He realized very quickly that he wasn't made for studying, but he was good at soccer. He played in the lower ranks of Astur CF, at the time a reserve team for Real Oviedo. Afterwards, he worked as a waiter in several bars and spent all night out, living experiences that would later go on to make up the lyrics of his songs. In 2001, he joined a group called "El bosque de Sherwood", and soon after recorded a demo with only three songs, "Sin noticias de Holanda", "El informe del forense", and "Vuelvo a traficar".
In February 2003, Melendi released his first solo disc, called "Sin noticias de Holanda" with twelve songs. In December 2003, this disc was rereleased with two new songs, "Asturias" and "Moratalá". However, he reached true fame with the 2004 Vuelta a España chose his song "Con la luna llena" as its official theme. In May 2004, he started a small tour around Spain, selling 50,000 copies of his CD, making it a Gold Album.
In 2005, he released his second solo CD, "Que el cielo espere sentao", which has sold more than 200,000 copies. Later that same year, he rereleased the album with three new songs, "El Nano", "La dama, and "El vagabundo y Carlota", and a Live concert DVD recorded in Oviedo. He also became a father that year, and received the Onda award for Best Song of the Year for "Caminando por la vida".
In November 2005, he received seven Platinum Discs for his two albums. "Sin noticias..." received four and "Que el cielo..." three.
In 2006, it was announced that he would be one of the main stars in the PSP game "Gangs of London". Melendi played Mr. Big, an evil gangster. He also wrote the song "Gangs of London" for the occasion, going on to film a video amidst police lights and sirens. The videogame was launched on August 1 of that year in the UK and on September 6 in Spain; EMI stepped in to distribute his CDs worldwide.
Melendi in Valladolid.
He also wrote the song "Volveremos" (We Shall Return) for Real Oviedo. The singer is also involved in the production of the film "Vuelvo a traficar: The Film" (I'm Dealing Again).
"Mientras no cueste trabajo" was released on November 13, 2006 in two formats: a normal CD with 12 songs, and a special edition, with 16 songs and a DVD with extras. The disc was rereleased on September 29, 2007 with four new songs, "Firmes", "El rey de la baraja", "La aceituna", and "Me gusta el fútbol".
In 2007, he received the "Best Tour" award from the "Premios de la Música" ceremony held in Cordoba. He also did an advertising campaign for Canal+ Spain entitled "Me gusta el fútbol" (I Like Football), for which he wrote a song of the same name.
In 2007, he stood trial for provoking an incident while under the influence of alcohol on a flight from Madrid to Mexico City that required the pilot to return to Madrid two hours after takeoff[1][2]. He was released after testifying. Soon after, he was given the "Left Foot" award from Spanish radio station Cadena 100 for this incident.
Currently, Melendi directs his Blue Donkey Music company, helping young singers start their careers. He's offered contracts to four groups, Algunos Hombres Buenos, Rasel, La Dama y Belo, and Los Susodichos. This last group was nominated for a Latin Grammy for Best Rock Vocals. Algunos Hombres Buenos left the label in 2008.
On August 9, 2008 he presented his new single, "Un violinista en tu tejado" from his album Curiosa la cara de tu padre on Spanish radio station Los 40 Principales. The album was released on September 16, 2008. On December 12, Los 40 Principales awarded him their award for this album.
On March 17, 2009 he released a new double CD, Aún más curiosa la cara de tu padre, including the original disc and another with nine new songs and links to exclusive content on his website.
Como Dijo El Rey
Melendi Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Los cordones a la vida
ni desabrocharle
Los botones a la puta la vecina
No quería a la vida
porque la vida a él no le quería
Y cosiendo su alma rota
La fue dando por perdida
Su corazón en fa sostenido por alambre
Sustento factor siete contra la hipocresía
De esa gente sin alma
que pierde la calma
con la cocaína
Como dijo el rey, Sabina
Y en la soledad
De tenerte cerca
o lejos que más me da
Yo quise reír
Sin querer
Te escuché llorar
Nunca supo ver él
Una rosa en las espinas
Y para dormir
Atracaba las farmacias de la esquina
No sabia de penas
Porque una pena era en si su vida
Y encontró en un paso cebra
La mujer que fue su reina
Como dijo el rey, Sabina
Su corazón en fa sostenido por alambre
Sustento factor siete contra la hipocresía
De esa gente sin alma
que pierde la calma
con la cocaína
Como dijo el rey, Sabina
Y en la soledad
De tenerte cerca o lejos
que más me da
Yo quise reír
Sin querer
Te escuché llorar
Su corazón en fa sostenido por alambre
Sustento factor siete contra la hipocresía
De esa gente sin alma
que pierde la calma
con la cocaína
Como dijo el rey, Sabina
Y en la soledad
De tenerte cerca o lejos
que más me da
Yo quise reír
Sin querer
Te escuché llorar
Y en la soledad
De tenerte cerca o lejos
que más me da
Yo quise reír
Sin querer
Te escuché llorar
The lyrics of Melendi's Como Dijo El Rey are a deep reflection on the struggles and pain of a person who never knew how to properly deal with the hardships of life. The first verse highlights his inability to tie the laces of life, metaphorically referring to his inability to handle the basic challenges that life presents. He never learned to let go of the temptations surrounding him, like the woman who lives next door who he can't resist. This shows his lack of self-control, which contributed to his downfall.
The second verse touches on his overall hatred for life because it never seemed to love him back. His soul was broken and he saw no chance of redemption. He resorted to drugs to numb the pain and find some sense of comfort, which ultimately led to his downfall even further. The chorus of the song is a reference to a quote from Joaquín Sabina, stating that this person's heart is barely holding on by a thread, being kept alive by sheer will against the cruel world around him.
The bridge of the song speaks to the loneliness and regret that often come with addiction. The singer hears the tears of his loved one and wants to laugh, to cope with the harsh realities of life, but ultimately he cannot escape the pain he has caused her. This song is a powerful ballad that muses about the nature of addiction and how it affects the individual and those around them.
Line by Line Meaning
Nunca supo atarle
He never knew how to tie things up
Los cordones a la vida
The laces of life
ni desabrocharle
nor undo
Los botones a la puta la vecina
the buttons of the neighbor whore
No quería a la vida
He didn't love life
porque la vida a él no le quería
because life didn't love him
Y cosiendo su alma rota
And sewing his broken soul
La fue dando por perdida
He considered it a lost cause
Como dijo el rey, Sabina
Like Sabina, the king said
Su corazón en fa sostenido por alambre
His heart in F sharp held together by wire
Sustento factor siete contra la hipocresía
Strengthened seven times against hypocrisy
De esa gente sin alma
Of those soulless people
que pierde la calma
who lose their calm
con la cocaína
with cocaine
Y en la soledad
And in loneliness
De tenerte cerca
to have you close
o lejos que más me da
or far away, what does it matter
Yo quise reír
I wanted to laugh
Sin querer
Unintentionally
Te escuché llorar
I heard you cry
Nunca supo ver él
He never knew how to see
Una rosa en las espinas
A rose among the thorns
Y para dormir
And to sleep
Atracaba las farmacias de la esquina
He would rob the corner pharmacies
No sabia de penas
He didn't know about grief
Porque una pena era en si su vida
Because grief was his life
Y encontró en un paso cebra
And he found at a pedestrian crossing
La mujer que fue su reina
The woman who was his queen
Contributed by Evelyn C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.