Ang Huling El Bimbo: A Song Analysis
Of first love, unrequited love, and forfeited love, “Ang Huling El Bimbo” by Eraserheads takes us to a walk down on memory lane about our childhood, first crush, or even first love. With its vivid and nostalgic lyrics, “Ang Huling El Bimbo” paints an unreciprocated love story between childhood friends who grew up and grew apart, only coming to a tragic end. Albeit being one of the classic love songs back in the days until the present, this song manifests a heart-rending one-sided love between former childhood friends who never had their “happy ending” nor a second chance. This supposedly love song takes us on a rollercoaster ride of emotions, giving a timeline of significant events and an open-end story that greatly stirs the audience’s feelings — for those who have loved, was loved, and never been in love.
“Ang Huling El Bimbo” unveils a sequential turn out of events between the narrator and his first love, generating a clear picture of the story. At the start of the song, the narrator describes the girl as someone who reassembles a famous actress, Paraluman, depicting and emphasizing her striking beauty, as well as expressing her forte in dancing El Bimbo. The story unfolds as it manifests the amount of time they spent together right after school to teach him how to dance, and somewhere in between, she teaches him to love as well. With the lyrics,
Naninigas aking katawan
‘Pag umikot na ang plaka
Patay sa kembot ng bewang mo
At pungay ng ‘yong mga mata
Lumiliwanag ang buhay
Habang tayo'y magkaakbay
At dahan-dahang dumudulas
Ang kamay ko sa makinis mong braso, oh
the song uses figures of speech to elaborate how the girl makes him feel as they maneuver along with the music. However, the narrator expresses his regret for not vocalizing his feelings afterward with the lyrics Sana noon pa man ay sinabi na sa iyo, foreshadowing the following unpleasant events.
As the song progresses, it is later on found out that the narrator and his first love have parted for years, only hearing news from the latter and her unfortunate state – working as a dishwasher and having a baby without a husband. Although the following lyrics about the character’s death are broad and has stirred up debates among the audience, it is evidently shown that the narrator received the news about his first love’s death, leaving him in devastation and grief as perceived in the lyrics,
Lahat ng pangarap ko'y bigla lang natunaw
Sa panaginip na lang pala kita maisasayaw.
