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.
Por qué volviste a mí
José Alfredo Jiménez Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Siendo tan grande el mundo,
Habiendo tantos hombres,
Porqué volviste a mi?
Después de aquel ayer,
Que tú lo maldeciste
Y luego destruíste
En mi ya no hay amor,
En mi alma ya no hay nada
Mi vida aventurera
Contigo se acabó.
Porqué volviste a mí,
Buscando compasión,
Sabiendo que en la vida
Le estoy poniendo letra
A mi última canción...
The song "Porqué volviste a mí" by José Alfredo Jiménez is a melancholic tune that is about a broken relationship. The singer is surprised that their former partner has returned to them, despite the fact that there are so many other men in the world. They question why their ex-lover would come back to them after they cursed and destroyed their relationship in the past. The singer expresses that there is no longer any love left in their heart and that they have moved on from the relationship. They see their life as adventurous and feel that being with their ex-lover has ended this journey. The singer asks why their ex-lover has returned, especially when they know that the singer is in a period of despair and sorrow, which is evident as the singer states that they are writing their last song.
The lyrics of "Porqué volviste a mí" are heartfelt and introspective, reflecting the pain and confusion experienced by someone whose past relationship has come back to haunt them. The song's lyrics dwell on the residual impact that failed relationships can have on one's heart, exploring the complex emotions that arise when attempting to navigate these issues. The song's slow-paced melody and melancholic tone add to the overall somber mood of the lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
Porqué volviste a mí,
Why did you come back to me,
Siendo tan grande el mundo,
When the world is so vast,
Habiendo tantos hombres,
And so many men around,
Porqué volviste a mi?
Why did you come back to me?
Después de aquel ayer,
After that yesterday,
Que tú lo maldeciste
That you cursed,
Y luego destruíste
And then destroyed,
A qué quieres volver?
What do you want to come back to?
En mi ya no hay amor,
There is no love in me,
En mi alma ya no hay nada
There is nothing left in my soul,
Mi vida aventurera
My adventurous life
Contigo se acabó.
With you, it's over.
Porqué volviste a mí,
Why did you come back to me,
Buscando compasión,
Seeking compassion,
Sabiendo que en la vida
Knowing that in life
Le estoy poniendo letra
I am putting lyrics
A mi última canción...
To my last song...
Writer(s): Jose Alfredo Jimenez Sandoval
Contributed by Juliana M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@MADM1984
Letras magníficas, podrán venir mil y un cantantes con voces de seda, privilegiadas, pero ninguno con ese sentimiento que le ponía José Alfredo, pues el mismo las escribía y al escucharlo solo puedo imaginar cómo vivió cada canción
@jesuscastillo8659
Porque volviste a mi buscando compasión sabiendo qué en la vida le estoy poniendo letra a mi última canción.......Maestro Jose Alfredo era ÚNICO cuales pinches estudiantes graduados en universidades de filosofía y letras que se pongan a escuchar a este señor chingao y van aprender mucho más.
@fecal73
Yo también pienso lo mismo.
@rivasguerrero8971
Un amor profundo en el que suele estar el primer amor, nos fácil de olvidar.
Otros sucesos y experiencias que acompañan al crecimiento de hombres y mujeres, intentarán hacerlo a un lado y hasta borrarlo pero sin lograrlo del todo, porque ese asomo sincero a la relación amorosa, ya tiene su lugar propio y es más fuerte y necio que una mancha de aceite en manta o mezclilla.
José Alfredo Jiménez sabía estas y otras verdades y plasmó su sentir en esta canción de desamor, junto con el dolor correspondiente de la ruptura amorosa que consideró inevitable…
De nueva cuenta, gracias maestro. ¡Viva el amor y vivan también, las y los valientes que se enamoran!
@javiernegrete8058
el mas grande compositor y poeta que México ha tenido
@estelaromo2811
Maldición ranchera
@chavezreyna1
Cuando te fuiste de mi lado, me dejaste destrozado, y empezaba a olvidar tus besos y caricias, y de pronto vuelves a aparecer en mi vida, porqué ? porqué volviste a mi, si solo me haces sufrir, habiendo tantos hombres, porqué volviste a mi ? Vete y déjame darle mi amor a quien verdaderamente lo valore. Gracias José Alfredo, eres único e irremplazable, podrán imitarte más nunca igualarte.
@flowersfromh-evanlakshmi7577
Me encanta la musica de Jose Alfredo desde nina escucho a Jose Alfredo y cuando ya creo que ya escuche todas sus canciones siempre me sorprende con mas canciones.
@aliriomartinez6368
si algun compocitor en sus melodias respeta las mujeres como un don sagrado que DIOS dejo es este hombre don jose alfredo jimenez fuiste y seguira siendo el REY desde colombia para mexijo y el mundo que le gusta la mejor musica del mundo
@moguelsantiago5758
Sabes para nosotros la mujer es todo