# La Bamba and other songs to be embarrassed about **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 22, 2014, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216 "2014-08-22T17:13:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/41 "2014-08-22T21:42:56Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > Maybe she’ll find an island with a shady tree. That’s got to be the most lugubrious record ever released. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/42 "2014-08-22T21:46:29Z")
> [@jimbuff314](#): > > Me, it was always “what the hell is Elton John singing?” Apparently, it’s “[burning out his fuse up here alone](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvcLWQrcgtM)” ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/43 "2014-08-22T21:49:13Z")
> [@susan](#): > > Love is **not** like a popsicle, even though if you get too much, you’ll get too high. I can see all popsicles in my way… ---
**Author:** ![jimbuff314](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c57346/32.png) [@jimbuff314](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jimbuff314)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/44 "2014-08-22T22:03:46Z")
> [@Suburban\_Plankton](#): > > Apparently, it’s “[burning out his fuse up here alone](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvcLWQrcgtM)” Ha ha - hadn’t seen that commercial. Good to feel I’m in some amount of company. “I told you it wasn’t Provolone.” ---
**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:** [August 22, 2014, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/45 "2014-08-22T22:09:19Z")
_ **"It was four a.m. in the morning…"** _ _ **Of course** _ it was four a.m. in the morning! It couldn’t have been four a.m. in the _ **afternoon** _! **D’oh!** :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Gerald\_II](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Gerald\_II](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gerald_II)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/46 "2014-08-22T22:16:24Z")
When I first heard The Misfits “Horror Business”, despite the title, I thought it was supposed to be a Beach Boys-type of song when listening to it, about picking up a date for cruising. The last line of the lyrics goes: _Ohhhh, what a night, riding with you I’m wanting you!_ Years later, on the internet I was looking up the lyrics for Danzig’s songs that were less intelligible and I found out the song was completely different from what I had heard, especially the last line. _I’llllll, put a knife, right in you I’m warning you!_ ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/47 "2014-08-22T22:18:04Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > I thought the lyric was _ **Para** bailar La Bamba_. > > ‘To dance The Bamba, you need a little grace…’ Those are the lyrics Señora DeLeón tried to teach us in Spanish II. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/48 "2014-08-22T22:18:05Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > I thought the lyric was _ **Para** bailar La Bamba_. > > ‘To dance The Bamba, you need a little grace…’ It is. > [@Sherrerd](#): > > Maybe I’m showing my ignorance of Spanish pronunciation, but don’t both “bailar, bailar” and “para bailar” have only four syllables apiece? They do, but the stresses are different. xX xX vs. Xx xX ---
**Author:** ![Kimble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kimble/32/19185_2.png) [@Kimble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimble)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/49 "2014-08-22T22:35:54Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > I thought the lyric was _ **Para** bailar La Bamba_. > > ‘To dance The Bamba, you need a little grace…’ Yes, but for whom is that “poco de gracia?” I always thought it was for my fatherland (para mi patría), but everyone else in the world seems to think it’s for me and for you (para mí y para tí). 😕 :smack: ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/50 "2014-08-22T22:43:41Z")
> [@Kimble](#): > > Yes, but for whom is that “poco de gracia?” I always thought it was for my fatherland (para mi patría), but everyone else in the world seems to think it’s for me and for you (para mí y para tí). 😕 :smack: ☹ _Por ti seré._ ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/51 "2014-08-22T22:47:01Z")
> [@Kimble](#): > > Yes, but for whom is that “poco de gracia?” I always thought it was for my fatherland (para mi patría), but everyone else in the world seems to think it’s for me and for you (para mí y para tí). 😕 :smack: ☹ “Para mí y p’a ti”, using colloquial speech, the second “para” gets shortened to “pa” (and often BOTH get so hortened), and the “y” gets attached to the “mi” as one single double-i syllable (I forget the technical term for that trope of poetic meter) ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/52 "2014-08-22T22:56:15Z")
[Oh baby hoggify… All I need is my butt and I… Oooh, hey hen, let’s say I want a tidal wave…](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xJWxPE8G2c) ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/53 "2014-08-22T22:57:33Z")
Not a song, but music-related, it was about 25 years before it dawned on me why ABBA is called ABBA… ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/54 "2014-08-22T23:04:04Z")
I’ve been listening to “I’d Really Love to See You Tonight” and I swear Dan Seals really _is_ singing “There’s a warm wind blowin’ the stars around.” ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/55 "2014-08-22T23:23:06Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > They do, but the stresses are different. xX xX vs. Xx xX Okay (and thanks for that). But are you saying that one of those will sound like five syllables, due to the pattern of stresses? In the song it really does sound like five (not four) syllables being voiced before the first “la bamba.” ---
**Author:** ![USCDiver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uscdiver/32/354_2.png) [@USCDiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/USCDiver)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/56 "2014-08-22T23:36:57Z")
I always thought Billy Squire was singing a tribute to Liberace with his song “My Candelabra”. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2014, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/57 "2014-08-22T23:50:49Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > I’ve been listening to “I’d Really Love to See You Tonight” and I swear Dan Seals really _is_ singing “There’s a warm wind blowin’ the stars around.” Sing it yourself; it’s impossible to tell the difference unless you purposely stress the “t” in about, which we don’t do in these parts of the Americas. We typically would say something like “the stars are oud” except the “d” never really gets properly pronounced either. ---
**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:** [August 23, 2014, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/58 "2014-08-23T00:02:08Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Sing it yourself; it’s impossible to tell the difference unless you purposely stress the “t” in about, which we don’t do in these parts of the Americas. We typically would say something like “the stars are oud” except the “d” never really gets properly pronounced either. It wasn’t until I saw the lyrics in print that I knew he was saying “I’m not talkin’ ‘bout movin’ in.” Ditto for Streisand’s “And their dance is unrehearsed.” ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2014, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/59 "2014-08-23T00:10:51Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Sing it yourself; it’s impossible to tell the difference unless you purposely stress the “t” in about, which we don’t do in these parts of the Americas. We typically would say something like “the stars are oud” except the “d” never really gets properly pronounced either. Ah, stars “are out,” not “stars about,” but you get the concept. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2014, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216/60 "2014-08-23T00:34:40Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Sing it yourself; it’s impossible to tell the difference unless you purposely stress the “t” in about, which we don’t do in these parts of the Americas. We typically would say something like “the stars are oud” except the “d” never really gets properly pronounced either. Yeah, if I listen really closely, I can hear him sing, “The stars are out.” But on a casual listen, it sounds like he’s dropping an “n” in there which makes you think he’s singing the word “around.” And he repeats the chorus about four times, so it doesn’t sound consistent from one repetition to the next. But yeah, on a close listen it does sound like “The stars are out.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/la-bamba-and-other-songs-to-be-embarrassed-about/696216.md?page=4)