Dani Klein, the lead singer, and Willy Lambregt had previous success in the band Arbeid Adelt! and decided to form the band Vaya Con Dios together with contrabassist Dirk Schoufs, because their interests were with gypsy music, jazz and opera which are genres which they felt were underappreciated in Brussels.
Their first single "Just a Friend of Mine" has a Latin feel to it and became a big hit in France, selling over 300,000 copies. Willy Lambregt left the group and was replaced by Jean-Michel Gielen. Even though Vaya Con Dios had success in Latin countries, they remained largely unknown in the Netherlands partially due to being a Belgian band, but also because of their gypsy style. In the Summer of 1990, they finally broke through in the Netherlands with "What's a Woman?" peaking at #1 for three weeks, thus making Vaya Con Dios the second Belgian artists to have a #1 hit in the Netherlands; the first being Ivan Heylen in 1974. The song is about the difficulties of men and women who on the one hand need one another, yet sometimes have a difficult time understanding each other.
In 1991, Dani Klein and Dirk Schoufs decided to go their seperate ways and from then on the group consisted of only Dani Klein singng with various musicians. On 24 May 1991, Schoufs died of an AIDS-related illness, which he contracted due to his heroin addiction. Even though they were no longer a team, Dani was very saddened and the third album Time Flies is much more melancholic than the previous albums.
Even though the music and the composition of the band changed, Vaya Con Dios remained popular in large parts of Europe, especially France, Germany, and Scandinavia, until 1996, when Dani left the music business complaining of too much stress. She returned in 1999 as singer in the group "Purple Prose", also the title of the début album that same year. Vaya Con Dios returned in 2004 with a new album called "The Promise," released on an independent label.
In November 2006, Vaya Con Dios released a new album called 'The Ultimate Collection'. It's a CD and DVD of the acoustic concert in Brussels (Belgium) at 31 August 2006.
In total, Vaya Con Dios sold more than 7 million albums and more than 3 million singles
Farewell Song
Vaya Con Dios Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm gonna leave you
One more time
I shall deceive you
The moon is round
And the wolves are howling
On hunting ground
My pack is waiting
We were chosen by fate
To perform all the rites
That turned love into hate
I'll see you grin when I pass you by
I'll hear you curse my name
I won't lower my eyes
I won't cover my face
You can call me a liar
Try to put me to shame
No, I have no desire
To live my life in the shade
You strut like a lion
But you're a bird in a cage
You set the rivers on fire
But you got burned by the flames
Forever now
I'm gonna lose you
These arms of mine
Could never soothe you
The lyrics of Vaya Con Dios's Farewell Song are a portrait of a relationship that has gone from love to hate. The singer has made the decision to leave their lover once again, knowing that they will deceive them. The moon is full, and the wolves are howling, creating a primal feeling in the atmosphere that sets the tone for what's to come. The singer's pack is waiting, implying that they are not alone in their decision, and they are about to embark on a journey, leaving behind everything they once shared with their lover.
The relationship's breakdown is captured in the line, "We will never know why we were chosen by fate to perform all the rites that turned love into hate." Whether it was a mismatch of personalities or a series of events that caused the relationship to sour is unclear; however, the singer acknowledges that they are both complicit in the relationship's failure. The final stanza highlights the defiance and determination of the singer as they declare, "You can call me a liar, try to put me to shame. No, I have no desire to live my life in the shade. You strut like a lion, but you're a bird in a cage."
Overall, the song conveys a sense of desperation and finality, as the singer ends their relationship on their own terms, no matter how painful it may be.
Line by Line Meaning
Darling now
Addressing the person being left behind in a loving manner
I'm gonna leave you
The singer is leaving the person they are addressing
One more time
The singer has left before and may do so again
I shall deceive you
The artist is admitting that they have deceived the person before and may do so again
The moon is round
Setting the scene and the mood of the song
And the wolves are howling
Adding to the eerie atmosphere of the song
On hunting ground
Suggesting danger and a sense of being hunted
My pack is waiting
The artist has people waiting for them, perhaps to help them leave
We will never know why
The artist is acknowledging that explaining their reasons for leaving won't make sense to the person being left
We were chosen by fate
Suggesting that the relationship was predetermined and out of their control
To perform all the rites
The singer is suggesting that the relationship was destined to be doomed
That turned love into hate
The relationship has gone from being loving to the opposite
I'll see you grin when I pass you by
The person being left will be happy to see the singer leave
I'll hear you curse my name
The person being left will verbally express their anger for the singer
I won't lower my eyes
The singer will not show any weakness or regret for the decision to leave
I won't cover my face
The artist will not be ashamed of their decision to leave
You can call me a liar
The person being left is accusing the artist of being dishonest
Try to put me to shame
The person being left is trying to make the singer feel embarrassed or guilty
No, I have no desire
The singer is not interested in the opinion of the person being left
To live my life in the shade
The artist wants to live their life with freedom and not be held back by anyone
You strut like a lion
The person being left has a confident and arrogant demeanor
But you're a bird in a cage
The person being left is trapped in their own self-created image
You set the rivers on fire
The person being left tries to make a statement and stir things up
But you got burned by the flames
The person being left's actions led to negative consequences for themselves
Forever now
The singer is suggesting that the relationship is permanently over
I'm gonna lose you
The singer is losing the person they are addressing
These arms of mine
The singer is acknowledging that they won't be able to hold onto the person they are losing
Could never soothe you
The person being left cannot be comforted by the artist's embrace
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
petras zemgulys
I love this song ... Totally brilliant !
Celso Arroyo
I love this song!
Gitta van Buuren
Taking a trip down memory lane, still gives me the shivers
Σταθιάννα Δουρούμη
Love it!!!Vaya Con Dios you re the best!!!
Steph McKenzie
What a cracking song ..... not only do you want to sing it as loud as you can but you'll tap your feet whilst doing it.
Kim Thuwis
I love this song
Nazrin Vakilova
why is noone commenting this masterpiece?? Beautiful, full of life!!!
Tomy Cortés
+Nazrin Vakilova Ok I will find you!
Nazrin Vakilova
+Tomy96ful I don't actually have twitter, but you can add me on facebook and we can keep in touch!
Tomy Cortés
Thank you so much!! Would you like talk by..twitter for example?