Mecano top songs ranked by an extranjero

Hello everyone and happy International Mecano Day! I’d like to use this opportunity to present my ranking of the best 31 Mecano songs, together with short notes with the impression that each song had on me. The purpose of this is to spark discussion about this amazing band, as well as introduce new people to their music.

\*\*Disclaimer:\*\* I am a foreigner who has been working in Spain for three years. As I speak English at my workplace and am about to leave Spain in a year, there hasn’t really been a need for me to learn Spanish properly, so I am writing this post in English.

\*\*Background for writing this post:\*\* As I have been studying music theory for 18 years, I’m quite a music nerd (mostly into classical, but I can appreciate most music (except for reggaeton, sorry about that!)). A few years ago, a coworker of mine was playing “Hijo de la Luna” which immediately sparked my interest toward Mecano. Had he not played this song and subsequently introduced me to the band, I wouldn’t be writing this today and I would not have discovered what became one of my top 10 all-time favorite bands (thanks David <3).

\*\*About the list:\*\* It only contains songs which I would consider to be great (and there’s 31 of them!). There are songs which I like nevertheless but didn’t include because they don’t feel to be at the level of others in the list. While I am an educated musician, the list is ultimately subjective, so the fact that your favorite song might not be on the list doesn’t mean that the song is not amazing. It just means that I \_personally\_ did not like it as much. As I am not a Spanish speaker, I do not pay attention to lyrics nearly as much. I am aware that Mecano has some outstanding lyrics, but the quality of lyrics is not reflected in the song rankings. Nevertheless, I will touch upon the lyrics of a few songs.

I also made a YouTube playlist which includes these songs in order (starting from the last place and going toward the best). When I mention a timestamp in a song, it refers to the YouTube video of the song used in the playlist. The total number and order of the songs is subject to change, as I listen to the discography more (I’ve already listened to the whole discography at least twice, while some of the albums/songs I’ve listened to a lot more). Here’s the link to the playlist: [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL\_ecpZxoewNGOUESoxkYKDhnXiIzZLioc](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_ecpZxoewNGOUESoxkYKDhnXiIzZLioc)

Without further ado, let’s jump straight to the list!

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\#31. Los piratas del amor (1998)

To start off, we have the only song from their last album to be included on the list. As the others on the album (with the exception of “Stereosexual”, which I am not a fan of regardless), it is quite repetitive. However, the anthem-like chorus is quite catchy, making the song deserving of a place here.

\#30. La bola de cristal (1983)

Quite a banger from the second album. A fun synth-pop song with interesting harmonies, typical of early Mecano. And what a crazy bass line!

\#29. Madrid (1983)

Another typical early Mecano song. However, something about it induces a feeling of claustrophobic anxiety. There’s also a nice short keyboard solo near the end.

\#28. Cenando en Paris (1982)

The first song of many in here from their rock-solid first album. A solid synth-pop song with interesting melodies throughout all the instruments, with a bit of a prog rock vibe. Just like the rest of the album, the lyrics seem inferior to the ones from later albums.

\#27. Quédate en Madrid (1988)

Short and simple, yet quite beautiful. Ana Torroja demonstrating why she’s my favorite singer ever.

\#26. No pintamos nada (1984)

Third album’s opening track and one of only two songs from this album on the list. Lyrically an anti-war song, musically there’s quite a lot going on; there’s a lot of different sounding sections throughout.

\#25. La fuerza del destino (1988)

One of their most popular songs, but not nearly as high in my rankings. The overall vibe sounds nice (GTA Vice City section at 2:44–3:05), there are interesting keyboard passages throughout, but the song is quite repetitive and monotonous overall.

\#24. Boda en Londres (1982)

The first album’s instrumental track. As with other instrumentals, it was written by Nacho Cano and it’s really good.

\#23. Me cuesta tanto olvidarte (1986)

Another very popular song, but again, not as highly ranked here. As it was the case with “La fuerza del destino”, the song is monotonous. Nevertheless, the instrumental arrangement is written well and Ana Torroja once again demonstrates why she is my favorite singer.

\#22. Tú (1991)

This song I find similar to the previous one on the list (except that it’s in a major key and the previous one was in minor). It’s monotonous but well arranged and Ana Torroja once again… well you get the point.

\#21. Por la cara (1988)

Another solid instrumental by Nacho Cano. This one starts with guitar in the style of Paco de Lucía but evolves quite a bit throughout.

\#20. Maquillaje (1982)

The first album has some really weird moments and this is one of them. Just a testament on how diverse this band is. Ana Torroja demonstrates the ability to mix regular speech with singing: Mira ahora, mira ahora, “Mira! Mira!”, mira ahora!

\#19. No es serio este cementerio (1986)

A beautiful song with rather peculiar lyrics. The verses are in a minor key and sound a bit gloomy, but note how the mood shifts for the chorus when it transposes to the parallel major.

