que nace en el valle
A golpes de sol y de agua,
Tu nombre me lleva atado
En un pliege de tu talle
Y en el viés de tu enagua.
Porque te quiero a ti
Porque te quiero,
Aunque estas lejos
Yo te siento a flor de piel.
Porque te quiero a ti
Porque te quiero,
Se hace mas corto
El camino aquel.
Tu nombre me sabe a yerba
De la que nace en el valle
A golpes de sol y de agua,
Tu nombre me lleva atado
En un pliege de tu talle
Y en el biés de tu enagua.
Porque te quiero a ti
Porque te quiero,
Mi voz se rompe como el cielo
Al clarear.
Porque te quiero a ti
Porque te quiero,
Dejo esos montes
Y me vengo al mar.
The lyrics to Joan Manuel Serrat's song Tu Nombre Me Sabe A Yerba express the deep love and desire the singer feels for his beloved. He has made sacrifices and changes in his life because of this love, such as closing his door one morning and walking away from the mountains to come to the sea. The repetition of the statement "Porque te quiero a ti" suggests that everything he does and experiences is in the name of this love. The imagery used to describe the lover's name is powerful and sensual, with the comparison to grass growing in the valley through the sun and water. The lover's name is described as being tied to the curves of her body and the hem of her skirt - a physical manifestation of the singer's love and desire for her.
The chorus, with the repetition of "Tu nombre me sabe a yerba" and "Tu nombre me lleva atado," reinforces the idea that the lover's name is intimately tied to his feelings and experiences. It's almost as if he is consumed by the thought of her, and even when she is far away, he can still feel her presence. The final verse, where the singer's voice "breaks like the sky at dawn" suggests that his love for his beloved is overwhelming - so much so that it is almost too much to bear. This song is a powerful tribute to the all-consuming nature of love and the ways in which it can change a person's life.
Line by Line Meaning
Porque te quiero a ti
Because I love you
Porque te quiero,
Because I love you,
Cerré mi puerta una mañana
I closed my door one morning
Y eché a andar.
And I started walking.
Dejé los montes
I left the mountains
Y me vine al mar.
And I came to the sea.
Tu nombre me sabe a hierba
Your name tastes like grass
De la que nace en el valle
The one that grows in the valley
A golpes de sol y de agua,
With hits of sun and water,
Tu nombre me lleva atado
Your name carries me tied
En un pliege de tu talle
In a fold of your waist
Y en el viés de tu enagua.
And in the bias of your skirt.
Aunque estás lejos
Even though you are far
Yo te siento a flor de piel.
I feel you on my skin.
Se hace más corto
It becomes shorter
El camino aquel.
That path.
Mi voz se rompe como el cielo
My voice breaks like the sky
Al clarear.
At dawn.
Dejo esos montes
I leave those mountains
Y me vengo al mar.
And I come to the sea.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JUAN MANUEL SERRAT TERESA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@henrietteterpstra5213
Este cancion es eterna. Lo escuche por primera vez a fines de los anos 60 en Madrid y sin entender una sola palabra lo amaba inmediatamente. Con dicionario he traducido todo sus canciones y asi aprendi Espanol y la cultura. Tengo todavia sus discos originales llevandolos en 20 mudanzas. Un genio mi Querido Serrat.
@rodolfogutierrezgarcia5546
Buenísima Nota. 👏😃Desde Costa Rica.🇨🇷🗽 Pura Vida.🕊🦚🦜🐊🦋🐠🍀🍁⚘🌿⛵🚤🛶🛳🪂🏝🏕⛰⛈🌝🌞⛱
@darmax5367
Que comentario tan bonito! un abrazo!
@Luckysevenization
Así es nuestro inolvidable JMS... saludos desde el Paraguay.
@chachasendic
Tambien la escuche por primera vez en los 60's. Nunca tuve tiempo para el rock'n'roll
@angeladelpozo1534
@@chachasendic Bonita Cancion DE SERRAT CANTA AL SENTIMIENTO,,,,, COMO NADIE... 🌹
@elcomandantegarcia7683
Limpiando mis oído de la música basura que escuchamos la juventud hoy en día gracias maestro Serrat por su legado ♥️♥️♥️
@pichusvillanueva6072
Que se le hace ,menos mal que conservaron está música y no la olvidaron de mejorarla del disco y hoy estamos todos nosotros para escucharla, compartirla ,tararearla,y cantarla ,siempre nace alguien que la mantiene en cada tiempo como los que conocen la tecnología de hoy y como yo que cuando serrat cantaba yo no había ni nacido pero cada quien tiene predilección por su tipo de música , Serrat no te da solamente canción sino también cultura aunque ahora se escuchan algunos aullidos y canciones sin ánimo .
@katitavargasbadilla4712
Bellísima canción...Me da tanta nostalgia escucharla 🥹 ..!! Nunca pasarán de moda ni los cantantes ni sus canciones de nuestra época..!! ❤️
@gregorioquispealanya3628
... Hermosa canción que se lo dedico a mi adorada