Honestly. Do you native English-speaking KW-members ever listen to anything that do not have English lyrics? If you do, I would very much like to know what and why you like it!!!
I listen to a lot of Swedish folk-connected artists, like Garmarna and Hedningarna (The heathens, funny name).
(I tried to find a link to Hedningarnas lovely "Pornopolka" to put in the prOn thread, but I could not find a legal mp3-version. It is in fact one of the best tunes I have ever heard and the text is traditional (in Finnish))
I listen to the Gipsy Kings and Portuguese & Brazilian Fado. I listen to Gipsy King cause I love their guitars, their renditions stir my soul and I understand at least 1/2 of the lyrics. Same for the latter--my parents had a house in Portugal for over 20 years, I lived there 4 a year when I was 4, have vactationed there 4 times--and I think it's great emotional stuff. There!
Last edited by danlo on Thu Jan 08, 2004 9:23 pm, edited 1 time in total.
I own a cd by Patricia Kaas, a French singer. My french is very rusty (it's been 20 years since I was in a french class), but I really like her voice, and she sings a very good version of La Vie En Rose.
Die Eier von Satan Eine halbe Tasse Staubzucker Ein Viertel Teelöffel Salz Eine Messerspitze türkisches Haschisch Ein halbes Pfund Butter Ein Teelöffel Vanillenzucker Ein halbes Pfund Mehl Einhundertfünfzig Gramm gemahlene Nüsse Ein wenig extra Staubzucker ... und keine Eier In eine Schüssel geben Butter einrühren Gemahlene Nüsse zugeben und Den Teig verkneten Augenballgroße Stücke vom Teig formen Im Staubzucker wälzen und Sagt die Zauberwörter Simsalbimbamba Saladu Saladim Auf ein gefettetes Backblech legen und Bei zweihundert Grad für fünfzehn Minuten backen und KEINE EIER Bei zweihundert Grad für fünfzehn Minuten backen und Keine Eier ..
"It is not the literal past that rules us, save, possibly, in a biological sense. It is images of the past. Each new historical era mirrors itself in the picture and active mythology of its past or of a past borrowed from other cultures. It tests its sense of identity, of regress or new achievement against that past.”
-George Steiner
Mana!!! Fantastic Mexican group! Their album called Donde Jugaran Los Ninos? is one of my desert island picks. I can understand a couple of scattered words in each song (mundo, cabeza, corazon...), and I've had a couple of Spanish speaking people tell me the general gist of some of the songs.
All lies and jest
Still a man hears what he wants to hear
And disregards the rest -Paul Simon
Well, I love Gustav Mahler's Kindertotenlieder. Don't they count? They're songs, and they have non-English lyrics! (Not that I can read them or anything.)
Wow! Well done, MM!! You shame me! It never occurred to me to list other than current Pop/Rock!
So now it should be pointed out that Schubert is the greatest song-writer of all time!!! Love songs so beautiful you could cry. Songs and song-cycles that top the list in the Depressing Songs thread. Songs of peace for the dead. And not just a few, but hundreds of these small masterpieces! He's got his symphonies, his quartets, the sublime cello quintet, and so much more - but Schubert was, first and foremost, a song-writer.
All lies and jest
Still a man hears what he wants to hear
And disregards the rest -Paul Simon
I have several Cd's of Mexican Mariachi music...I only know a bit of pidgin Spanish to speak to some of my in-laws who are Mexican-American so I don't understand most of the words in the songs...
One of my coworkers is REALLY into Eastern European folk dancing and she has given me some CD's with songs in Romany (Gypsy)...
I have jazz and classical CD's in many languages...
I like Clannad and Enya, both of whom often sing in Gaelic. I haven't a clue what they're singing though. I'd love to learn some Gaelic, I think it's a beautiful language to listen to...
I listen to Kabat. It's a Czech band reccommended to me by our former foriegn exchange student's little brother. I guess they are pretty vulgar but I have have no idea what they are saying. They have one song called Colorado with horse sounds and gun shots and yee-haws, it's hilarious even if I don't know what's going on.
Fist and Faith wrote:So now it should be pointed out that Schubert is the greatest song-writer of all time!!!
Come to think about it I do have a cd of Schubert's songs.
In his lifetime, Schubert was really only known as a song writer. Many of his instrumental pieces were only first performed years after his death. Schumann was one who was constantly arranging to get the instrumental works performed.
Here's a great Schubert collection: www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/ ... =classical
It's performed by the great Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, accompanied by the equally great Gerald Moore. It's only $7, so you can't go wrong. I know it's good, because I have an earlier release of the disc. And there are some samples you can listen to at the link.
The only problem is that it's not likely to have liner notes or translations. But anybody who buys it can get any info you want from me. Then we'll move on to the next purchases. (Still no new Bach for you, Foul? )
All lies and jest
Still a man hears what he wants to hear
And disregards the rest -Paul Simon
Do you native English-speaking KW-members ever listen to anything that do not have English lyrics? If you do, I would very much like to know what and why you like it!!! 
)