Tonino Carotone was born in Burgos, Spain. The majority of his childhood an… Read Full Bio ↴Tonino Carotone was born in Burgos, Spain. The majority of his childhood and adolescence were spent in Pamplona, a city famous for bullfighting. This perhaps explains the explosive temperament of this eccentric artist.

His real name is Antonio de la Cuesta and he started playing music in the 80's, when he participated in three different punk bands: Cagando Duro (The Hard Shit), Tijuana in Blue and Kojon Prieto y Los Huajolotes. The last one quickly became famous all over Spain, as they were playing covers of artists such as Al Bano and Raffaella Carra. Through one of their fantastic live appearances they drew the attention of Manu Chao, former leader of Mano Negra.

A few years later, in 2000, he would be the producer in Carotone's first solo album: “E Un Mondo Difficile”. The name that he now uses is a paraphrase of the Italian Carosone, in honour of an eminent Italian singer of the 50's, Renato Carosone (his big hit is “Tu Vuò Fà L'americano”).

His music combines punk with elements from Spanish, Italian, French, even Mexican popular music. It resembles the band Negresses Vertes and the solo works of Manu Chao, while a lot of critics are placing his music somewhere between Adriano Celentano and Tom Waits. The lyrics of his songs are often amusing, ironic or even surreal.

Amar Y Vivir
Tonino Carotone Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Por que no han de saber
que te hago vida mía
por que no he de decirlo
si fundes tu alma con el alma mía
que importa si después
me ven llorando un día
si acaso me preguntan
diré que te quiero mucho todavía

(x2)
Se vive solamente una vez
hay que aprender a querer y a vivir
hay que saber que esta vida se aleja
y nos deja llorando quimera
no quiero arrepentirme después
de lo que pudo a ver sido y no fue

quiero gozar esta vida teniéndote
cerca de mi hasta que muera

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Tonino Carotone's song "Amar y Vivir" reflect on the importance of love and living life to the fullest. The singer questions why he shouldn't let everyone know that his lover is his life, and why he shouldn't express his love for her openly. He believes that if their souls are intertwined, it doesn't matter if he's seen crying one day because their love is real. The chorus emphasizes that we only live once, and we must learn to love and live fully, knowing that life is fleeting and can leave us with nothing but regrets. The singer expresses his desire to enjoy life with his lover and not have any regrets in the future for not living fully.

Overall, the song's message is quite clear: love and live without fear or regret. It's a reminder that life is short and that we should make the most out of every moment, especially when it comes to love.

Line by Line Meaning

Por que no han de saber
Why should they not know

que te hago vida mía
that you are my life

por que no he de decirlo
why should I not say it

si fundes tu alma con el alma mía
if you merge your soul with mine

que importa si después
what does it matter if later

me ven llorando un día
they see me crying one day

si acaso me preguntan
if they ask me

diré que te quiero mucho todavía
I will say that I still love you very much

Se vive solamente una vez
We only live once

hay que aprender a querer y a vivir
We must learn to love and live

hay que saber que esta vida se aleja
We must know that this life escapes us