Rubén Blades (born July 16, 1948) is a Panamanian salsa singer, songwriter,… Read Full Bio ↴Rubén Blades (born July 16, 1948) is a Panamanian salsa singer, songwriter, actor and politician. As songwriter, Blades brought the lyrical sophistication of South American nueva canción and Cuban nueva trova to salsa, creating thinking persons' dance music. He remains wildly popular in that country and much admired throughout Latin America, and he managed to attract 20% of the vote in his failed attempt to win the Panamanian presidency in 1994. In September 2004, he was appointed minister of tourism by Panamanian president Martín Torrijos. Blades is completely bilingual, working both in English and Spanish. His most famous song is "Pedro Navaja", a song about a panderer whose day to die has come.

Blades's father is a percussionist-turned-detective and his mother was a singer and radio performer. His grandfather, Reuben Blades, was an English-speaking native of St. Lucia who came to work on the canal, as he tells in the song West Indian Man on the album Amor y Control ("That's where the Blades comes from.") (1992)

After obtaining degrees in political science and law at Panama's Universidad Nacional, Blades worked at the Bank of Panama as a lawyer. In 1974, Blades moved to the United States, staying temporarily with his exiled parents in Miami before moving to New York City. Blades began his musical career in New York writing songs while working in the mailroom at Fania Records, and soon was working with salseros Ray Barretto and Larry Harlow. Shortly thereafter Blades started collaborating with trombonist and band leader Willie Colón, and they recorded several albums together. Their album Siembra (1978) became the best-selling salsa record in history.

After 1980, Blades tried to terminate his contract with Fania, but he was contractually obliged to record several more albums. These are generally considered toss-offs and Blades himself told his fans to avoid them. When he was free of his contractual obligations, Blades signed with another label, Elektra, and assembled a top-notch band (known variously as Seis Del Solar or Son Del Solar) and recorded a number of albums with them.

In the early 1980s, Blades began his career in films as a composer of soundtracks.

In 1982, Blades got his first acting role in The Last Fight writing the title song as well as portraying a singer-turned-boxer vying for a championship against a fighter who was played by real life world champion boxer Salvador Sánchez.

In 1985, Blades gained widespread recognition as co-writer and star of the independent film Crossover Dreams as a New York salsa singer willing to do anything to break into the mainstream. This same year he earned a master's degree in international law from Harvard University. He was also the subject of Robert Mugge's documentary The Return of Ruben Blades, which debuted at that year's Denver Film Festival. During the 1990s, he acted in films, mounted his unsuccessful presidential bid, founding the party Movimiento Papa Egoró, and continued to make salsa records.

His many film appearances include The Milagro Beanfield War (1988), The Two Jakes (1990), Mo' Better Blues (1990), and Devil's Own (1997). In 1999, he played Mexican artist Diego Rivera in Tim Robbins' Cradle Will Rock.

In 1997, Blades headed the cast of singer/songwriter Paul Simon's first Broadway musical, The Capeman, based on a true story about a violent youth who becomes a poet in prison. In the 2003 film Once Upon a Time in Mexico, starring Johnny Depp, Antonio Banderas, and Willem Dafoe, he played the role of a retired FBI agent.

Blades' 1999 album Tiempos which he made with the 12-piece Costa Rican band Editus, represented a break from his salsa past and a rejection of commercial trends in Latin music.

Some might say that "his biggest mistake was releasing an English-language album in 1988 in the wake of his 1987 Grammy for Escenas" [sic] but in fact, he tends to avoid commercial choices. After winning his first Grammy for Escenas in 1986 he recorded the album Agua de Luna based on the short stories of Gabriel Garcia Marquez in 1987. The next year he released the English language collaboration with rock artists Sting, Elvis Costello, and Lou Reed the same year as Antecedente, another Grammy winner. In 2003 he followed the World Music Grammy winner Mundo with a web site free download project. As he said in 2005 when receiving the ASCAP Founders Award about his non-commercial choices, "That's the way I think."

In 2004 he put his artistic careers on hold when he began serving as Minister of Tourism of Panama.

Source: Wikipedia®

Dia a Dia
Rubén Blades Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Día a día
Me despierto
Creyendo oír tu voz

Día a día
Todavía
Me duele nuestro adiós

Quien no se ha equivocado, no trató
Quien nunca ha perdonado nunca amó
Y quien jamás pecó
Jamás vivió
Ah-ah

Día a día
La nostalgia
Me impulsa a continuar

Día a día
La distancia
Me aconseja olvidar

Tú y yo, con un pedazo de razón
Y compartiendo el mismo corazón
Que hemos partido en dos
Día a día
Ah-ah-ah
Ah-ah-ah

Aunque lo intente mil veces
No puedo ahogar
Lo que a tu alma pertenece
Y así olvidar

Día a día
Me levanto
Queriendo ser mejor

Y me acuesto
Noche a noche
Con mi contradicción

Viviendo entre la espada y la pared
Enfrento al horizonte del ayer
Y de él se asoma usted
Día a día
Día a día
Día a día

Día a día
Día a día

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Rubén Blades's song "Dia a Dia" speak of the bitterness of a breakup and the internal struggle to move on from it. The singer wakes up each day, hoping to hear their former lover's voice, but instead is haunted by the pain of their goodbye. The song acknowledges that everyone makes mistakes and that forgiveness is necessary for love to thrive, but also recognizes the difficulty in letting go of the past. The nostalgia and distance feel overwhelming, but the singer continues to try to be better and reconcile their conflicting emotions.

The chorus repeats the phrase "dia a dia," which translates to "day by day" in English. This suggests that moving on is a gradual process, and that each day brings new challenges and reminders of the past. The line "viviendo entre la espada y la pared" (living between a rock and a hard place) further emphasizes the struggle of trying to move forward while still holding onto memories and feelings.

The song's message is relatable and universal, as almost everyone has experienced heartbreak and the struggle to move on. The lyrics are simple yet impactful, and the melody is beautiful and melancholic. Overall, "Dia a Dia" is a powerful ballad that captures the essence of heartbreak and the process of healing.

Line by Line Meaning

Día a día
Everyday

Me despierto
I wake up

Creyendo oír tu voz
Believing to hear your voice

Todavía
Still

Me duele nuestro adiós
Our farewell still hurts me

Quien no se ha equivocado, no trató
Those who have never made a mistake, have never tried

Quien nunca ha perdonado nunca amó
Those who have never forgiven, have never loved

Y quien jamás pecó
And those who have never sinned

Jamás vivió
Have never lived

Día a día
Everyday

La nostalgia
Nostalgia