In the United States there is no official language and in roughly 18% of American homes, one of hundreds of languages other than English is primarily spoken — all of which, unless they’re indigenous, should be considered “foreign languages.” In Los Angeles, everyday you can hear pop songs on the radio in Cantonese, English, Farsi, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Spanish, and Vietnamese and although I often find that pop music is better when the lyrics are unintelligible, only a handful of pop songs in a language other than English have made the journey onto the pop charts — here are fifteen (or so).
Harry Choates‘s “Jole Blon” (1946, French)
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Ritchie Valens‘s “La Bamba” (1959, Spanish)
Kyu Sakamoto‘s “Sukiyaki” — originally “上を向いて歩こう” or “I Look Up as I Walk” (1961, Japanese)
Soeur Sourire‘s “Dominique” (1963, French)
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Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin‘s “Je T’Aime … Moi Non Plus” (1969, French)
Mocedades‘ “Eres Tu” (1973, Spanish)
Plastic Bertrand‘s “Ça Plane Pour Moi” (1977, French)
Los Lobos‘ “La Bamba” (1987, Spanish)
Enigma‘s “Sadeness (Part I)” (1991, Latin and French)
Deep Forest‘s “Sweet Lullaby” (1992, Baeggu)
Los Del Rio‘s “Macarena (Bayside Boys Mix)” (1996, Spanish)
Eric Brightwell 