Why are Spanish versions of songs different?

When a song becomes a global phenomenon, it often happens that a savvy music producer decides it might also sound good in other languages. One example is the number of tracks that have been translated from English into Spanish; but that doesn't mean the Spanish-language version is literally the same as the original.

Let's look at an example: My Way, the immortal song sung by Sinatra, says “And now, the end is near/ And so I face the final curtain”, but in Spanish, the version sung by the popular Raphael says “The end is drawing near/ I will wait for it serenely”. The first line is more or less the same... but the second has nothing to do with it!

Another example: Bed of Roses by Bon Jovi says “I want to lay you down in a bed of roses”; but in his Spanish version, the singer from New Jersey said “I want to have your love between wine and roses”. Ok... for some obscure reason, the bed of roses was replaced by a glass of wine... we assume it was Spanish wine.

Why does this happen? First, we would have to blame the meter and the rhythm. A phrase translated literally from Spanish to English rarely has the same number of syllables, and that would affect the rhythm. A quick example with the theme song from the series “Friends”: “I’ll be there for you” has six syllables; but its translation “Ahí estaré para ti” has seven, so it wouldn't fit the music. In this case, if we were the translator, we might opt for “Siempre estaré aquí” which, although not a literal translation, means something similar and still speaks to the loyalty between friends.

Another issue is why translation becomes necessary. Some producers seem to start from the assumption that those of us who speak Spanish don't understand English and need to sing something we comprehend. Well... that's not the case: Spanish speakers can sing “Sympathy for the Devil” in English from start to finish and know perfectly well that through Mick Jagger’s mouth, an elegant Lucifer is speaking to us, justifying his acts.

It is true that, in the past, song titles were translated so that the Spanish public would have some idea of what the lyrics said. In the 60s and 70s, “Black Betty,” “More than a Feeling,” or “(Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay” were broadcast on the radio in their original versions, but the announcer referred to them as “Betty la negra,” “Más que un sentimiento,” or “Sentado en el muelle de la bahía”; however, it was never necessary to translate the actual lyrics.

Another very different thing is “reinterpretation”: there are Spanish bands that have covered great classics, making them their own by adding their own messages... and even turning them into great classics themselves! Two examples come to mind: M-Clan (a Spanish band) with their “Llamando a la Tierra,” a magnificent reinterpretation of “Serenade” by the Steve Miller Band, or the curious case of the shivering version of Edgar Allan Poe's poem “Annabel Lee” done by the band “Radio Futura” in the 1980s.

By the way, what do you prefer? Would you rather have your favorite song translated literally, or have the same message reach you even if it talks about something different?