Fernando was one of ABBA's biggest hits. There's a lot of debate about which war it refers to. The song mentions crossing the Rio Grande and that prompts many people in America to think of the Mexican revolution of 1910-1920. However, there aren't many examples of fighting that took place near the Rio Grande and there aren't too many examples of revolutionaries who crossed into Mexico from the USA.
Most people assume the song is about the Spanish civil war and the reference to the Rio Grande is just a generic reference to a river. Keep in mind that ABBA is a European group and the Spanish Civil War is still fresh in the memories of many europeans. For many it was glorious, but losing, fight against fascism.
The song refers to Fernando, a man who fought on the losing side against tyranny and fascism. Fernando was a revolutionary and a guerrilla fighter. He is now old and gray like many of the freedom fighters from all over Europe who went to Spain in the 1930's.
John McCain likes ABBA. I hope he appreciates that this song is about people who fought to defend their country from foreign domination. (Franco was supported by Hitler and Mussolini.)
10 comments :
it took all of 45 sec on google to confirm that there is a "Rio Grande" river in Spain.
http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=5501
Bjorn Ulvaeus (from 1000 UK #1 Hits by Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh): "That lyric is so banal and I didn't like it. It was a love lyric, someone who loved Fernando, but I inherited the word 'Fernando' and I thought long and hard, what does Fernando tell me? I was in my summerhouse one starry evening and the words came, 'There was something in the air that night' and I thought of two old comrades from some guerrilla war in Mexico who would be sitting in the porch and reminiscing about what happened to them back then and this is what it is all about. Total fiction."
divalent says,
it took all of 45 sec on google to confirm that there is a "Rio Grande" river in Spain.
And how long did it take to find out that the authors of the song did not intend to refer to a specific river?
"And how long did it take to find out that the authors of the song did not intend to refer to a specific river?"
Didn't search for it (nor, I gather, did you. And from what anonymous wrote, apparently the author *did* intend to refer to the US-Mexican river). Just addressing your speculation that the song might have been about the Spanish Civil war and that "Rio Grande" was meant as a generic reference to some river.
My point was that, if it *was* about the Spanish Civil war, then a more parsimonious interpretation was that it was a reference to a specific river of that name in Spain.
BTW, the song sucks; never did like it, and a pox on you for making me listen to it again. :)
divalent says,
Didn't search for it (nor, I gather, did you. And from what anonymous wrote, apparently the author *did* intend to refer to the US-Mexican river).
No, Bjorn did not refer to a particular river when he was writing the song. It's true that he talked about two revolutionaries siting in Mexico but there are other versions of his quotation that do not refer to "some guerrilla war in Mexico." Unfortunately, I can't check the reference that anonymous gave.
The general consensus is that Bjorn was not actively thinking of particular events in a particular war when he wrote the song but it resonates better with the Spanish Civil War than with any skirmish in Mexico.
I don't agree about the "fighting against foreign domination" bit. Spain was very open to the outside during its brief Republican period, and very much closed on itself under Franco. No foreign domination. Just a homegrown, bloodthirsty dictator, and a purely national, deeply religious and deeply freedom-hating ruling class.
FWIW, the Force of the web is pervasive.
But given that the song is an "Andean" pastiche, I think an America connection is natural to make.
Oops, I missed the link anonymous gave. Sorry about the circular reference.
Franco's victory was due to the foreign support he had, directly by nazi Germany, supplying arms, technical troops and air force, and facist Italy, some arms and large contigent of troops. Britain and France both refused to help the democratically elected government by signing and adhereing to the non Intervention Pact while Hitler and Musolinni both signed and ignored it and then the good old USA supplied Franco with oil on credit!
Next Friday, 18th July is the 62nd anniversry of Franco's rebellion and like Pinochet coup in 1973 it remains a dark stains on the concience of the Western powers.
The original song might have been about the Spanish Civil War. Maybe. The original song was intended for Freda's solo album, not the group.
Benny, (or Bjorn, I forget which) later made an English version. That is the version under discussion here. The English version was NOT a simple translation. It was a complete re-imagination. Benny (or Bjorn) himself said so. He said he made the English version exactly about the Mexican Revolution. He also said it was a generic story, nothing at all based on a specific event from the Mexican Revolution.
Is why there is reference to the Rio Grande and is why ti does not coincide with known Rio Grande crossings during the Mex Rev.
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