Sombras Nada Más – Bilingual Lyrics Spanish/English

• By: Javier Solís

Lyrics & Translation

Immerse yourself in the soul-stirring melodies of Javier Solís's 'Sombras Nada Más.' This iconic bolero ranchero, with its poignant lyrics about love and loss, offers a powerful emotional journey. By exploring this song, you can connect with the rich tradition of Mexican music and gain a deeper appreciation for the expressive power of Spanish.

[English]

I wish I could slowly open my veins

Pour all my blood at your feet

To be able to show you

That I can't love you more

And then, die afterwards

And yet, your blue eyes

Blue that the sky and the sea have

Live closed to me

Without seeing that I'm here

Lost in my loneliness

Shadows, nothing more

Caressing my hands

Shadows, nothing more

In the trembling of my voice

I could have been happy

And I'm dying while alive

And living among tears

The most horrendous passage

Of this drama without end

Shadows, nothing more

Between your life and my life

Shadows, nothing more

Between your love and my love

How brief was your presence in my boredom

How lukewarm were your hands, your voice

Like a firefly, your light arrived

And dispelled the shadows from my corner

And I was left like a trembling goblin

Without the blue of your sea eyes

That have closed to me

Without seeing that I'm here

Lost in my loneliness

Shadows, nothing more

Caressing my hands

Shadows, nothing more

In the trembling of my voice

I could have been happy

And I'm dying while alive

And living among tears

The most horrendous passage

Of this drama without end

Shadows, nothing more

Between your life and my life

Shadows, nothing more

Between your love and my love

...

[Spanish]

Quisiera abrir lentamente mis venas

Mi sangre toda verterla a tus pies

Para poderte demostrar

Que más no puedo amar

Y, entonces, morir después

Y, sin embargo, tus ojos azules

Azul que tienen el cielo y el mar

Viven cerrados para mí

Sin ver que estoy aquí

Perdido en mi soledad

Sombras nada más

Acariciando mis manos

Sombras nada más

En el temblor de mi voz

Pude ser feliz

Y estoy en vida muriendo

Y entre lágrimas viviendo

El pasaje más horrendo

De este drama sin final

Sombras nada más

Entre tu vida y mi vida

Sombras nada más

Entre tu amor y mi amor

Qué breve fue tu presencia en mi hastío

Qué tibias fueron tus manos, tu voz

Como luciérnaga llegó tu luz

Y disipó las sombras de mi rincón

Y yo quedé como un duende temblando

Sin el azul de tus ojos de mar

Que se han cerrado para mí

Sin ver que estoy aquí

Perdido en mi soledad

Sombras nada más

Acariciando mis manos

Sombras nada más

En el temblor de mi voz

Pude ser feliz

Y estoy en vida muriendo

Y entre lágrimas viviendo

El pasaje más horrendo

De este drama sin final

Sombras nada más

Entre tu vida y mi vida

Sombras nada más

Entre tu amor y mi amor

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
sangre /ˈsaŋɡɾe/ A2	noun - blood
soledad /soleˈðad/ B1	noun - solitude
sombras /ˈsombɾas/ A2	noun - shadows
manos /ˈmanos/ A1	noun - hands
voz /βos/ A1	noun - voice
amor /aˈmoɾ/ A1	noun - love
feliz /feˈliz/ A2	adjective - happy
temblor /temˈbloɾ/ B2	noun - tremor
drama /ˈdɾama/ B1	noun - drama
presencia /pɾeˈsenθja/ B2	noun - presence
luz /luθ/ A1	noun - light
cielo /ˈθjelo/ A2	noun - sky
mar /maɾ/ A1	noun - sea
vida /ˈbiða/ A1	noun - life
azul /aˈθul/ A1	adjective - blue
perdido /peɾˈðido/ B1	adjective - lost
temblando /temˈblando/ B2	verb - trembling

Key Grammar Structures

• Quisiera abrir lentamente mis venas

  ➔ Conditional Tense (Subjunctive Mood)

  ➔ The verb "quisiera" (I would like) is in the imperfect subjunctive mood, used to express a hypothetical or desired action. It's a polite and indirect way of stating a wish.

• Mi sangre toda verterla a tus pies

  ➔ Infinitive used as a noun (poetic license)

  ➔ "Verterla" (to pour it) is an infinitive used almost as a noun, emphasizing the action itself. It is more common in poetry to have the infinitive act as the subject. Also, note that "la" is attached as an enclitic pronoun to the infinitive.

• Para poderte demostrar Que más no puedo amar

  ➔ Infinitive followed by Pronoun

  ➔ Here, "demostrar" (to demonstrate) is followed by the pronoun "te" (you). The pronoun is attached directly to the infinitive (enclitic pronoun) showing that the demonstration will be made to the listener.

• Y, sin embargo, tus ojos azules, Azul que tienen el cielo y el mar

  ➔ Apposition

  ➔ The phrase "Azul que tienen el cielo y el mar" is in apposition to "tus ojos azules." It provides further explanation or identification of the blue eyes. The blue is the same color of the sky and the sea.

• Viven cerrados para mí

  ➔ Passive voice with reflexive pronoun (implied)

  ➔ Although not explicitly using "se" (which would make it clearly passive reflexive), the phrase suggests that the eyes are closed *to* the speaker, implying a passive state *for* the speaker. They are not closing themselves, but they are closed in relation to him. In other words, 'They remain closed to me'.

• Sombras nada más Acariciando mis manos

  ➔ Gerund phrase used as an adverbial modifier

  ➔ "Acariciando mis manos" (caressing my hands) is a gerund phrase modifying the implied verb, elaborating on the shadows' action. It explains *how* the shadows exist: they exist by caressing his hands.

• En el temblor de mi voz

  ➔ Noun phrase with prepositional phrase modifier

  ➔ "Temblor" (tremor) is the noun, and "de mi voz" (of my voice) is the prepositional phrase that modifies it, specifying whose tremor is being referred to.

• Qué breve fue tu presencia en mi hastío

  ➔ Exclamatory Sentence with past tense.

  ➔ "Qué breve fue" (how brief was) expresses strong emotion. The use of "fue" (was - past simple/preterite) indicates the action occurred and ended in the past. "hastío" (boredom) denotes the speaker's weariness of life.