"Hasta Que Te Conocí" by Juan Gabriel, Maná, Ana Gabriel, Marc Anthony, English translation of lyric

[cairaguas]

"Until I Met You", 1986

Songwriter: Juan Gabriel
Covers: Maná, Ana Gabriel, Marc Anthony, and more
Styles: Ballad/pop (Juan Gabriel), rock/pop (Maná), pop (Ana Gabriel), salsa (Marc Anthony)
Country: Mexico

Listen:

Listen to this song about suffering in a dysfunctional relationship at YouTube here. Singer-songwriter Juan Gabriel released this song in 1986, and several others have covered it since. The Maná cover in 2012 (pop/rock) is well-known and received a Latin Grammy nomination for Record of the Year in 2013. Other renditions: Ana Gabriel (husky-sounding pop romantica), Marc Anthony (salsa).

[Expand embedded videos]
Juan Gabriel (Mexico; live, pop):

Click to view

Maná (Mexico; rock):

Click to view

Ana Gabriel (Mexico; live version):

Click to view

Marc Anthony (Puerto Rican; salsa):

Click to view

Sorry for the delay to update this month, dear readers. It's for good real life reasons, though. My grad school research is close to publication. The reviews came back very positive, but also with requests for several other experiments. If I delay again, entertain yourselves with the hilarious Ecuadorean sketch comedy group at Enchufe.TV (also on YouTube). They're great!

Translation:

No sabía de tristezas,
Ni de lágrimas, ni nada
Que me hicieran llorar.

I had no knowledge of sorrows,
Nor of tears, nor anything
That would make me cry.

Yo sabía de cariño,
De ternura...
Porque a mí desde pequeño,
Eso me enseñó mamá. (x2)
Eso y muchas cosas más.

I knew (only) of affection,
Of tenderness...
Because since I was young,
That is what my mother taught me. (x2)
That and many other things.

Chorus:
---------------------------------------------------
Yo jamás sufrí.
Yo jamás lloré.
Yo era muy feliz.
Yo vivía muy bien.

I never suffered.
I never cried.
I was very happy.
I lived very well.

Hasta que... te conocí...
Vi la vida con dolor.
No te miento, fui feliz,
Aunque con muy poco amor.

Until… I met you…
I saw life with pain.
I won't lie, I was happy,
Although with very little love.

Y muy tarde comprendí
Que no te debía amar,
Porque ahora pienso en ti,
Más que ayer, mucho más.

And too late I understood
That I should not love you,
Because now I think of you,
More than yesterday, much more.
---------------------------------------------------

Yo vivía tan distinto,
Algo hermoso, algo divino,
Lleno de felicidad.

I lived so differently,
(It was) something beautiful, something divine,
Full of happiness.

Yo sabía de alegrías,
La belleza de la vida,
Pero no de soledad (x2),
De eso y muchas cosas más.

I knew of joys,
The beauty of life,
But not of loneliness (x2),
(Not) of that and many other things.

[Chorus: "Yo jamás sufri, yo jamás lloré...]

[Instrumental]

Ah... Ah...
Ah... Ah...
Ah... Ah...

[Instrumental]

Ahora quiero que me digas
Si valió o no la pena,
El haberte conocido,
Porque no te creo más.

Now I want you to tell me
If it was worth it or not,
The having known you,
Because I don't believe you anymore.

Y es que tu fuiste muy mala,
Sí, muy mala conmigo.
Por eso no te quiero,
No te quiero ver jamás.

And it's just that you were very mean,
Yes, very mean with me.
That's why I don't want you, [*alt. That's why I don't love you]
I don't want to see you ever again.

Vete! Vete!
Vete, salte de mi pena.
Vete, no te quiero,
No te quiero ver jamás!

Go! Go!
Go, leave my sorrow.
Go, I don't want you, [*alt. Go, I don't love you]
I don't want to see you ever again.

Translation Notes:

The translation follows the Maná version, but it should be okay for the other versions. If you have questions, let me know.