El día que me quieras - “El día que me quieras” and its recordings.

e Pera was an indefatigable admirer of Amado Nervo. Consequently, his lyrics are plenty of eyes and glances, mouths and smiles, as it happens in the poems of the Mexican. But Nervo´s influence on Carlos Gardel's collaborator goes beyond. Far beyond.

The Catalonian José Plaja —English teacher of the singer and one of the three survivors of the accident in Medellín— was who cleared out the issue when talking of Le Pera´s lyrics: «The one of “El día que me quieras” was not his. That was settled with Amado Nervo's family, that gave their permission so that a song would be made out of it.»

Apart from the permission granted by Nervo's heirs, no reader of poetry ignores that “El día que me quieras” is a remake of the poem with the same name written by the Aztec bard, included in El arquero divino (1915):

El día que me quieras tendrá más luz que junio;
la noche que me quieras será de plenilunio
con notas de Beethoven vibrando en cada rayo
sus inefables cosas
y habrá juntas más rosas
que en todo el mes de mayo

Las fuentes cristalinas
Irán por las laderas
Saltando cantarinas
El día que me quieras.

Of course it does not mean that the song did not belong to him, as Plaja pointed out, but it is what is called a paraphrase.

Even though the title and the subject-matter were the same, little of Nervo was left in Le Pera. «El día que me quieras tendrá más luz que junio» the former said, and the latter modified it as: «El día que me quieras, la rosa que engalana».

Other reminiscences are evidenced at the following lines «La noche que me quieras será de plenilunio» (Nervo) and «La noche que me quieras, desde el azul del cielo» (Le Pera). The rest is completely different.

As for the music, Gardel —whose latter output as author is extremely melodic— composed in 1932, together with Marcel Lattes and lyrics by Le Pera-Battistella, “Cuando tú no estás” and in 1935, “El día que me quieras”. In both cases, the structure of a short slow first part and a long second rhythmic part reveals the influence of the then incipient Mexican bolero.

“Te quiero, dijiste” (Maria Grever) or “Perfidia” (Alberto Domínguez) are among many others, clear examples of that old modality. And if Gardel labeled the work at issue as song —not as tango, as some people think— it was because bolero was not yet a genre sufficiently known internationally.

That is why the composition did not seem to be distorted on any of the opportunities it was recorded by bolero interpreters, such as Pedro Vargas, Los Panchos, Johnny Albino, Tito Rodríguez, Altemar Dutra and, among others, the present Luis Miguel.

But little matters the way it is sung; “El día que me quieras” is, since its appearance at the film bearing the same name, one of the most renowned songs in the whole western world.

And as Oscar del Priore states in his book Cien tangos fundamentales: «“El día que me quieras”, sung on the movie with the same name, is the paradigm of the romantic expression of Gardel as interpreter. And it is the number most in vogue of the team Gardel-Le Pera, in terms of international fame.»

Published on the Sunday magazine of the Crónica daily paper.

117 recordings of “El día que me quieras”:

