The group was founded in 1979 by Bernardo Bonezzi (Madrid, 1964-2012 ), who even before the age of fourteen had led a band called Morbus Acre and formed part of the seminal group of the Madrid scene Kaka de Luxe. The Zombies pooled influences of glam rock (Lou Reed, David Bowie, Brian Eno ) and new wave (Talking Heads, B- 52's ). They signed to RCA , who released the group's first single, the catchy "Groenland", a song that still remains among the best-known Spanish pop songs of the 80, and is present in numerous compilations of music from the decade.
Encouraged by the success of the single, they recorded their first album, 'Extraños juegos', one of the most successful pop albums of the 80s. However, following the release of the second LP, 'La muralla china', Bonezzi decided to leave the group in 1982 to pursue other projects.
Extraños Juegos
Zombies Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A extraños juegos,
Curiosos mundos
En sus extraños juegos.
Utilizan agujas,
Una hoguera en el centro,
Abajo es arriba
Las niñas juegan
A extraños juegos
Y ríen y ríen
Y lloran y lloran.
Y recogen mirto,
Y recogen comino,
Y atan a uno de ellos
A un sauce.
Vamos a jugar
A extraños juegos,
Yo observaré
Y sonreiré.
Da, da, da, da ...
The lyrics to 'Extraños Juegos' by Zombies describe children playing strange games that transport them to curious worlds. The imagery in the lyrics is quite vivid, with the children using needles and lighting fires to play their unconventional games. The idea that "down is up and up is down" suggests that the children are exploring alternate realities or dimensions.
The song then shifts to describe the games that the girls play, which involve collecting myrtle and cumin and tying one of their playmates to a willow tree. The tone of the lyrics becomes darker, with the girls laughing and crying as they play their games. The overall mood of the song seems to be one of mystery and intrigue, with the singer observing the children's strange games with a smile.
Throughout the song, the repeated refrain of "Vamos a jugar a extraños juegos" (Let's play strange games) suggests that the singer is both fascinated and slightly frightened by the children's games. The song leaves the listener with a sense of unease and a feeling that there is more to the children's play than meets the eye.
Line by Line Meaning
Los niños juegan
The children play
A extraños juegos,
In strange games,
Curiosos mundos
Curious worlds
En sus extraños juegos.
In their strange games.
Utilizan agujas,
They use needles,
Una hoguera en el centro,
A bonfire in the center,
Abajo es arriba
Down is up
Y arriba es abajo.
And up is down.
Las niñas juegan
The girls play
A extraños juegos
In strange games,
Y ríen y ríen
And they laugh and laugh
Y lloran y lloran.
And they cry and cry.
Y recogen mirto,
And they collect myrtle,
Y recogen comino,
And they collect cumin,
Y atan a uno de ellos
And they tie one of them
A un sauce.
To a willow tree.
Vamos a jugar
Let's go play
A extraños juegos,
In strange games,
Yo observaré
I'll watch
Y sonreiré.
And I'll smile.
Da, da, da, da ...
Da, da, da, da ...
Contributed by Jayce W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.