Canción Bonita Lyrics in English by Carlos Vives, Ricky Martin

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Below, I translated the lyrics of the song Canción Bonita by Carlos Vives from Spanish to English.

Chorus 1

I have so many songs in a notebook

It has your name and I have reasons

To look for you and talk to you again

It says in that notebook with no more reasons

The time and the date and two hearts

And it says Calle San Sebastián

And if I have to choose

I stay, I stay with you

And if I go back to San Juan

I dance, I dance with you

And if I have to forget you

You know that it's not going to happen

And if I see you again

I stay, I stay, I stay, I stay, I stay with you

Verse 1

With you from Alaska to Buenos Aires

With you from London to New York

'Damn punishment' I shout to the air

If I know that I'm always better with you

I have in my notebook that Boricua song

The one that I wrote thinking about your little mouth

And I want to dance it really tight

Face to face, sweet little thing

I have in my notebook that pretty song

The one that always, always was your favorite

The one that always, always moves your little mouth

Chorus 2

And if I have to choose

I stay, I stay with you

And if I go back to San Juan

I dance, I dance with you

And if I have to forget you

You know that it's not going to happen

And if I see you again

I stay, I stay, I stay, I stay, I stay with you

I keep in an address book

Your name written and some songs

And I feel like going to look for you

It says in that notebook with no more reasons

The time and the date and two hearts

And it says Calle San Sebastián

And if I have to choose

I stay, I stay with you

And if I go back to San Juan

Chorus 2

I dance, I dance with you

And if I have to forget you

You know that it's not going to happen

And if I see you again

I stay, I stay, I stay, I stay, I stay with you

Bridge

I stay, I stay, I stay with you

I have in my notebook that Boricua song

The one that I wrote thinking about your little mouth

And I want to dance it really tight

I stay, I stay, I stay with you

I have in my notebook that pretty song

The one that always, always was your favorite

The one that always, always moves your little mouth

I stay, I stay, I stay with you

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Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.

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boricua — Puerto Rican

Boricua is a beautiful word used to describe a person from Puerto Rico. It's more than just a nationality; it's a term of cultural pride and identity.

The word comes from 'Borikén', the name given to the island by its original inhabitants, the Taíno people. In 'Canción Bonita', which is a love letter to San Juan, calling the song 'boricua' connects it deeply to Puerto Rican heritage and soul.

This song is a love letter to a person and a place, all sparked by an old notebook. The singer, Carlos Vives, finds a notebook filled with songs he's written, and one special person's name keeps appearing. It's like a time capsule of their relationship, holding not just songs but also "La hora y la fecha y dos corazones" (The time and the date and two hearts) and a specific address: "calle San Sebastián", a famous street in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico.

All these memories make him realize one thing: if he has to choose, he's choosing this person. He declares, "Y si tengo que escoger / Me quedo, me quedo contigo" (And if I have to choose / I'll stay, I'll stay with you). He can't imagine forgetting them, and he promises that if he ever goes back to San Juan, "Yo bailo, yo bailo contigo" (I'll dance, I'll dance with you). It's a sweet and direct promise to return to a love and a city that he clearly misses.

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Carlos Vives Canción Bonita Lyrics