- Ronald Ávila-Claudio – @ronaldavilapr
- BBC News World
image source, Getty Images
The reason for the death of Lalo Rodríguez is still unknown to the Puerto Rico police. His body was found in a public residence complex in the city of Carolina.
In my bed no one is like you / nor have I been able to find the woman / qI drew my body in every corner / sin that on a piece of skin, ay, Come / Devour me once more, come, devour me once more…
There are probably millions of people in the world and, especially in Latin America, who have sung at the top of their lungs the verses of the famous song “Vendevorame o once more”. And probably just as many people have shone on the dance floors thanks to its infectious melody.
But this musical theme, which became a salsa milestone since its premiere in 1988, when artists of the genre used to make romantic and non-erotic music, would not have achieved success if it were not for the unmistakable voice of its interpreter: the Puerto Rican Lalo Rodriguez.
Rodríguez was found dead on Tuesday, December 13, in a public residence complex in his hometown, Carolina, in northern Puerto Rico. The causes of death of the artist, who was 64 years old, are still being investigated by the island’s police.
With his death, his musical legacy and the story of his most famous song have been remembered once more.
And there are many who have been surprised by the fact that Lalo, who established himself as one of the most important salsa stars in Borinquen, did not want to record the song as it was originally composed and even changed its lyrics.
image source, Getty Images
We tell you why the artist resisted the original version of the song and we also remind you of some important facts regarding his life.
a matter of faith
“Come, devour me once more” was part of the production “A new awakening”, which premiered in 1988 and marked a return in the life of the artist, who had put his career on hold for four years.
The theme was not composed by Lalo, but by the Dominican Palmer Hernández.
Lalo, who was a Christian devoteethe rise of the song was not expected, nor was his career marked by it forever.
And it is that the musical theme had lyrics that the singer considered too explicit, something that contradicted his Christian faith, so he refused to sing it.
“I was in church, when I heard the chorus of ‘Devour me once more’ that says: ‘I’ve wet my sheets remembering you’, I told myself that if I recorded it like that, no pastor was going to allow me to step on the stairs of a church” , said the artist himself in an interview in 2020 with the Puerto Rican newspaper El Nuevo Dia.
image source, Getty Images
Lalo Rodríguez (right) began his career at the age of 16 in the Eddie Palmieri Orchestra. In the photo he appears with Tito Rojas and Néstor Galán “El Buho Loco”.
The phrase, the singer continued, was three times in the melody. Although the record producer, Julio Cesar Delgado, insisted that it be sung in his original version, Lalo decided to change the lyrics.
“I told him that instead of ‘remembering you’ three times, I was going to say, to please him, ‘remembering’ the first time and the other two times ‘crying’. So it is understood that it is a complaint of love, something nostalgic, but we removed the direct connotation,” the artist said in a video.
Despite the changes, the theme was a resounding success.
According to the Foundation for the Popular Culture of Puerto Rico, “Come, devour me once more” reached the first places in Panama, Peru, Colombia, Venezuela and Spain.
In fact, in Spain, points out a digital publication of the entity, the production received a Platinum Record and a Gold Record for managing to sell more than 200,000 copies of said musical success.
image source, Getty Images
While in Puerto Rico the salsa singer made “A new awakening” the best-selling album in 1988. He also won three Billboard awards in 1989 as Singer of the Year in tropical music, Song of the Year for “Ven, devórame otra vez” and Best Record Production of the Year for his LP.
In the 2020 interview, Lalo acknowledged the importance of the song in his career.
“Once it was recorded, the number remained latent in people,” he commented, telling that for that year, despite the fact that the song had been released decades ago, it had been performed in places like London, Amsterdam and France.
45 years of career
Although “Ven, devórame otra vez” is his most important song, Lalo, whose real name was Ubaldo Rodríguez Santos, also sang hits like “Maximo Chamorro”, “Sí, te mentí” and “Tú no sabe querer”.
The Puerto Rican, who made music for 45 years, was born on May 16, 1958.
He began professionally in music at the age of 16, with the Eddie Palmieri orchestra. The album The Sun of The Latin Music (1974) that he recorded with this group became the first salsa record to win an Anglo-Saxon Grammy in 1976.
Among the other productions by Lalo, who launched as a soloist in 1980, are “Simply… Lalo”, “Nuevamente Lalo” (1982) and “El Niño, el hombre, el soñador, el loco” (1985).
His work was at times marred by drug problems and in 2011 he was arrested for domestic violence.
Here you can read the complete lyrics of “Come, Devour Me Again”
HI have filled your empty time with more adventures
And my mind has given birth to nostalgia for not seeing you anymore
And making love I have accidentally named you
Because in all of them I look for the wildness of your sex, love
Even in a dream I thought I had you devouring me
And I have wet my white sheets remembering you
In my bed no one is like you
I mightn’t find the woman
That I draw my body in every cornern
Without on a piece of skin, oh, come
Eat me once more, come eat me once more
Come, punish me with your desires, mons
May the vigor keep it for you, oh, come
Eat me once more, come eat me once more
That my mouth tastes like your body
Desperate my desire for you
Even in dreams I thought I had you devouring me
And I have wet my white sheets crying for you
In my bed no one is like you
I mightn’t find the woman
That I draw my body in every corner
Without on a piece of skin, oh, come
Eat me once more, come eat me once more
Come punish me with your desires, mwings
That the vigor I saved it for you
Oh, come, devour me once more, come, devour me once more
That my mouth tastes like your body
Desperate my desire for you
Even in dreams I thought I had you devouring me
And I have wet my white sheets crying for you
In my bed no one is like you
I mightn’t find the woman
That I draw my body in every corner
Without you on a piece of skin, come
Eat me once more, come eat me once more
Come, punish me with your desires, mwings,
That the vigor I saved it for you
Come eat me once more, come eat me once more
That my mouth tastes like your body
Desperate my desire for you
Come eat me once more, eat me once more
My body has been claiming for a long time, in silence
(Eat me once more, eat me once more)
They are desires to love you, desires of my flesh
What makes me call you, come, devour me
Devour me gently and calmly until dawn
(Eat me once more, eat me once more)
Come, punish me with your desires, mons
that the vigor guardIt is for you, come
Remember that you can receive notifications from BBC News World. Download the new version of our app and activate them so you don’t miss out on our best content.
- Do you already know our YouTube channel? subscribe
