Today we begin a new series. We shall be considing songs that became popular in the UK whilst being sung in another language. Despite Brexit and our general failure to learn any other language but our native tongue, it seems that we have long had a love affair with the music of world, no matter in which language it is performed. Whilst the majority of the songs that will be featured are chosen on the criteria that they appeared in the UK Top 100, we shall begin in the past before the charts came into being. We shall also end as usual with some honourable mentions.
Lili Marleen” (also spelled “Lili Marlène“) is a German love song that became popular during World War II throughout Europe and the Mediterranean among both Axis and Allied troops. The words were written in 1915 as a poem of three verses by Hans Leip (1893–1983), a school teacher from Hamburg who had been conscripted into the Imerial German Army. Leip reportedly combined the nickname of his friend’s girlfriend, Lili, with the name of another friend, Marleen, who was a nurse. The song was published in 1937 and was first recorded by Lale Andersen in 1939 as “Das Mädchen unter der Laterne” (“The Girl under the Lantern”). In 1944, the Morale Operations Branch of the U.S. Office of Strategic Services (OSS) initiated the Muzak Project, musical propaganda broadcasts designed to demoralize enemy soldiers.Marlene Dietrich, the only performer who was told her recordings would be for OSS use, recorded a number of songs in German for the project, including “Lili Marleen”. Dietrich also performed “Lili Marlene”, as well as many other songs, live in Europe for Allied troops, often on rickety, makeshift stages.
“Siboney“, also known as “Canto Siboney“, is a 1927 song by Cuban composer Ernesto Lecuona. It was part of the 1927 revue La tierra de Venus, which featured singer Rita Montaner. The music is in cut time, originally written in C Major. The lyrics were reportedly written by Lecuona while away from Cuba and is about the homesickness he was experiencing. The term “Siboney” refers to one of the indigenous tribes that inhabited Cuba before the arrival of the Spanish colonists and acts as a symbol for the island. Siboney became a hit in 1931 when performed by Alfredo Brito and His Siboney Orchestra.
Bésame Mucho” (“Kiss Me A Lot”) is a bolero song written in 1940 by Mexican songwriter Consuelo Velazquez. It is considered one of the most popular songs of the 20th century and of all times, as well as one of the most important hymns in the history of Latin music. It was also recognized in 1999 as the most recorded and covered song in Spanish of all time. The song appeared in the film Follow the Boys (1944) when it was played by Charlie Spivak and his Orchestra and in Cowboy and the Senorita (1944) with vocal by Dale Evans.
“La Vie en rose” is the signature song of popular French singer Edith Piaf, written in 1945, popularized in 1946, and released as a single in 1947. The song’s title can be translated as “Life in happy hues”, “Life seen through rose-coloured glasses”, or “Life in rosy hues”; its literal meaning is “Life in Pink.” The lyrics of “La Vie en rose” were written by Édith Piaf for music composed by Louiguy, and is registered with SACEM. It was probably Robert Chauvigny who completed the music. When Piaf suggested to Marguerite Monnot that she sing the piece, the latter rejected “that foolishness.” It was eventually Louiguy who accepted authorship of the music.
