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®
Piensa en mi
Rubén Blades Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
De una adversidad, si la ansiedad ante un fracaso te hace
Sentir que ya no hay caso para continuar
Cuando te falte la confianza, o cuando pierdas la
Esperanza que te hizo tratar, recuerda que eso es
Pasajero, pero mi amor es verdadero y no se marchará
Piensa en mí
Y pierdas la paz, cuando parezca que no hay cura
Para el dolor que te tortura no olvides jamás que en este
Mundo todo cuesta, y aunque paguemos la respuesta con
Llanto y dolor, el que no busca nada encuentra y sólo
Ganan los que apuestan a su corazón
No habrá muralla que nos pueda detener, ni habrá
Tristeza que nos pueda desolar, por muy amargo que haya
Sido nuestro ayer, siempre hay futuro para la felicidad
Piensa en mí
Nunca es demasiado tarde para ser felíz
The lyrics of Rubén Blades's song Piensa en mi address the struggles and hardships of life. The song speaks to those who feel broken by adversity and overwhelmed by failure. It encourages them to remember that their pain is temporary and that true love is enduring. The lyrics urge the listener to hold onto hope even in the midst of doubt and uncertainty.
The first verse describes the inevitable embrace of adversity that can shatter one's dreams and cause them to lose faith in themselves. It reminds the listener that their lack of confidence and hope is only temporary. The chorus reinforces this message by telling the listener to think of the singer, who represents true love that will never leave.
The second verse acknowledges the bitterness and doubt that can dominate one's thoughts in difficult times. It reminds the listener that everything in life comes at a cost, but that those who choose to follow their hearts will ultimately succeed. The bridge of the song asserts that nothing can stop true love or prevent happiness in the future.
Overall, the lyrics of Piensa en mi are a message of hope and encouragement to anyone facing challenging circumstances. It emphasizes the importance of staying true to oneself and persisting through hardships in order to find happiness.
Line by Line Meaning
Si tu ilusión se hizo pedazos por el inevitable abrazo
If your illusion shattered due to an inevitable setback
De una adversidad, si la ansiedad ante un fracaso te hace
From an adversity, if the anxiety towards failure troubles you
Sentir que ya no hay caso para continuar
Feeling that there is no point in continuing
Cuando te falte la confianza, o cuando pierdas la
When you lack confidence or lose
Esperanza que te hizo tratar, recuerda que eso es
Hope that made you try, remember that it is
Pasajero, pero mi amor es verdadero y no se marchará
Passing, but my love is true and won't leave
Piensa en mí
Think of me
Cuando te ahogue la amargura, cuando te domine la duda
When bitterness suffocates and doubt dominates you
Y pierdas la paz, cuando parezca que no hay cura
And lose your peace, when it seems that there is no cure
Para el dolor que te tortura no olvides jamás que en este
For the pain that tortures you, never forget that in this
Mundo todo cuesta, y aunque paguemos la respuesta con
World, everything has a cost, and even if we pay for the answer with
Llanto y dolor, el que no busca nada encuentra y sólo
Tears and pain, the one who seeks nothing finds and only
Ganan los que apuestan a su corazón
Win those who bet on their heart
No habrá muralla que nos pueda detener, ni habrá
There will be no wall that can stop us, nor will there be
Tristeza que nos pueda desolar, por muy amargo que haya
Sadness that can devastate us, no matter how bitter our past may be
Sido nuestro ayer, siempre hay futuro para la felicidad
There is always a future for happiness, no matter how our past was
Piensa en mí
Think of me
Nunca es demasiado tarde para ser felíz
It is never too late to be happy
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: RUBEN BLADES
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind