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.
La Estrella de Jalisco
José Alfredo Jiménez Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
no puedo comprender;
no sé, no me lo explico.
Busqué la estrella más bonita
del cielo de Jalisco,
y te la di una vez
que te arrullé al vaivén
mientras la luna azul
nos envolvía en su luz
y se metía en el agua.
Por tu tremendo amor
yo ya podía esperar
la muerte entre tus brazos,
sentí que poco a poco el cielo
se me caía en pedazos,
y te mire temblar,
y se quebro tu voz,
un tanto apasionada.
Y te entregué mi amor,
como se da el amor:
sin preguntarte nada.
Pero se fue la noche
y me quede llorando,
llorando tu abandono;
y amanecí en la vida
alrededor de nada
completamente solo.
Por eso, ya lo vez,
no puedo comprender;
no sé, no me lo explico.
Busqué la estrella más bonita
del cielo de Jalisco,
y te la dí una vez
que te arrullé al vaivén
del lago de Chapala,
mientras la luna azul
nos envovlvía en su luz
y se metía en el agua.
The song "La Estrella De Jalisco" by Jose Alfredo Jimenez depicts the sorrow and confusion of unrequited love. The singer cannot comprehend why his lover would abandon him after he gave her the most beautiful star from the Jalisco sky. He remembers the night he serenaded her by the Chapala Lake, wrapped in the blue light of the moon, and how he surrendered his love without questioning hers. But the morning brought him tears of loneliness, and he realized he was alone with nothing but memories of his love.
The lyrics convey a deep sense of vulnerability and regret, as the singer reflects on his incomprehension of what he did wrong. He is left with nothing but the star that couldn't bind his lover's heart to his. The song carries a subtle message of the fleeting nature of love and the powerlessness of human emotion when confronted with loss.
Line by Line Meaning
Aunque quisiera yo,
no puedo comprender;
no sé, no me lo explico.
Despite my desire to understand, I cannot comprehend what happened; honestly, it's inexplicable to me.
Busqué la estrella más bonita
del cielo de Jalisco,
y te la di una vez
que te arrullé al vaivén
del lago de Chapala,
mientras la luna azul
nos envolvía en su luz
y se metía en el agua.
I searched for the most beautiful star in the Jalisco sky, which I gave to you one time, while I soothed you with the rhythm of the Chapala lake. The blue moon shone on us, and dipped into the water.
Por tu tremendo amor
yo ya podía esperar
la muerte entre tus brazos,
sentí que poco a poco el cielo
se me caía en pedazos,
y te mire temblar,
y se quebro tu voz,
un tanto apasionada.
Because of your immense love, I could have embraced death in your arms. I felt as if my world was falling apart slowly, while you trembled and your voice cracked with passion.
Y te entregué mi amor,
como se da el amor:
sin preguntarte nada.
I gave you my love as freely and unconditionally as one can give such a thing, without asking anything from you in return.
Pero se fue la noche
y me quedé llorando,
llorando tu abandono;
y amanecí en la vida
alrededor de nada
completamente solo.
But the night ended and I was left crying, weeping for your abandonment. I woke up in a life that now seemed empty, utterly alone.
Por eso, ya lo ves,
no puedo comprender;
no sé, no me lo explico.
So you see, I still cannot comprehend or explain what happened between us.
Busqué la estrella más bonita
del cielo de Jalisco,
y te la dí una vez
que te arrullé al vaivén
del lago de Chapala,
mientras la luna azul
nos envolvía en su luz
y se metía en el agua.
I searched for the most beautiful star in the Jalisco sky, which I gave to you one time, while I soothed you with the rhythm of the Chapala lake. The blue moon shone on us, and dipped into the water.
Contributed by Caleb O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@mathias1999
Independientemente de donde haya nacido (Guanajuato), es mexicano y nos debemos sentir orgullosos que sea nuestro paisano. Viva México Cabrones.
@chulita1964
Viva México,cuna de grandes músicos.Viva José Alfredo Jiménez,el hombre que escribió la mayor parte del repertorio de los Mariachis.
@noehernadez9868
No hay quien, tenga los versos encarnados al dolor y amor qué el Rey!!! escucha cualquier genero y cuando se hable de sentimientos Amorós, solo él
@hectormanueljimenezhidalgo4009
esta es la estralla mas bonita de jalisco jose alfredo jimenez sigues en corazon de todos los mexicanos y todos los que te oigan, para mi tu eres una estrella que esta alla en el firmamento, gracias por relagalarnos este tipo de canciones, gracias
@hernanhernandez7914
Q letra tan hermosa y romántica que voz tan romántica q belleza de cancion
@plataurieta9168
Simplemente el rey José Alfredo Jiménez me recuerda a mi padre escuchaba esas canciones cuando se tomaba sus mezcales!
@familiaaguirre2940
Simplemente “ El Rey” !
@chulita1964
Que preciosa canción...
@alejandrogarcia3065
EL MAS GRANDE Y NO ES RECONOCIDO COMO SIEMPRE PASA EN MEXICO PERO SIEMPRE ESTARA EN NUESTROS CORAZONES VIVA JOSE ALFREDO JOMENEZ
@MBEABOGADOS
No hace falta. Él es el más grande!