Candilejas – Bilingual Lyrics Spanish/English

• By: José José

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the rich tapestry of Latin American romantic music with José José's 'Candilejas.' This timeless ballad, a beautiful adaptation of Charlie Chaplin's 'Limelight' theme, offers a heartfelt exploration of love and loss. Learning the lyrics provides insight into poetic Spanish expressions of profound emotion and introduces you to the masterful artistry of 'El Príncipe de la Canción.'

[English]

Uuuuuuh, [00:14.256] llegaste a mí [00:16.556] cuando me [00:17.476] voy [00:18.896] Eres luz [00:20.486] de abril, [00:22.946] yo tar-[00:23.726] dé [00:24.166] gris [00:26.126] Eres juven-[00:27.376] tud, [00:27.936] amor, [00:29.316] calor, [00:30.746] fulgor [00:32.726] de sol [00:34.656] Trajiste [00:36.106] a mí tu juven-[00:37.686] tud [00:38.676] cuando me [00:42.056] voy [00:45.236] Entre can-[00:46.666] dile-[00:47.486] jas [00:48.816] te a-[00:49.466] doré [00:52.226] Entre can-[00:53.426] dile-[00:54.036] jas, [00:55.106] yo te a-[00:56.076] mé [00:57.196] La felici-[00:58.596] dad que [00:59.396] dis-[01:00.086] te a [01:00.676] mí vi-[01:01.546] vir, [01:03.206] se fue [01:05.236] No volve-[01:06.286] rá [01:07.106] nunca ja-[01:08.446] más, [01:09.636] lo sé [01:10.566] muy [01:11.346] bien [01:13.996] Tú llega-[01:15.326] ste a mí [01:17.496] cuando me [01:18.846] voy [01:20.786] Y eres luz [01:22.686] de abril, [01:25.076] yo tar-[01:26.146] dé [01:26.526] gris [01:28.996] Eres juven-[01:30.476] tud, [01:30.826] amor, [01:32.116] calor, [01:33.516] fulgor [01:35.486] de sol [01:37.566] Trajiste [01:38.896] a mí tu juven-[01:40.336] tud [01:41.326] cuando me [01:45.216] voy [01:46.166] Entre can-[01:47.386] dile-[01:48.136] jas [01:49.046] te a-[01:49.746] doré [01:51.446] Entre can-[01:52.676] dile-[01:53.346] jas, [01:54.116] yo te a-[01:54.816] mé [01:55.916] La felici-[01:57.316] dad que [01:58.116] dis-[01:58.796] te a [01:59.416] mí vi-[02:00.266] vir, [02:01.786] se fue [02:03.916] No volve-[02:04.906] rá [02:05.816] nunca ja-[02:07.096] más, [02:08.036] lo sé [02:08.936] muy [02:09.596] bien [02:11.246]

[Spanish]

Uuuuuuh, [00:14.256] llegaste a mí [00:16.556] cuando me [00:17.476] voy [00:18.896] Eres luz [00:20.486] de abril, [00:22.946] yo tar-[00:23.726] dé [00:24.166] gris [00:26.126] Eres juven-[00:27.376] tud, [00:27.936] amor, [00:29.316] calor, [00:30.746] fulgor [00:32.726] de sol [00:34.656] Trajiste [00:36.106] a mí tu juven-[00:37.686] tud [00:38.676] cuando me [00:42.056] voy [00:45.236] Entre can-[00:46.666] dile-[00:47.486] jas [00:48.816] te a-[00:49.466] doré [00:52.226] Entre can-[00:53.426] dile-[00:54.036] jas, [00:55.106] yo te a-[00:56.076] mé [00:57.196] La felici-[00:58.596] dad que [00:59.396] dis-[01:00.086] te a [01:00.676] mí vi-[01:01.546] vir, [01:03.206] se fue [01:05.236] No volve-[01:06.286] rá [01:07.106] nunca ja-[01:08.446] más, [01:09.636] lo sé [01:10.566] muy [01:11.346] bien [01:13.996] Tú llega-[01:15.326] ste a mí [01:17.496] cuando me [01:18.846] voy [01:20.786] Y eres luz [01:22.686] de abril, [01:25.076] yo tar-[01:26.146] dé [01:26.526] gris [01:28.996] Eres juven-[01:30.476] tud, [01:30.826] amor, [01:32.116] calor, [01:33.516] fulgor [01:35.486] de sol [01:37.566] Trajiste [01:38.896] a mí tu juven-[01:40.336] tud [01:41.326] cuando me [01:45.216] voy [01:46.166] Entre can-[01:47.386] dile-[01:48.136] jas [01:49.046] te a-[01:49.746] doré [01:51.446] Entre can-[01:52.676] dile-[01:53.346] jas, [01:54.116] yo te a-[01:54.816] mé [01:55.916] La felici-[01:57.316] dad que [01:58.116] dis-[01:58.796] te a [01:59.416] mí vi-[02:00.266] vir, [02:01.786] se fue [02:03.916] No volve-[02:04.906] rá [02:05.816] nunca ja-[02:07.096] más, [02:08.036] lo sé [02:08.936] muy [02:09.596] bien [02:11.246]

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
llegaste ʝeˈɣaste B1	verb - you arrived
luz luθ A1	noun - light
abril aˈβɾil A1	noun - April
tarde ˈtaɾðe A2	noun - afternoon/evening; lateness
gris ɡɾis A1	adjective - gray
juvenil xuβeˈnil B1	adjective - youthful
amor aˈmoɾ A1	noun - love
calor kaˈloɾ A1	noun - heat
fulgor fulˈɡoɾ B2	noun - brightness, glow
sol sol A1	noun - sun
trajiste tɾaˈxiste B1	verb - you brought
candilejas kandiˈlexas C1	noun - stage lights / footlights (plural)
adoré aˈðoɾe B1	verb - I adored / I adored deeply
felicidad feliθiˈðað B1	noun - happiness
diste ˈdis.te B1	verb - you gave
se fue se ˈfwe A2	verb - he/she/it left / it went away
volverá βolβeˈɾa B2	verb - he/she/it will return

Key Grammar Structures

• Uuuuuuh, llegaste a mí cuando me voy

  ➔ Past Simple Tense, Prepositional Phrase of Time

  ➔ "Llegaste" is the past simple of "llegar" (to arrive). "Cuando me voy" means "when I leave" and indicates *when* the arrival happened. The verb 'ir' (to go) is conjugated in the present tense to express a habitual action or a future intention.

• Eres luz de abril, yo tarde gris

  ➔ Noun Predicate, Adjective Agreement

  ➔ "Eres" (you are) links the subject "tú" (you) to the noun predicate "luz de abril" (light of April). "Tarde" (late) and "gris" (grey) are adjectives describing the speaker, agreeing in gender and number.

• Entre candilejas te adoré

  ➔ Prepositional Phrase, Past Tense, Indirect Object Pronoun

  ➔ "Entre candilejas" (among chandeliers) is a prepositional phrase indicating *where* the adoration took place. "Te" is an indirect object pronoun (you - to you). "Adoré" (I adored) is the past simple of "adorar".

• La felicidad que diste a mí vivir, se fue

  ➔ Relative Clause, Past Tense, Reflexive Pronoun

  ➔ "Que diste a mí vivir" is a relative clause modifying "felicidad" (happiness). "Diste" (you gave) is the past simple. "A mí" emphasizes *to me*. "Se fue" (it left/went away) uses the reflexive pronoun "se" to indicate the happiness disappeared.