Orchestra Acompañante, Abo Ikuo
Conjunto dir: Esteban Morgado, Adriana Nano
Conjunto Acompañante, Alberto Cortez
Orchestra José Colángelo, Ana Medrano
Orchestra dir: Rubén Pérez Pocho, Antonio Prieto
Orchestra Francisco Canaro, Argentino Ledesma
Piano de Tato Finocchi, Caracol
Trío Carlittos Magallanes, Carlittos Magallanes
Guitarras de Juanjo Domínguez, Carlos Acuña
Orchestra Mariano Mores, Carlos Acuña
Orchestra Terig Tucci, Carlos Gardel
Orchestra Leopoldo Federico, Carlos Gari
Orchestra Acompañante, Carlos Lombardi
Guitarra de Carlos Montero, Carlos Montero
Orchestra Cholo Montironi, Carlos Rossi
Orchestra Salvador Ruiz de Luna, Charlo
Cuarteto Nuevo Siglo Tango, Cristian Mut
Orchestra Roberto Pansera, Edmundo Rivero
Orchestra Roberto Pansera, Edmundo Rivero
Real Tango Ensemble-Dir: Raul Jaurena, Eduardo Nijensohn
Orchestra Jorge Dragone, Enrique Dumas
Orchestra Roberto Pansera, Enrique Dumas
Piano y teclado de Jorge Foscaldo, Enrique Migliarini
Orchestra Armando Lacava, Ester Lucia
Orchestra dir: Oscar Barrios, Eugenio Rigue
Orchestra Osvaldo Rizzo, Fernando Soler
Conjunto Acompañante, Gabriela Fein
Orchestra Acompañante, Graciela Susana
Orchestra dir: Pepe Motta, Guillermo Fernández
Orchestra Acompañante, Haydée Alba
Orchestra Jorge Dragone, Héctor Mauré
Orchestra Roberto Pansera, Horacio Deval
Orchestra dir: Christian Chevalier, Horacio Molina
Orchestra Acompañante, Hugo Del Carril
Orchestra Atilio Bruni, Hugo Del Carril
Orchestra Tito Ribero, Hugo Del Carril
Orchestra Florindo Sassone, Jorge Casal
Bandoneon de Olivier Manoury, Jorge Chamine
Orchestra Acompañante, Jorge Falcón
Orchestra Alberto Giaimo, Jorge Sobral
Orchestra dir: Osvaldo Tarantino, Jorge Sobral
Orchestra Waldo de los Ríos, Jorge Vidal
Orchestra Edgardo Donato, Juan Alessio
Conjunto Acompañante, Juan Carlos Barbará
Conjunto Juan Carlos Baglietto, Juan Carlos Baglietto
Orchestra Acompañante, Julio Iglesias
Orchestra Acompañante, Libertad Lamarque
Orchestra Chucho Ferrer, Libertad Lamarque
Quinteto Litto Nebbia, Litto Nebbia
Conjunto dir: Esteban Morgado, Luciana Pestano
Conjunto Acompañante, Luis Miguel
Conjunto Acompañante, Marcelo Álvarez
Orchestra Acompañante, María Graña
Orchestra dir: Juan Carlos Bera, María Graña
Piano de Jorge Calandrelli, María Graña
Conjunto dir: Osvaldo Piro, Mariana Avena
Orchestra dir: Alberto Garralda, Mariano La Salvia
Orchestra de cuerdas José Canet, Nelly Omar
Orchestra Roberto Pansera, Néstor Fabián
Orchestra Jorge Dragone, Néstor Soler
Orchestra Jorge Dragone, Pedro Ortiz
Orchestra dir: Roberto Pansera, Plácido Domingo
Orchestra Acompañante, Rafael Rojas
Sexteto Tango, Raúl Funes
Orchestra dir: Juan Carlos Cirigliano, Raúl Lavié
Conjuto Cholo Montironi, Ricardo Sivina
Orchestra Típica Porteña dir: Raul Garello, Roberto Goyeneche
Conjunto Acompañante, Roxana Fontán
Orchestra Alfredo de Angelis, Rubén Améndola
Conjunto Acompañante, Shlomo Iduv
Bajo de Jean-Paul Celea, Silvana Deluigi
Conjunto Oscar Bassil, Susana Cristiani
Conjunto Acompañante, Susy Leiva
Orchestra Tito Rodríguez, Tito Rodríguez
Trío Los Panchos, Trío Los Panchos
Orchestra Atilio Stampone, Virginia Luque
Conjunto dir: Ricardo Martínez, Walter Yonsky
Armonica de Hugo Díaz y Conjunto, Instrumental
Bandoneon de Rodolfo Mederos y Orq. de Cuerdas, Instrumental
Conjunto de Arcos Antonio Agri, Instrumental
Conjunto Oscar D'Auria, Instrumental
Conjunto Walter Ríos, Instrumental
Cuarteto Chamuyo, Instrumental
Cuarteto Thierry Caens, Instrumental
Duo Flautango (Adorjan-De La Vega), Instrumental
Duo Mauricio Marcelli-Osvaldo Requena, Instrumental
Guitarras de Adolfo Berón, Instrumental
Octeto Académico de Caracas dir: José Carli, Instrumental
Orchestra Alberto Di Paulo, Instrumental
Orchestra Florindo Sassone, Instrumental
Orchestra Héctor Varela, Instrumental
Orch. Michel Plasson-"Du Capitole de Toulouse", Instrumental
Orchestra Osvaldo Fresedo, Instrumental
Orchestra Osvaldo Pugliese, Instrumental
Orchestra Raul Di Blasio, Instrumental
Orchestra Santos Fierro, Instrumental
Orchestra Serenata Tropical, Instrumental
Orchestra y coro de París-Sorbonne, Instrumental
Piano de Richard Clayderman y Orchestra, Instrumental
Quinteto Argentino de Cuerdas, Instrumental
Quinteto Astor Piazzolla, Instrumental
Quinteto Buenos Aires-Royal Philharmonic Orch., Instrumental
Quinteto Rodolfo Mederos, Instrumental
Septeto Argentino, Instrumental
Sexteto Mayor, Instrumental
Solo de armónica de Luis Saltos, Instrumental
Solo de bandoneón de Luciano Leocata, Instrumental
Solo de bandoneón de Ryota Komatsu, Instrumental
Solo de guitarra de Víctor Villadangos, Instrumental
Solo de órgano de Mito García, Instrumental
Solo de piano de Emilio de La Peña, Instrumental
Solo de piano de Gerardo Gandini, Instrumental
Teclado de Emilio Picchetti, Instrumental
Trío Adrián Iaies, Instrumental
Trío Antonio Agri-Esteban Morgado-Litto Nebbia, Instrumental
Trío Baremboin-Mederos-Console, Instrumental
Trío Contemporaneo, Instrumental
Trío Miguel de Caro, Instrumental