“A Type of Love”
Album: La Vida Es Un Ratico (Life is a Brief Moment), 2007
Style: Rock, bitter love, breakup. Juanes sings about a dysfunctional relationship at the point of breakup. If this is the type of love that is offered, Juanes doesn’t want it.
Country: Colombia
Listen: YouTube
Translation:
Tú ya lo sabes que nadie como yo te amó,
Que nadie nunca te entregó
El corazón de la manera como lo hice yo.
You already know it, that nobody loved you like me,
That nobody ever surrendered
His heart to you the way that I did.
Ya no puedo aguantar esto más.
Creo que sólo puedo estar mejor,
Mejor que mal acompañado.
I cannot take this anymore.
I think I can only do better, [*lit. I believe that I can only be better],
Better than in your bad company.
Esto no fue lo que
Tú y yo
Habíamos quedado de hacer ayer.
This is not what
You and I
Had agreed to do yesterday.
Se que después de la tormenta viene la calma,
Pero no creo que en ti haya calma,
Ni como tenerla con tanto drama. Es-
I know that after the storm comes the calm,
But I do not believe that in you exists calm,
Nor [do I see] how to obtain it with so much drama. It’s-
(Es) imposible que me quede ahora,
Es imposible si tú me ignoras,
Y luego lloras porque me alejo. Esto-
No fue lo que tú y yo habíamos quedado de hacer~ ayer~
(It’s) impossible for me to stay now,
It’s impossible if you ignore me,
And then you cry because I move away. This-
Is not what you and I had agreed to do~ yesterday~
Chorus:
————————————————–
Si esta es la clase de amor que tú me ofreces,
Estás equivocada. No puedo aceptarla.
Si esta es tu forma de amar mejor me alejo,
Buscame si quieres cuando estés curada.
If this is the type of love that you offer me,
You are mistaken. I cannot accept it.
If this is your way of loving, better that I move away,
Look for me if you want when you are cured.
————————————————–
Mira que hundiste el motor y mi corazón explotó.
Veo/Creo que no tienes más remedio que pagar.
(x2, 2nd time: creo)
See that you overwhelmed the motor and my heart exploded.
I see/believe that you have no other option but to pay.
(x2, 2nd time: believe)
Si algún día tú – te curas,
Si algún día yo – perdono,
Puede que quizás – podamos – regresar y darnos todo.
If someday you – cure yourself,
If someday I – forgive,
It may be that – we could – return and give each other everything.
Por ahora no… (x4)
Lo siento.
Esto no fue en lo que
Tú y yo
Habíamos quedado de hacer~ ayer~
But for now, no… (x4)
I’m sorry.
This is not what
You and I
Had agreed to do~ yesterday~
[Chorus x2]
Mira que hundiste el motor y mi corazón explotó.
Veo que no tienes más remedio que pagar. (x2)
See that you overwhelmed the motor and my heart exploded.
I see that you have no other option but to pay. (x2)
Translation Notes:
Que nadie nunca te entregó el corazón de la manera como lo hice yo.
That nobody ever surrendered his heart to you the way that I did.
(Que) (nadie nunca) (te entregó) {el corazón} (de la manera) [como lo hice yo]
(That) (nobody never) (surrendered/gave to you) {the heart} (in the way) [like I did it]
I’m just breaking this up into its parts so you see what means what. The different types of brackets don’t mean anything special in this case. Note that double negatives such as “nadie nunca” are common in Spanish. Also note that Spanish often uses “el/la” (the) where in English we would use a possessive pronoun. For example, here “el corazón” word-for-word means “the heart” but in context it is possessive.
—
Creo que sólo puedo estar mejor
I believe that I can only do better [lit. be better]
Except that “be better” doesn’t capture the right meaning. If you translate “be better” back into Spanish, you get “ser mejor.”
—
Mejor que mal acompañado
Better than in your bad company
This is from the proverb, mejor solo/a que mal acompañado/a (better to be alone than in bad company).
—
Mira que hundiste el motor y mi corazón explotó.
See that you overwhelmed the motor and my heart exploded. [*lit. sunk the motor]
This is a modified form of the phrase, fundir el motor (blow the motor, for example from overuse).
Note that this line is mistranscribed in a lot of lyrics websites as hundiste el botón (you sunk the button). Very confusing.
—
No tienes más remedio que pagar
You have no other option but to pay
Often heard when you’re stuck with only one option (usually in a tone of resolution or resignation):
No hay más remedio que… = There is no more remedy/solution but…
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