You Belong to My Heart facts for kids

"You Belong to My Heart" is a famous English song. It's actually an English version of a popular Mexican song called "Solamente una vez," which means "Only Once." A talented Mexican songwriter named Agustín Lara wrote the music.

The original Spanish song was first sung in 1941 by Ana María González and José Mojica for a movie called Melodías de América. After that, "Solamente una vez" became super popular in countries like Mexico and Cuba. Many great singers of a music style called Bolero recorded it.

Singers of "Solamente una vez"

Many artists have performed the original Spanish song "Solamente una vez." Here are some of them:

• Anacani
• Sara Montiel
• Daniel Rodríguez
• Quartetto Gelato
• Arielle Dombasle
• Benny Moré
• Ignacio Piñeiro
• Pedro Vargas
• Julio Iglesias
• Roberto Carlos
• Andrea Bocelli
• Chucho Valdés
• Plácido Domingo
• Nat King Cole
• Marty Robbins
• Lucho Gatica
• Guadalupe Pineda
• Roland Shaw & His Orchestra
• Luis Miguel
• Cliff Richard and the Shadows

Disney's "The Three Caballeros"

The song "Solamente una vez" got its English title, "You Belong to My Heart," for the Disney movie "The Three Caballeros." Ray Gilbert wrote the new English words, and Dora Luz sang it in the film. It's interesting because Gilbert's English lyrics are completely different from Lara's original Spanish ones!

You can find this song on the orange disc of the music collection Classic Disney: 60 Years of Musical Magic.

Singers of "You Belong to My Heart"

Many famous singers have also recorded the English version, "You Belong to My Heart."

• Bing Crosby recorded it with the Xavier Cugat orchestra in 1945. It became a top 5 hit on the Billboard charts.
• The Charlie Spivak orchestra also released their version in 1945, which reached the top 10.
• In 1949, Alfredo Antonini and his orchestra recorded it with singer Victoria Cordova and John Serry Sr.
• Jazz pianist Jack Pleis included it on his 1955 album, Music from Disneyland.
• Elvis Presley sang a mix of the Spanish and English lyrics with the Million Dollar Quartet.
• Other artists like Andy Russell, Jerry Vale, Engelbert Humperdinck, and Gene Autry also recorded versions that blended both languages.
• Paula Kelly and The Modernaires, José Carreras, The Three Tenors, Marty Robbins, the Old 97's, and Cliff Richard have also recorded this version.
• Los Índios Tabajaras performed an instrumental (music without singing) version.
• The 101 Strings Orchestra, Enrique García Asensio, and Charlie Haden released instrumental versions that mentioned both song titles.

The Song in Movies

This popular song has appeared in several movies:

• Disney used it again in their short film "Pluto's Blue Note" in 1947.
• Tito Guizar sang it in the 1948 Roy Rogers film "The Gay Ranchero."
• Ezio Pinza performed a mixed Spanish and English version in the 1951 movie "Mr. Imperium."
• The song is also part of the soundtrack for the 2004 movie Napoleon Dynamite.

Another English Version: "Only Once in My Life"

In 1998, a different English version of the song was released. It was called "Only Once in My Life" and was written by Janis and Rick Carnes. Just like Ray Gilbert's version, these lyrics are not a direct translation of the original Spanish song.

• Full lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics

See also

In Spanish: Solamente una vez para niños