Joaquín Sabina, is the second son of Adela Sabina del Campo and Jerónimo Martinez Gallego, which was a policeman. He attended a Carmelite primary school and he started writing his firsts poems and composing music at 14 years old. He was part of a band called Merry Youngs which imitated singers such as Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry or Little Richard.
In 1968 he enrolled in the University of Granada, but went into exile in London, using a fake passport, to avoid Francisco Franco's persecution. In London, he collaborated with other young artists in theater and cultural events.
In 1975, he started composing songs and singing at local bars. When the dictatorship ended in 1977 he returned to Spain and enrolled in the military.
In 1978 his first album, Inventario (Inventory), debuted with the number-one hit single Pongamos que hablo de Madrid (Let's say I'm talking about Madrid).
Afterwards, he released Malas compañías (The Wrong Crowd) and a live album called La mandrágora (The Mandragora), which caused much controversy due to the racy content of its lyrics. Spain was just coming out of the dictatorship, and Sabina's favorite topics have always been deemed "morally inappropriate" by some: the homeless, prostitutes, drunks, and Robin Hood-styled thieves. He is very much anti-stablishment.
In 1983 he released Ruleta Rusa (Russian Roulette) and two years later, Juez y parte (Judge and Jury). His political views led him to take part in the anti-NATO movement. He later published Joaquín Sabina y Viceversa.
In 1987 he released Hotel, dulce hotel (Hotel, Sweet Hotel), which sold a large number of records in Spain. That success followed with his next album El hombre del traje gris (The Man in The Gray Suit), and followed with a successful tour of South America.
In 1990 he released Mentiras piadosas (White Lies) and two years later Física y química (Physics and Chemistry), which led to another successful tour of the Americas.
His later albums Esta boca es mía (These Lips are Mine), Yo, mi, me contigo (I, Me, With You) and 19 días y 500 noches (19 Days and 500 Nights), won him recognition and multiple platinum albums.
After recovering from a stroke, he returned to the stage in 2002 with Dímelo en la calle (Let's Take It Outside). He later released a double album called Diario de un peatón (Diary of A Pedestrian), which included both his previous album and 12 new songs, along with a book illustrated by him.
In 2005 his new record Alivio de luto (Mourning Relief), put him in track to being one of the biggest names in Spanish musical stardom. The album comes with a DVD that includes interviews, music videos, acoustic versions of the songs and some home-made recordings.
Acuerdate de Mi
Joaquín Sabina Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Es un fulano de tal
Es un señor muy calvo
Muy serio y muy formal
Que va a misa el domingo
Y fiestas de guardar
Que es una unidad de destino
En lo universal
Respetabilidad
Que predica a sus hijos
Responsabilidad
Y llama libertinaje
A la libertad
Ha conseguido todo
Menos felicidad
Mi vecino de arriba
Hizo la guerra y no
Va a consentir que opine
A quien no la ganó
Mi vecino es un recto
Caballero español
Que siempre habla ex cátedra
Y siempre sin razón
Mi vecino de arriba
Es el lobo feroz
Que va el domingo al fútbol
Y ve televisión
Que engorda veinte kilos
Si le llaman señor
Que pinta en las paredes
"Rojos al paredón"
Al vecino de arriba
Le revienta que yo
Deje crecer mi barba
Y cante mi canción
Mi vecino de arriba
Es más hombre que yo
Dice que soy un golfo
Y que soy maricón
Mi vecino de arriba
Se lo pasa fatal
Y que yo me divierta
No puede soportar
Cuando me mira siente
Ganas de vomitar
Si yo fuera su hijo
Me pondría a cavar
Mi vecino de arriba
En la barra del bar
Cuando se habla de sexo
Dice que es Superman
Es una pena que su mujer
No opine igual
De sexo, las mujeres
No debían de opinar
Mi vecino de arriba
Un día me pescó
Magreando a su hija
Dentro del ascensor
Del trabajo volvía
Cuando reconoció
La voz que me decía
"Quítate el pantalón"
Aún estoy corriendo
No quiero ni pensar
Lo que habría sucedido
Si me llega a alcanzar
Como hay niños delante
No les puedo contar
Lo que con su cuchillo
Me quería cortar
Me he cambiado de casa
De nacionalidad
Pero, a pesar de todo
Todo ha seguido igual
Los vecinos de arriba
Inundan la ciudad
Si tu vives abajo
No te dejan en paz
The lyrics of Joaquín Sabina's song "Acuerdate De Mi" portray a narrative about the singer's neighbor who lives in the apartment above him. The neighbor is described as a very formal and serious man who appears respectable in society. He attends mass on Sundays and abides by traditional social norms. He preaches responsibility to his children but dismisses any form of freedom as libertinage. Despite his efforts to fulfill societal expectations, he has not found happiness. He holds strict opinions about the war, belittling those who didn't participate while glorifying his own contribution.
