The restaurant where he worked as a young man, "La Sirena" was frequented by Andres Huesca, who heard some of his compositions of the then young singer, among which was "Cuando el Destino" and "Yo". Huesca immediately decided to record this and following this in 1948 for the first time on the radio station XEX-AM and months after the XEW-AM, which was catapulted to fame. He married Paloma Gálvez and had two children, José Alfredo and Paloma.
He had no musical training—according to the singer Miguel Aceves Mejía, Jiménez didn't play an instrument and didn't even know the Spanish terms for "waltz" and "key". Nonetheless he composed more than 1000 songs. Among the most famous are "Ella", "Media Vuelta", "El Rey", "El Jinete", "Si Nos Dejan", "Amanecí Entre Tus Brazos", "Cuando el Destino", "El Caballo Blanco", "Llegó Borracho el Borracho" and "Que Te Vaya Bonito", as well as "Camino de Guanajuato", where he sang about his home State of Guanajuato as well as his home town of Dolores Hidalgo Guanajuato.
In addition to his own hit recordings, many of his songs have been recorded successfully by recording artists around the Spanish-speaking world, most notably by Pedro Infante, Rocío Durcal, Javier Solís, Pedro Fernández, Jorge Negrete, Vikki Carr, Luis Miguel, Lola Beltrán, Lucha Villa, Vicente Fernández and by Spaniards Julio Iglesias, Joaquín Sabina and Manolo García.
Jiménez passed at a young age, like others of his contemporaries: Negrete, Infante and Solís, the so-called "Three Mexican Roosters", or Tres Gallos Mexicanos all died young. He was struck-down by hepatitis at age 47 and is regarded, along with Agustín Lara and Juan Gabriel, as one of the best songwriters that Mexico has ever produced. He was certainly one of the most prolific composers in the history of popular music, world-wide.
Shortly before his death, he wrote and recorded his last song, "Gracias", thanking the public for all of the affection they had shown him. His tomb has become a place of pilgrimage for serious music fans from around the Spanish-speaking world.
Ella
José Alfredo Jiménez Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Porque el destino cambió mi suerte
Ya tu cariño nada me importa
Mi corazón te olvidó pa' siempre
Fuiste en mi vida un sentimiento
Que destrozó toditita mi alma
Quise matarme por tu cariño
Pero volví a recobrar la calma
Yo, yo que tanto lloré por tus besos
Yo, yo que siempre te hablé sin mentira
Hoy, solo puedo brindarte desprecios
Yo, yo que tanto te quise en la vida
Me cansé de rogarle
Con el llanto en los ojos
Alcé mi copa y brindé con ella
No podía despreciarme
Era el ultimo brindis de un bohemio
Con una reina
Los mariachis callaron
De mi mano sin fuerza
Cayo mi copa sin darme cuenta
Ella quiso quedarse cuando vio mi tristeza
Pero ya estaba escrito que aquella noche
Perdiera su amor
The song "Ella" by José Alfredo Jiménez conveys the emotions of a man who is heartbroken after losing the love of his life. He is drunk and devastated because his luck has changed, and he is no longer important to his former lover. This man reflects on the past, remembering how his former love destroyed his soul. He confesses that he even contemplated taking his own life, but eventually regained his composure. The man then takes a moment to speak directly to his former love, expressing how much he tried to love and cherish her during their time together. However, he can only offer her disdain now, as his heart has finally let go.
Line by Line Meaning
Ando borracho, ando tomado
I am drunk, I am intoxicated
Porque el destino cambió mi suerte
Because destiny changed my luck
Ya tu cariño nada me importa
Now your love means nothing to me
Mi corazón te olvidó pa' siempre
My heart has forgotten you forever
Fuiste en mi vida un sentimiento
You were a feeling in my life
Que destrozó toditita mi alma
That destroyed my entire soul
Quise matarme por tu cariño
I wanted to die for your love
Pero volví a recobrar la calma
But I regained my calm
Yo, yo que tanto lloré por tus besos
Me, who cried so much for your kisses
Yo, yo que siempre te hablé sin mentira
Me, who always spoke to you without lying
Hoy, solo puedo brindarte desprecios
Today, I can only offer you disdain
Yo, yo que tanto te quise en la vida
Me, who loved you so much in life
Me cansé de rogarle
I got tired of begging
Con el llanto en los ojos
With tears in my eyes
Alcé mi copa y brindé con ella
I lifted my glass and toasted with it
No podía despreciarme
I couldn't despise myself
Era el ultimo brindis de un bohemio
It was the last toast of a bohemian
Con una reina
With a queen
Los mariachis callaron
The mariachis fell silent
De mi mano sin fuerza
From my weak hand
Cayo mi copa sin darme cuenta
My glass fell without me realizing it
Ella quiso quedarse cuando vio mi tristeza
She wanted to stay when she saw my sadness
Pero ya estaba escrito que aquella noche
But it was already written that night
Perdiera su amor
She would lose her love
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Jose Alfredo Jimenez Sandoval
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind