In 1982, three guys from Concepción, Álvaro Henríquez, Roberto Titae Lindl, and Pancho Molina started a band called Los Dick Stones, whose set list was based on songs by Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, and Gene Vincent. They quickly became very popular in universities, bars, and peñas around the southern city of Concepción. Given their ambition to achieve success in the Chilean mainstream, they decided to move to the capital city of Santiago and changed their name to Los Tres. In 1988 Ángel Parra joined the band and even though Los Tres is Spanish for "the three", they decided to keep the name.
During years when culture and art began to rise again -after the cultural and night life had been reduced for almost 20 years due to the military regime that had ruled Chile since 1973-, the times were right for their music to develop and their popularity to grow. They recorded 9 albums during their first stage together, from 1982 until 2000.
In 2000 the band went into an indefinite break and its members continued their musical careers in personal projects.
On 2006 Los Tres, with the exception of Pancho Molina, announced their reunion including a show in May, the festival Vive Latino in Mexico City, and a show in Santiago de Chile. The first single Camino was already released. Their tenth album (Hágalo usted mismo) was a result of this reunion. The band is still together.
Partir de Cero
Los Tres Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Y nadie ha llegado
Cuando te has vendido por siglos
Y nadie ha comprado
Cuando te han regalado
Vano, de nuevo
De viejo & de enano
¿Te sientes feliz?
Cuando firmaste al cielo creyendo
y no viste los clavos de acero
Te destrozaron la cara
Y después te humillaron
Como si nada
Y te cegó el cielo y como Jesús
No viste los clavos de acero
¿Te sientes feliz?
The lyrics to Los Tres's song "Partir de Cero" can be interpreted as a reflection on the struggles and disappointments that come with striving for success and happiness. The opening lines ask if one feels happy after waiting for years for someone who never arrives, selling oneself for centuries without any buyers, or receiving meaningless gifts as a result of growing old or being small. These scenarios highlight the feelings of longing and desperation that can arise when one feels stuck in life and unable to achieve their desired goals.
The next verse references a belief in heaven, but suggests that this faith was shattered by the reality of life's cruelty. The singer's face was destroyed and they were humiliated, as if their past belief in something greater was inconsequential. The image of not seeing the steel nails that inflict pain is a reference to Jesus on the cross, and it underscores the idea that there are times in life when we do not anticipate or see the hardships we will face. Ultimately, the song emphasizes the importance of starting from scratch and building a new foundation in order to reach true happiness and fulfillment.
Line by Line Meaning
Cuando has esperado por años
When you have waited for years
Y nadie ha llegado
And no one has arrived
Cuando te has vendido por siglos
When you have sold yourself for centuries
Y nadie ha comprado
And no one has bought
Cuando te han regalado
When they have given you as a gift
Vano, de nuevo
In vain, again
De viejo & de enano
As an old man and as a dwarf
¿Te sientes feliz?
Do you feel happy?
Cuando firmaste al cielo creyendo
When you signed to the sky believing
y no viste los clavos de acero
And did not see the steel nails
Te destrozaron la cara
They smashed your face
Y después te humillaron
And then they humiliated you
Como si nada
As if it was nothing
Y te cegó el cielo y como Jesús
And the sky blinded you like Jesus did
No viste los clavos de acero
You did not see the steel nails
¿Te sientes feliz?
Do you feel happy?
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind