Clandestino (song)

"Clandestino"
Single by Manu Chao
from the album Clandestino
B-side	"Bienvenido A Tijuana" (More Image Version) "Mama Call"
Released	11 July 2000
Format	CD
Genre	Reggae Latin music
Writer(s)	Manu Chao
Producer(s)	Manu Chao Renaud Letang
Manu Chao singles chronology
"Bongo Bong" (1999) "Clandestino" (2000) "Merry Blues" (2001)

"Clandestino" is the second single and the title track from Manu Chao's first album, Clandestino. The lyrics of the song are sung in Spanish and deal with the issue of immigration: "I wrote it about the border between Europe and those coming from poorer nations. Look around — maybe 30% of the people in this street are clandestino [illegal]."^[1] The song peaked at number 78 on the French charts.^[2] It charted again in November 2013, peaking at number 196.^[3]

Track listings

1. "Clandestino"
2. "Bienvenido A Tijuana" (More Image Version)
3. "Mama Call"
4. "Clandestino" (Enhanced Video)

Music video

A music video was produced for the song along with the album track which appears on the single, "Mama Call".

Cover versions

• Brazilian singer Adriana Calcanhotto (Público - (Ao Vivo), 2000)
• Brazilian band Tihuana (Ilegal, 2000)
• Italian singer Fiorella Mannoia (Concerti, 2004)
• Argentinian singer Pil Trafa (El monopolio de las palabras, 2004)^[4]
• Belgian choir Scala & Kolacny Brothers (2005)
• French band El Gafla (duet with Manu Chao) (pA/Ris-Casbah, 2006)
• Spanish flamenco singer José Mercé
• Turkish jazz band Luxus (2010)
• Romanian band Bosquito performed a live mashup of "Clandestino" and Santana's "Gitano".
• Playing for Change released a version, featuring Manu Chao and other musicians from around the world (2014)^[5]

References

1. Cartwright, Garth (1 October 2007). "The wild rover". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 July 2008.
2. "InfoDisc : Tous les Titres par Artiste" (in French). InfoDisc. Select "Manu Chao" from the artist drop-down menu. Retrieved 5 July 2013.
3. "lescharts.com – Manu Chao – Clandestino" (in French). Lescharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
4. "Pil Trafa" (in Spanish). Rock.com.ar. Retrieved 6 December 2015.
5. "Clandestino from Playing for Change". Retrieved 17 April 2014.