The singer criticizes his neighbor's narrow-minded attitude and judgmental nature. The neighbor is depicted as a staunch Spanish gentleman who always speaks with authority and without reason. He is compared to the "big bad wolf" who watches football on Sundays and constantly watches television. He condemns the singer's lifestyle, particularly his growing beard and choice of music, accusing him of being irresponsible and derogatorily labeling him as a homosexual. The neighbor is envious of the singer's enjoyment and despises it, to the point of feeling nauseated when he sees him. The singer expresses his fear of the neighbor's potential harm towards him if the situation escalated and reveals that he had to move to a new house and change his nationality to escape the oppressive presence of his upstairs neighbors.
Overall, this song delves into the clash of personalities and ideologies between the singer and his neighbor. It emphasizes the neighbor's judgmental and conservative mindset, contrasting it with the singer's more liberated and carefree perspective. It highlights the tension and discomfort caused by living in close proximity to someone with conflicting values.
Line by Line Meaning
Mi vecino de arriba
The person living above me
Es un fulano de tal
Is a person of such and such
Es un señor muy calvo
Is a bald gentleman
Muy serio y muy formal
Very serious and very formal
Que va a misa el domingo
Who goes to church on Sundays
Y fiestas de guardar
And observe religious holidays
Que es una unidad de destino
Who believes in a destiny
En lo universal
In the universal sense
Que busca en esta vida
Who seeks in this life
Respetabilidad
Respectability
Que predica a sus hijos
Who preaches to his children
Responsabilidad
Responsibility
Y llama libertinaje
And calls freedom
A la libertad
Licentiousness
Ha conseguido todo
He has achieved everything
Menos felicidad
Except happiness
Hizo la guerra y no
He fought in the war and
Va a consentir que opine
Will not allow others to have an opinion
A quien no la ganó
If they did not win it
Es el lobo feroz
He is the big bad wolf
Que va el domingo al fútbol
Who goes to watch football on Sundays
Y ve televisión
And watches television
Que engorda veinte kilos
Who gains twenty kilos in weight
Si le llaman señor
If someone calls him 'sir'
Que pinta en las paredes
Who paints on the walls
"Rojos al paredón"
"Reds to the firing squad"
Le revienta que yo
It annoys him that I
Deje crecer mi barba
Let my beard grow
Y cante mi canción
And sing my song
Es más hombre que yo
He is more of a man than I am
Dice que soy un golfo
He says I am a rascal
Y que soy maricón
And that I am gay
Se lo pasa fatal
He has a terrible time
Y que yo me divierta
And cannot stand that I have fun
No puede soportar
He cannot bear
Cuando me mira siente
When he looks at me, he feels
Ganas de vomitar
The urge to vomit
Si yo fuera su hijo
If I were his son
Me pondría a cavar
I would start digging
En la barra del bar
At the bar counter
Cuando se habla de sexo
When sex is being discussed
Dice que es Superman
He says he's Superman
Es una pena que su mujer
It's a shame that his wife
No opine igual
Doesn't share the same opinion
De sexo, las mujeres
Regarding sex, women
No debían de opinar
Should not have an opinion
Un día me pescó
One day he caught me
Magreando a su hija
Fondling his daughter
Dentro del ascensor
Inside the elevator
Del trabajo volvía
I was returning from work
Cuando reconoció
When he recognized
La voz que me decía
The voice that said to me
"Quítate el pantalón"
"Take off your pants"
Aún estoy corriendo
I am still running
No quiero ni pensar
I don't even want to think about
Lo que habría sucedido
What would have happened
Si me llega a alcanzar
If he had caught up to me
Como hay niños delante
Since there are children around
No les puedo contar
I cannot tell them
Lo que con su cuchillo
What he wanted to do with his knife
Me quería cortar
To cut me
Me he cambiado de casa
I have moved houses
De nacionalidad
In terms of nationality
Pero, a pesar de todo
But, in spite of everything
Todo ha seguido igual
Everything has remained the same
Los vecinos de arriba
The neighbors upstairs
Inundan la ciudad
Are filling the city
Si tu vives abajo
If you live downstairs
No te dejan en paz
They won't leave you alone
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JOAQUIN RAMON SABINA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind