# Foreign language songs that charted in English speaking countries **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 23, 2018, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783 "2018-09-23T14:41:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![epbrown01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ba0ec/32.png) [@epbrown01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epbrown01)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2018, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/41 "2018-09-23T20:36:02Z")
> [@suranyi](#): > > I’ve been really into K-pop recently (see my signature) so I’m aware that several K-pop songs have got onto the Billboard charts recently, especially from the massively popular boy band BTS. When I saw the thread title, I was expecting it to be about BTS. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2018, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/42 "2018-09-23T20:39:44Z")
Released as a single only in Japan, Queen’s, “[Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teo_Torriatte_(Let_Us_Cling_Together)),” has its chorus in Japanese then repeated in English. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2018, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/43 "2018-09-23T20:56:43Z")
Jessica Paré’s cover of “Zou Bisou Bisou”, from _Mad Men_, made the Canadian Hot 100 (just barely). ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2018, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/44 "2018-09-23T21:28:21Z")
If I wasn’t an old-ass lady, I’d be out there dancing to reggaeton right now. Even still, I can’t sit still in my seat if [Gasolina by Pit Bull](https://youtu.be/cL7doi-X_Lk) comes on. Made it to #32 on the Hot 100. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2018, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/45 "2018-09-23T22:06:11Z")
> [@epbrown01](#): > > When I saw the thread title, I was expecting it to be about BTS. Right, “Fake Love” and “Idol” are just two of their songs, mostly in Korean, that have made the Billboard charts recently. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2018, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/46 "2018-09-23T22:14:30Z")
_Der Kommissar_ by **Falco** did pretty well in several countries. > **[Der Kommissar (song)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Der_Kommissar_(song))** > > "Der Kommissar" (German: \[deːɐ̯ kɔmɪˈsaːɐ̯\]; "The Commissioner") is a song recorded by Austrian artist Falco in 1981. The song was written by Robert Ponger and Falco. It reached the top of the charts in many European countries. The cover version as an English translation by the group After the Fire in 1982 had greater success in other countries. > The music of "Der Kommissar" was written by producer Robert Ponger and intended for Reinhold Bilgeri. After Bilgeri rejected it, as he felt the song w... ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2018, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/47 "2018-09-23T22:50:10Z")
> [@bibliophage](#): > > “The Girl from Ipanema” has been mentioned. I thought sure there would be a lot more bossa nova and samba songs that qualify, but I could find only one more that both charted on the Billboard Hot 100 and has lyrics in Portuguese. > > “Mas Que Nada” by Sergio Mendes and Brasil '66 hit #47 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1966 Yeah, I couldn’t think of any other singles either. Only albums like Mendes’s 1993 Grammy winner, **Brasileiro** , which is one of my favorite world genre albums. **One Note Samba** is another that reached a wide audience on the _Jazz Samba_ album (Getz/Byrd/Jobim) which hit #1. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2018, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/48 "2018-09-23T22:56:20Z")
The Belle Stars Iko Iko is the one I remember but all those YouTube videos suck.[Here’s the original Billboard hit by The Dixie Cups.](https://youtu.be/6MV62ZcIguw) Yes, this sounds better than all the Belle Star ones I found, which all seemed to be video tapes of VH1. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2018, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/49 "2018-09-23T23:22:11Z")
Were charts kept during WWII? If so, “Lili Marlene” would probably have been on them. It was immensely popular with Allied troops. During the war, it was recorded in English, German, and French. Elvis Presley’s “Muss i denn” (aka “Wooden Heart”) was at No. 1 for six weeks in the UK in 1961, but was not released on a single in the United States until November 1964, where it was the B-side to “Blue Christmas.” BTW, “Bei Mir Bist Du Schön” (“Bay Mir Bistu Sheyn” in Yiddish) means “You’re Beautiful to Me.” ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2018, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/50 "2018-09-23T23:23:40Z")
Sadeness by Enigma (#5 on the Hot 100) seems to be a combination of French & Latin ---
**Author:** ![jaycat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jaycat/32/3015_2.png) [@jaycat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jaycat)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2018, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/51 "2018-09-24T01:16:36Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > . . . BTW, “Bei Mir Bist Du Schön” (“Bay Mir Bistu Sheyn” in Yiddish) means “You’re Beautiful to Me.” I prefer Slim Gaillard’s “Bei Mir Bist Du Pork Chops.” ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2018, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/52 "2018-09-24T01:24:36Z")
Would [“Iko, Iko”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MV62ZcIguw) by the Dixie Cups (and many others–original by James Crawford under the name “Jock-A-Mo”) count? Though nobody seems to be sure if it’s based on one language/creole, a combination of languages/creoles, a telephone game butchering of languages/creoles, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2018, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/53 "2018-09-24T03:14:04Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Would [“Iko, Iko”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MV62ZcIguw) by the Dixie Cups (and many others–original by James Crawford under the name “Jock-A-Mo”) count? Though nobody seems to be sure if it’s based on one language/creole, a combination of languages/creoles, a telephone game butchering of languages/creoles, etc. If you can’t understand it, it’s foreign, right? ---
**Author:** ![Peanuthead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peanuthead/32/360_2.png) [@Peanuthead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peanuthead)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2018, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/54 "2018-09-24T06:08:44Z")
[Bidi Bidi Bom Bom](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKGbjJarMeA)by Selena was a big hit. And just for shits n giggles: [Let’s Talk Dirty In Hawaiian](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_vTY67Wd9I) by John Prine. ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2018, 8:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/55 "2018-09-24T08:31:08Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > If you can’t understand it, it’s foreign, right? Not necessarily — it could be authentic frontier gibberish. ---
**Author:** ![Weedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/weedy/32/301_2.png) [@Weedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weedy)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2018, 8:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/56 "2018-09-24T08:51:49Z")
Asereje (The Ketchup Song) Waka Waka by Shakira ---
**Author:** ![Banksiaman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banksiaman/32/3334_2.png) [@Banksiaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banksiaman)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2018, 9:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/57 "2018-09-24T09:08:35Z")
[Je taime](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Je_t%27aime..._moi_non_plus), originally by Serge Gainsbourg seems to have done very well internationally. In Australia it was a Top 10 for TV sex symbol Abigail. And if I could encourage some scope creep - the opposite of foreign languages is indigenous languages, which may also not be English. The Warumpi Band had the first hit in an Australian Aboriginal language with [Jailanguru pakernu](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXZX7VCNl8A) in Luritja. ---
**Author:** ![bryanmaguire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d07c76/32.png) [@bryanmaguire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bryanmaguire)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2018, 10:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/58 "2018-09-24T10:04:40Z")
[Joe Le Taxi](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ulay2FvUEd8) by Vanessa Paradis (the ex-Mrs Johhny Depp) was a top 5 hit in the UK and ireland. ---
**Author:** ![mcgato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac8455/32.png) [@mcgato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mcgato)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2018, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/59 "2018-09-24T12:10:25Z")
[Trio’s Da Da Da](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNYcviXK4rg) charted in a number of countries. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2018, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783/60 "2018-09-24T17:21:47Z")
> [@WotNot](#): > > Not necessarily — it could be authentic frontier gibberish. Someone’s gotta go back for a shit-load of dimes! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foreign-language-songs-that-charted-in-english-speaking-countries/821783.md?page=4)