No Hay Otro Remedio – Bilingual Lyrics Spanish/English

• By: José José

Lyrics & Translation

To learn Spanish through the dramatic and poetic language of Latin American popular music, 'No Hay Otro Remedio' is an essential study. Its clear, melancholic lyrics perfectly illustrate vocabulary related to heartbreak, sorrow (*dolor*), and solitude (*soledad*), all delivered with the pristine enunciation of 'El Príncipe de la Canción.' Mastering this song means grasping the emotional depth of the *balada romántica* genre.

[English]

It’s so hard to say goodbye

what a sad moment when love leaves us

such a deep pain in the heart

when love walks away in that goodbye

What an immense void, what loneliness

when there’s no love, when there’s no partner

what a bitter taste life gives

when one morning love is gone

If love leaves

if love abandons us

it’s no use

trying to forget.

If love leaves

if love walks away

there’s no other remedy

you have to cry

It’s so hard to say goodbye

what a sad moment when love leaves us

such a deep pain in the heart

when love walks away in that goodbye

What an immense void, what loneliness

when there’s no love, when there’s no partner

what a bitter taste life gives

when one morning love is gone

If love leaves

if love abandons us

it’s no use

trying to forget.

If love leaves

...

if love walks away

there’s no other remedy

you have to cry

...

[Spanish]

Que dificil es el decir adios

que momento triste el amor nos deja

que dolor tan grande en el corazon

cuando en ese adios el amor se aleja

Que vacio inmenso que soledad

cuando no hay amor cuando no hay pareja

que sabor amargo la vida da

cuando una mañana el amor se va

Si el amor se marcha

si el amor nos deja

no sirve de nada

querer olvidar.

Si el amor se marcha

si el amor se aleja

no hay otro remedio

tienes que llorar

Que dificil es el decir adios

que momento triste el amor nos deja

que dolor tan grande en el corazon

cuando en ese adios el amor se aleja

Que vacio inmenso que soledad

cuando no hay amor cuando no hay pareja

que sabor amargo la vida da

cuando una mañana el amor se va

Si el amor se marcha

si el amor nos deja

no sirve de nada

querer olvidar.

Si el amor se marcha

si el amor se aleja

no hay otro remedio

tienes que llorar

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
difícil di.fiˈsil A1	adjective - difficult
adios aˈðjos A1	noun - goodbye
triste ˈtɾiste A1	adjective - sad
amor aˈmoɾ A1	noun - love
dolor doˈloɾ A1	noun - pain
corazón ko.ɾaˈθon A1	noun - heart
aleja aˈle.xa A2	verb - to move away
inmenso imˈmen.so B1	adjective - immense
soledad so.leˈðað A2	noun - loneliness
amargo aˈmaɾ.ɣo A2	adjective - bitter
marcha ˈmaɾ.tʃa A2	verb - to leave
remedio reˈme.ðjo A2	noun - remedy
llorar ʝoˈɾaɾ A1	verb - to cry
pareja paˈre.xa A1	noun - partner
sirve ˈsiɾ.βe A1	verb - to serve
olvidar ol.biˈðaɾ A2	verb - to forget

Key Grammar Structures

• Que dificil es el decir adios

  ➔ Present tense of 'ser' (to be) for permanent states

  ➔ The verb 'es' (is) from 'ser' is used to describe a permanent or inherent quality, here emphasizing how difficult saying goodbye is.

• cuando en ese adios el amor se aleja

  ➔ Use of 'se' for reflexive verbs

  ➔ The reflexive pronoun 'se' is used with 'aleja' (moves away) to indicate that the action is performed by the subject on itself, here referring to love moving away.

• Si el amor se marcha

  ➔ Use of 'si' for conditional sentences

  ➔ The conjunction 'si' (if) introduces a conditional sentence, expressing a hypothetical situation where love leaves.

• no sirve de nada querer olvidar

  ➔ Use of 'servir' in negative constructions

  ➔ The verb 'servir' (to serve) is used in a negative construction with 'de nada' (of nothing) to mean 'it’s no use,' emphasizing the futility of trying to forget.

• no hay otro remedio

  ➔ Double negative in Spanish

  ➔ The phrase 'no hay otro remedio' (there is no other remedy) uses a double negative, which is grammatically correct in Spanish, to emphasize the lack of alternatives.