Joaquín Ramón Martínez Sabina (Úbeda, Jaén, Spain, 12 February 1949), known… Read Full Bio ↴Joaquín Ramón Martínez Sabina (Úbeda, Jaén, Spain, 12 February 1949), known artistically as Joaquín Sabina, is a singer - songwriter, and poet. He has released fourteen studio albums, two live albums, and three compilation albums. He has collaborated and composed songs for Ana Belén and Miguel Ríos amongst others.

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.

Más de cien mentiras
Joaquín Sabina Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Tenemos cenizas de revoluciones

Tenemos zapatos, orgullo, presente
Tenemos costumbres, pudores, jadeos
Tenemos la boca, la lengua, los dientes
Saliva, cinismo, locura, deseo

Tenemos el sexo y el rock y la droga
Los pies en el barrio, y el grito en el cielo
Tenemos Quintero, León y Quiroga
Y un bisnes pendiente con Pedro Botero

Más de cien palabras, más de cien motivos
Para no cortarse de un tajo las venas
Más de cien pupilas donde vernos vivos
Más de cien mentiras que valen la pena

Tenemos unas escondido en la manga
Tenemos nostalgia, piedad, insolencia
Monjas de Fellini, curas de Berlanga
Veneno, resaca, perfume, violencia

Tenemos un techo con libros y besos
Tenemos el morbo, los celos, la sangre
Tenemos la niebla metida en los huesos
Tenemos el lujo de no tener hambre

Tenemos talones de Aquiles sin fondos
Ropa de domingo, ninguna bandera
Nubes de verano, guerras de Macondo
Setas en noviembre, fiebre de primavera

Glorietas, revistas, zaguanes, pistolas
Qué importa, lo siento, hasta siempre, te quiero
Hinchas del atleti, gángsters de Coppola
Verónica y cuarto de Curro Romero

Más de cien palabras, más de cien motivos
Para no cortarse de un tajo las venas
Más de cien pupilas donde vernos vivos
Más de cien mentiras que valen la pena

Tenemos el mal de la melancolía
La sed y la rabia, el ruido y las nueces
Tenemos el agua y, dos veces al día
El santo milagro del pan y los peces

Tenemos lolitas, tenemos donjuanes
Lennon y McCartney, Gardel y LePera
Tenemos horóscopos, Biblias, Coranes
Ramblas en la luna, vírgenes de cera

Tenemos naufragios soñados en playas
De islotes sin nombre ni ley ni rutina
Tenemos heridas, tenemos medallas
Laureles de gloria, coronas de espinas

Más de cien palabras, más de cien motivos
Para no cortarse de un tajo las venas
Más de cien pupilas donde vernos vivos
Más de cien mentiras que valen la pena

Tenemos caprichos, muñecas hinchables
Ángeles caídos, barquitos de vela
Pobres exquisitos, ricos miserables
Ratoncitos Pérez, dolores de muelas

Tenemos proyectos que se marchitaron
Crímenes perfectos que no cometimos
Retratos de novias que nos olvidaron
Y un alma en oferta que nunca vendimos

Tenemos poetas, colgados, canallas
Quijotes y Sanchos, Babel y Sodoma
Abuelos que siempre ganaban batallas
Caminos que nunca llevaban a Roma

Más de cien palabras, más de cien motivos
Para no cortarse de un tajo las venas
Más de cien pupilas donde vernos vivos
Más de cien mentiras que valen la pena

Más de cien palabras, más de cien motivos
Para no cortarse de un tajo las venas
Más de cien pupilas donde vernos vivos
Más de cien mentiras que valen la pena

Más de cien palabras, más de cien motivos
Para no cortarse de un tajo las venas

Más de cien pupilas donde vernos vivos
Más de cien mentiras que valen la pena

Overall Meaning

The song "Más de Cien Mentiras" is a celebration of life, of all the things we have and experience that make it worth living, even though they may not always be truthful or perfect. Throughout the song, Joaquin Sabina lists a myriad of things we have: memories, friends, doubts and faith, motels, bars, and altars, among others. He also mentions experiences we have: urgent love affairs, silence, Venice and Manhattan, ashes of revolutions, and even "lies that are worth it."

The song is an ode to the complexity and richness of life, acknowledging that even though we have our flaws and struggles, we still have a multitude of things that make it worth living. It's a reminder to appreciate everything we have, despite its imperfections.

Overall, "Más de Cien Mentiras" is a celebration of life, with all its ups and downs, and an encouragement to never give up on it.

