The Ketchup Song(Aserejé) by Las Ketchup

Every New Zealand #1 single…

Las Ketchup

Lucía, Lola, and Pilar Muñoz are daughters of flamenco musician Juan Manuel Muñoz Expósito. Expósito is known as El Tomate, Spanish for “The Tomato”. Continuing the tomato theme, the sisters formed Las Ketchup.

The sisters weren’t aiming for a career in pop music. Pilar, the eldest, planned an acting career. Lucía, the youngest, sang in a flamenco fusion group while Lola was completing a university degree in industrial relations.

But the producer Manuel (Queco) Ruiz heard about the sisters and wrote ‘Las Ketchup’ for them.

He liked the name, more than anything.

Rafael Madroñal, Columbia Records

The Ketchup Song

The original Spanish lyrics tell the story of Diego, a “Rastafarian Afro-Gypsy” who wears “a navy blue suit and goes after contraband,” and his visit to a disco where the DJ plays Diego’s favorite song.

That turns out to be “Rapper’s Delight” by the Sugarhill Gang, but Diego’s attempt to sing along to the chorus — along the lines of “I said a hip, hop, the hippie, the hippie to the hip hip hop, you don’t stop” — comes out as: “Asereje, ja deje, dejebe tu dejebe deseri iowa a mavy an de bugui an de guidibidi,” which is even more nonsensical in Spanish than the original is in English.

Emma Daly, New York Times

‘The Ketchup Song’ topped the charts in many countries, becoming the year’s top-selling single in seven. Curiously, it didn’t crack the top 40 in the US.

It spawned a dance, while ‘Der Steuersong’ (‘The Tax Song’) became a popular parody in Germany. It was also rumoured to have Satanic undertones, as the gibberish Spanish title ‘Aserejé’ sounds like “let’s be heretical”.

My verdict

‘The Ketchup Song’ is disposable fluff, but it’s infinitely more pleasant than ‘The Macarena’ in my book. It’s smoother and gentler, even if it’s inane.

The Aftermath

The trio have only released two albums. Un Blodymary came out in 2006, but didn’t enjoy much success. The sisters still perform in Spain. They’re now joined by a fourth sister, Rocio, who was pregnant when they were promoting their first album.

Read more

• NZ #1 hits