When Consuelo Velazquez wrote Bolero He kissed me a lotAnd he didn’t even have his first kiss. But this song, which embodies fragility and how fleeting romantic love can be, has endured over the years and has become one of the most important Mexican works, reinterpreted by artists of different generations and in multiple languages. The last one to take to the stage was the star Dua Lipa in her first concert in Mexico, who usually plays symbolic songs from the places where she sings.
Consolettoas the public affectionately called the composer of the song, grew up in Jalisco in a privileged environment, coming from a family of landowners. From a young age she was in contact with music thanks to the piano that her parents had at home. Upon noticing her abilities, they enrolled her in one of Guadalajara’s prestigious academies, and after that, the young woman moved to Mexico City to study a career as a pianist and music teacher. There, he had the opportunity to give his last concert at the Palace of Fine Arts and take courses with professionals such as Claudio Arrão. After completing his studies, he had the opportunity to work at the radio station XEQ.
By this point, she had already been writing her own music for years, so she began including some of her songs in the programming. At first, she preferred to say that she was owned by a friend, because because of her classical training, it was uncomfortable for her to venture into popular genres, which are considered less popular in some purist circles. However, her growing success made it inevitable that she would advance as one of the few bolero composers of the time.
in case He kissed me a lotIt is believed to have been written between 1938 and 1940, although the year of its creation is imprecise. It was the composer herself who later said that the poems were just a fantasy, because at that time she had not yet been kissed romantically. “With the outbreak of World War II, the idea of the song took full shape, especially its lyrics,” her son Mariano Rivera Velasquez said in an interview with TV Azteca. “My mother was very shocked to see all the young couples and marriages who had to separate with the possibility of never meeting again.”
The first official version of the song was performed in 1941 by singer Emilio Toero Cubillas. Soon after, the song inspired a film of the same name, starring Blanquita Amaro, Delia Magagna and Conchita Caracedo. The idol of Mexican cinema gold, Pedro Infante, also introduced it to his collection, further enhancing its popularity. over time, He kissed me a lot It crossed borders and reached the international market, where a world marked by war found resonance in its themes.
Among the artists who have performed Consuelo Velasquez’s theme are Lucio Gatica, Luis Miguel, Andrea Bocelli, Vicente Fernandez, Edith Piaf, Frank Sinatra, Placido Domingo, Andy Russell, The Coasters, among others. Another version that stands out is the Beatles version, which is included on the album Selections 1. The one who brought the song back to the stage this week was English singer Dua Lipa in her first performance in Mexico City, which revived curiosity about the origin of the romantic song 84 years after it was first performed publicly. She said during the ceremony: “Today I want to honor a great Mexican composer, Consuelo Velasquez. I love this song because history says it was never accepted when I wrote it, and I believe that we composers write our dreams to make them come true.”