\#18. 1917 (1991)

The last instrumental written by Mecano. Nacho Cano introduces a theme and plays around with it, constantly changing the mood and style, reaching the climax at 1:40. There’s a lot of stuff going on in this one.

\#17. Barco a Venus (1983)

The most famous song of the 2nd album, representing the peak of Mecano’s synth-pop style. The song has a nice groove and there’s some pretty cool harmonies between the vocal tracks in the chorus.

\#16. Me colé en una fiesta (1982)

The most popular song from the first album and quite a good one. A typical early Mecano synth-pop track that everyone knows.

\#15. Solo soy una persona (1982)

The clock ticking accompanies this short and unusual, yet beautiful track from their first, “the clock” album. As in “Maquillaje”, Ana Torroja seamlessly switches between singing and talking.

\#14. Mosquito (1984)

The best track of the 1984 album, my least favorite album by the band (not including the 1998 album). What a crazy song it is though! I cannot listen to it without having a smile on my face. The synth melody at 3:52 hits as hard as a train and I cannot remember where I know this melody from.

\#13. El fin del mundo (1982)

Another typical song from the first album. Amazing intro, beautiful singing, mesmerizing chorus, and then this section at 1:40… Man, I love this band.

\#12. Esta es la historia de un amor (1986)

Every time I listen to this one, the higher up in the list it gets. The mood shifts, the arrangement, the singing… There’s something magical about this song that I cannot really describe with words.

\#11. “Eungenio” Salvador Dalí (1988)

An exquisite ballad from the 1988 album. Ana Torroja is the best singer ever confirmed.

\#10. ¿Dónde está el país de las hadas? (1983)

Captivating from the very beginning, the instrumental track from the 2nd album is another example of prog rock influence in Mecano (compare with “Hairless Heart” by Genesis). It’s also my favorite instrumental track by Mecano.

\#9. Me voy de casa (1982)

Yet another typical song from the very solid first album and perhaps my favorite one. You can really hear the optimistic energy of a young band, confident that they can leave an imprint on the musical world.

\#8. Naturaleza muerta (1991)

Ok, now we’re reaching the S tier of Mecano. From this point on, every song (except the one in the 2nd place) was written by José María Cano, and I cannot listen to these songs without being overwhelmed by emotion. Regarding this particular ballad, all I can say is that everything about it is amazing; the melodies, the lyrics, the instrumental arrangement, the singing… It’s difficult to describe with words; you really need to listen to this one in order to understand.

\#7. No hay marcha en Nueva York (1988)

The jazziest track on the list (reminding me of “Stereosexual”, albeit much, much better), it is another one that demonstrates just how diverse Mecano is. And the most difficult one to sing karaoke to. Complex harmonies, non-straightforward melodies… Yet Ana Torroja is navigating through it with such ease.

\#6. Mujer contra mujer (1988)

A song about lesbian love. My favorite Mecano ballad. Ana Torroja is the best singer ever.

\#5. El peón del rey de negras (1991)

I like chess, but I have no clue what these lyrics are trying to say. Anyway; the rock vibe (not so typical for Mecano), the chorus (the best one from Mecano) that includes a modulation to parallel minor and back, the guitar that enters during “porque en la caja de las fichas”, the singing which is in a completely different style than usual… I love everything about this song.

\#4. Héroes de la Antártida (1988)

The super-solid 1988 album is arguably their best release, and this is arguably the best song on it. It starts with the narrator introducing the story about \_Terra Nova\_ Expedition to Antartica, while the wind blowing is heard in the background. Then the bass hits you in the face at 0:38, telling you that this is going to be an amazing ride, and it doesn’t disappoint. It’s such a well written song. Go listen to it.

\#3. Crúz de navajas (1986)

Another song from the 4th album, which signifies the mature, post synth-pop Mecano style that we all know and love. Quite a simple song, yet it’s at the 3rd place of the list… As I am someone who enjoys complexity, you can imagine how beautiful it needs to be for me to place it this high. The sax and organ that play in the background are just something else. The lyrics are quite sad though.

\#2. El 7 de Septiembre (1991)

This song is in the 2nd place because I don’t really think that it is “better” than the one in the 1st place (you all know which one it is at this point). Nevertheless, this is probably my favorite Mecano song. Nacho Cano wrote it for his ex-girlfriend. Now, if an ex wrote me a love song, I’d likely be creeped out. But if an ex wrote me a song THIS good, I’d fall back in love with them. Hell, if a dude wrote me such a song, I’d probably turn gay.

\#1. Hijo de la Luna (1986)

Surprise, surprise. Nevertheless, here’s something I find interesting about this song: When you look at most of the bands, you’ll see that their best songs are often not the most commercially successful ones; here that is not the case. In fact, Mecano is the only great band I know whose most popular song also turns out to be the best one. Everything about this song is sublime; the melodies, the verses, the chorus, the arrangement, the singing, the lyrics… It really is the perfect Mecano song, hands down.

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Thank you for reading this long post. I’m looking forward to reading your opinions in the comments!