Line by Line Meaning

Tenemos memoria, tenemos amigos
We have memories and we have friends

Tenemos los trenes, la risa, los bares
We have trains, laughter, and bars

Tenemos la duda y la fe, sumo y sigo
We have doubt and faith, ups and downs

Tenemos moteles, garitos, altares
We have motels, haunts, and altars

Tenemos urgencias, amores que matan
We have emergencies and loves that kill

Tenemos silencio, tabaco, razones
We have silence, tobacco, and reasons

Tenemos Venecia, tenemos Manhattan
We have Venice and we have Manhattan

Tenemos cenizas de revoluciones
We have the ashes of revolutions

Tenemos zapatos, orgullo, presente
We have shoes, pride, and the present

Tenemos costumbres, pudores, jadeos
We have customs, modesty, and gasps

Tenemos la boca, la lengua, los dientes
We have the mouth, the tongue, the teeth

Saliva, cinismo, locura, deseo
Saliva, cynicism, madness, desire

Tenemos el sexo y el rock y la droga
We have sex, rock, and drugs

Los pies en el barrio, y el grito en el cielo
Our feet in the neighborhood, and a cry to the sky

Tenemos Quintero, León y Quiroga
We have Quintero, León, and Quiroga

Y un bisnes pendiente con Pedro Botero
And a pending deal with Pedro Botero

Más de cien palabras, más de cien motivos
More than a hundred words, more than a hundred reasons

Para no cortarse de un tajo las venas
To not cut one's veins in one go

Más de cien pupilas donde vernos vivos
More than a hundred eyes to see us alive

Más de cien mentiras que valen la pena
More than a hundred lies worth it

Tenemos unas escondido en la manga
We have some hidden up our sleeves

Tenemos nostalgia, piedad, insolencia
We have nostalgia, pity, insolence

Monjas de Fellini, curas de Berlanga
Fellini's nuns, Berlanga's priests

Veneno, resaca, perfume, violencia
Poison, hangover, perfume, violence

Tenemos un techo con libros y besos
We have a roof with books and kisses

Tenemos el morbo, los celos, la sangre
We have morbid curiosity, jealousy, blood

Tenemos la niebla metida en los huesos
We have fog in our bones

Tenemos el lujo de no tener hambre
We have the luxury of not being hungry

Tenemos talones de Aquiles sin fondos
We have bottomless Achilles' heels

Ropa de domingo, ninguna bandera
Sunday clothes, no flags

Nubes de verano, guerras de Macondo
Summer clouds, Macondo's wars

Setas en noviembre, fiebre de primavera
Mushrooms in November, spring fever

Glorietas, revistas, zaguanes, pistolas
Rotundas, magazines, lobbies, guns

Qué importa, lo siento, hasta siempre, te quiero
What does it matter, I'm sorry, goodbye, I love you

Hinchas del atleti, gángsters de Coppola
Fans of Atleti, Coppola's gangsters

Verónica y cuarto de Curro Romero
Veronica and Curro Romero's suerte

Tenemos el mal de la melancolía
We have the malady of melancholy

La sed y la rabia, el ruido y las nueces
Thirst and rage, noise and nuts

Tenemos el agua y, dos veces al día
We have water, and twice a day

El santo milagro del pan y los peces
The holy miracle of the bread and the fishes

Tenemos lolitas, tenemos donjuanes
We have lolitas and we have donjuans

Lennon y McCartney, Gardel y LePera
Lennon and McCartney, Gardel and LePera

Tenemos horóscopos, Biblias, Coranes
We have horoscopes, Bibles, and Qurans

Ramblas en la luna, vírgenes de cera
Ramblas on the moon, wax virgins

Tenemos naufragios soñados en playas
We have shipwrecks dreamed of on beaches

De islotes sin nombre ni ley ni rutina
Of islets with no name, no law, no routine

Tenemos heridas, tenemos medallas
We have wounds and we have medals

Laureles de gloria, coronas de espinas
Laurels of glory, crowns of thorns

Tenemos caprichos, muñecas hinchables
We have whims, inflatable dolls

Ángeles caídos, barquitos de vela
Fallen angels, sailboats

Pobres exquisitos, ricos miserables
Exquisite poor, miserable rich

Ratoncitos Pérez, dolores de muelas
Ratoncitos Pérez, toothaches

Tenemos proyectos que se marchitaron
We have withered projects

Crímenes perfectos que no cometimos
Perfect crimes we didn't commit

Retratos de novias que nos olvidaron
Portraits of brides who forgot us

Y un alma en oferta que nunca vendimos
And a soul on sale that we never sold

Tenemos poetas, colgados, canallas
We have poets, hangings, scoundrels

Quijotes y Sanchos, Babel y Sodoma
Quijotes and Sanchos, Babel and Sodoma

Abuelos que siempre ganaban batallas
Grandparents who always won battles

Caminos que nunca llevaban a Roma
Roads that never led to Rome