Como olvidar que te llevaste mi corazón

From the song Como Olvidar.

Of course the song writer knows what to write far better than I! But I was just curious as to why it isn't:
- Como olvidar que me llevaste el corazón
 

Hi Steven,

You could also say "Como olvidar que me llevaste el corazón" with the meaning of "you stole my heart", but, it could also be interpreted as "How could I forget that you brought me the heart" so I guess the singer was trying to be cautious hehehe

"Como olvidar que te llevaste mi corazón" is more commonly used.
 

I suspect there is as much poetic license taken when writing songs in Spanish as there is in English. Perhaps this is an example.

On the subject of Spanish lyrics, here is one verse from Guantanamera that always gives me pause:

Cultivo la rosa blanca en junio como enero.
Cultivo la rosa blanca en junio como enero.
Para mi amigo sincero que me da su mano franca.

The song is written about a woman (aren't they all!) and from the first verse one assumes by a man (Yo soy un hombre sincero). So shouldn't the line be:

Para mi amiga sincera...

Whether it is right or not, that is how I sing it. In fact, I sang it that way in a Havana paladar last winter and nobody corrected me.

Hi Marie - That subtle difference in meaning would have been lost on me. I was thinking more along the lines of not referring to body parts with the possessive (as in, "Me lavo el cuerpo."). But ambiguity does have its upside: "Honey, what I really meant was..." :-)

Hi Dan - Indeed. Other examples:
- No te me pongas tan celoso. Part sung by Marta Sánchez (celosa) in Vivo por ella.
- Manana no sé si podré. Marie brought this one to my attention. The guy is singing what the girl is saying. Te Amo (Franco de Vita)

I remember coming across a few others but I can't think of them at the moment. This has got to be the case when a man sings a song originally sung by a woman and vice versa - changing the gender would destroy the rhyme.

 

Hey guys!

I completely agree Steven :) Because of the way one can play with Spanish, a lot of people need an explanation of what you really mean hehehe

Dan, you can definitely change the gender for "amiga" in the song; I guess that, even though the song is dedicated to a "Guantanamera", the message involves everyone, he wants her (and everybody) to know, that he is a grateful man towards those who help him.