"Bésame Mucho" (; "Kiss Me A Lot") is a

bolero Bolero is a genre of song which originated in eastern Cuba in the late 19th century as part of the trova tradition. Unrelated to the older Spanish dance of the same name, bolero is characterized by sophisticated lyrics dealing with love. It ha ...

song written in 1940 by Mexican songwriter

Consuelo Velázquez Consuelo Velázquez Torres (August 21, 1916 in Ciudad Guzmán, Jalisco – January 22, 2005, Mexico City), also popularly known as Consuelito Velázquez, was a Mexican concert pianist and composer. She was the composer of famous Mexican ballads ...

. It is one of the most popular songs of the 20th century and one of the most important songs in the history of

Latin music Latin music ( Portuguese and es, música latina) is a term used by the music industry as a catch-all category for various styles of music from Ibero-America (including Spain and Portugal) and the Latino United States inspired by Latin Amer ...

. It was recognized in 1999 as the most recorded and covered song in Spanish of all time. Famous versions were sung by Trio Los Panchos and female vocalist

Gigliola Cinquetti Gigliola Cinquetti (; born Giliola Cinquetti on 20 December 1947) is an Italian singer, songwriter, and television presenter. Life and career Gigliola Cinquetti was born into a wealthy family in Verona. From the ages of 9 to 13, she studied and ...

in 1968, and by

Dalida Iolanda Cristina Gigliotti (; 17 January 1933 – 3 May 1987), professionally known as Dalida, was an Italian-French singer and actress born in Egypt. She sang in eleven languages and sold millions of records internationally. Her best known son ...

in 1976. English lyrics to it were written by

Sunny Skylar Sunny Skylar (October 11, 1913 – February 2, 2009) was an American composer, singer, lyricist, and music publisher. He was born Selig Sidney Shaftel in Brooklyn, New York, one of four children, to Sarah and Jacob Shaftel (or Schaftel), Jewish im ...

. The song appeared in the film '' Follow the Boys'' (5 May 1944) when it was played by Charlie Spivak and his Orchestra and in ''

Cowboy and the Senorita '' Cowboy and the Senorita '' is a 1944 American Western film directed by Joseph Kane and starring Roy Rogers. The film marked the first appearance together of Rogers and his future wife, Dale Evans. Plot Roy and his sidekick Teddy Bear are m ...

'' (13 May 1944) with vocal by Dale Evans.

Inspiration

According to Velázquez herself, she wrote this song even though she had never been kissed yet at the time, and kissing, as she heard, was considered a sin. She was inspired by the piano piece " Quejas, o la Maja y el Ruiseñor", from the 1911 suite ''

Goyescas ''Goyescas'', Op. 11, subtitled ''Los majos enamorados'' (''The Gallants in Love''), is a piano suite written in 1911 by Spanish composer Enrique Granados. It was inspired by the work of the Spanish artist Francisco Goya. The piano pieces have no ...

'' by

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: ** Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Ca ...

composer

Enrique Granados Pantaleón Enrique Joaquín Granados y Campiña (27 July 1867 – 24 March 1916), commonly known as Enric Granados in Catalan or Enrique Granados in Spanish, was a composer of classical music, and concert pianist from Catalonia, Spain. ...

, which he later also included as "Aria of the Nightingale" in his 1916 opera of the same name.

In politics

In 1990, a hitherto clandestine affair between two

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

ian government ministers, Bernardo Cabral (Minister of Justice) and

Zélia Cardoso de Mello Zélia Maria Cardoso de Mello (born September 20, 1953, in São Paulo) served as Brazil's Minister of Economy from 1990 to 1991 under Fernando Collor de Mello. She was later married to Brazilian comedian Chico Anysio, with whom she has two ch ...

(Minister for Economy, Finance & Planning), was revealed to public knowledge as the couple danced cheek to cheek to "Bésame Mucho" during a birthday party held for Cardoso de Mello. A married father of three, Cabral was forced to resign as a result. A few days later, at a ceremony in which Cardoso de Mello was due to receive her country's Order of Military Merit, the regimental band of the presidential guard, Os Dragões da Independência, struck up "Bésame Mucho" as she was presented with her medal. Its musical director, Lt. Geraldo Mendonça da Lima, was subsequently given 3 days' detention for insubordination.

Notable versions

Capitol Records 78rpm record label for USA release of Andy Russell's

* Bob Eberly and

Kitty Kallen Kitty Kallen (born Katie Kallen; May 25, 1921 – January 7, 2016) was an American popular singer whose career spanned from the 1930s to the 1960s, to include the Swing era of the Big Band years, the post-World War II pop scene and the early ...

with

Jimmy Dorsey James Francis Dorsey (February 29, 1904 – June 12, 1957) was an American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, composer and big band leader. He recorded and composed the jazz and pop standards " I'm Glad There Is You (In This World of Ordinary Peo ...

& His Orchestra (reached number one in the United States in 1944) * Andy Russell (reached No. 8 in the USA in 1944) *

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

(recorded in 1975 and featured on the 1977 album ''

Bingo Viejo '' Bingo Viejo'' is a 1975 vinyl album recorded by Bing Crosby at his own expense during two sessions in 1975 at United Recorders, Hollywood. "Viejo" means "old" in Spanish. He was accompanied by Paul Smith and his Orchestra. Crosby, who called ...

'') * Frank Sinatra had a U.S. top 10 hit in 1954. *

The Coasters The Coasters are an American rhythm and blues/rock and roll vocal group who had a string of hits in the late 1950s. Beginning with " Searchin'" and " Young Blood" in 1957, their most memorable songs were written by the songwriting and producin ...

hit the Hot 100 with their version, which peaked at No. 70, in 1960. *

The Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developm ...

(recorded during their Decca audition on January 1, 1962. A second version was recorded during their first session at Abbey Road Studios on June 6, 1962. The latter is included on The Beatles' '' Anthology 1'') *

Plácido Domingo José Plácido Domingo Embil (born 21 January 1941) is a Spanish opera singer, Conducting, conductor, and arts administrator. He has recorded Plácido Domingo discography, over a hundred complete operas and is well known for his versatility, ...

(received a

Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

nomination for Best Latin Pop Performance in 1983) *

Pedro Vargas Pedro Vargas Mata ( San Miguel de Allende, 29 April 1906 – Mexico City, 30 October 1989) was a Mexican tenor and actor, from the golden age of Mexican cinema, participating in more than 70 films. He was known as the "Nightingale of the Ame ...

(inducted into the Latin Grammy Hall of Fame in 2001) * Zoé (nominated for a

Latin Grammy The Latin Grammy Awards are an award by The Latin Recording Academy to recognize outstanding achievement in the Latin music industry. The Latin Grammy honors works recorded in Spanish or Portuguese from anywhere around the world that has bee ...

for

Record of the Year The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without reg ...

in 2012)

References

in the film Adua e le Compagne at 21.28min in youtube version.

External links

* Performances in Spanish * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Besame Mucho Songs about kissing 1940 songs 1944 singles Songs written by Sunny Skylar Song recordings produced by George Martin The Beatles songs The Coasters songs Luis Miguel songs Number-one singles in the United States Pop standards World music songs Spanish-language songs Jazz compositions in C minor Boleros Latin Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients RCA Records singles Songs written by Consuelo Velázquez