Mambo No. 5

Who Are We To Judge

Mambo No. 5 by Lou Bega

The song above is pretty popular, but I bet you've never heard the original 1950 mambo and jive dance song by Cuban composer Dámaso Pérez Prado. It's mostly instrumentals, with a little bit of shouting and a lot of cacophany. Listen here.

The familiar version by one-hit wonder Lou Bega came almost half a decade later. The new track samples riffs from the old tune and adds a completely new vocal line with original lyrics.

These original lyrics discuss the singers promiscuous lifestyle. He explains to me, flirtin' is just like a sport and proceeds to brag about all of the women in his life. At least nine of them.

Angela, Pamela, Sandra, Rita, Monica, Erica, Tina, Mary, Jessica...and a little bit of you. Yikes.

I can't say I'm the biggest proponent of this lifestyle, but I guess it's all fun and games among consenting adults. Stay safe, y'all.

In any case, it's one of the most fun songs out there. Rolling Stone listed it on a "most annoying songs" compilation in 2007, but whatever. It's just catchy. Listen to those trumpets.

ALSO...okay, take this with a grain of salt because I just found it on wikipedia, but apparently this track was supposed to be played at the 2000 Democratic National Convention until the higher-ups realized the line a little bit of Monica in my life might remind people of something. Amazing.

Overview:

Genre:
Mambo / Dance

Favorite Lyrics:
I must stay deep, 'cause talk is cheap.

Verdict:
dance to it, don't live by it