Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is) explained

Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)
Cover:Pet Shop Boys - Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is).png
Type:single
Artist:Pet Shop Boys
Album:Bilingual
A-Side:"To Step Aside" (US only)
B-Side:
  • "Betrayed"
  • "How I Learned to Hate Rock & Roll"
Genre:Latin pop, Samba-reggae
Length:4:02
Label:Parlophone
Composer:
Lyricist:Neil Tennant
Producer:
Prev Title:Before
Prev Year:1996
Next Title:Single-Bilingual
Next Year:1996

"Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, released on 12 August 1996 as the second single from their sixth studio album, Bilingual (1996). The song is based on "Estrada Da Paixão" by African-Brazilian band Olodum,[1] which Pet Shop Boys heard during the South American leg of their Discovery tour in 1994. The band shares songwriting credits with Pet Shop Boys.[2]

"Se a vida é" spent eight weeks on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number eight, and became a top-five hit in the Czech Republic, Finland, Hungary, and Spain.[3] In the United States, the song was released in 1997 as a double A-side with "To Step Aside". "To Step Aside" reached number one on Billboards Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart and number eight on the Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales chart.

Critical reception

Ross Jones from The Guardian described "Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)" as "a sexy and vibrant song", and a "life-affirming lambada". He added that "it's still one of the freshest, most joyous things you've ever heard."[4] Music Week rated it five out of five, picking it as Single of the Week. The reviewer wrote, "Superlatives aren't enough for the best Pet Shop Boys single in years. Justice demands it be the biggest of summer hits."[5] The magazine's Alan Jones commented, "Neil Tennant's melancholic voice is usually lost in a swirl of synths, but the Pet Shop Boys' upcoming single (...) is a delightful change of style. An extremely commercial and very positive song, it features a four-piece brass section, a guitar and 20 female drummers. The latter's inclusion gives a sometimes thunderous rumble to appropriate sections of the song, but the rest is very lightweight and breezy, with a vaguely Latin flavour floating in with the brass section. Another Top 10 hit."[6]

Music video

The accompanying music video for "Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)" was shot at the Wet 'n Wild water theme park in Orlando, Florida, and features actress Eva Mendes in a small role as a teenager with her friends at the park. The video, directed by Bruce Weber, entered heavy rotation on MTV and VH1 that summer.

Translation

The correct English translation of "Se a vida é" from Portuguese is actually "If Life Is...". ("That's the way life is" would be "É assim que a vida é..." or "A vida é assim".) The other Portuguese lyric is "Essa vida é..." ("This life is..."), which sounds very similar to "Se a vida é".

Track listings

  1. "Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)" – 4:01
  2. "Betrayed" – 5:18
  3. "How I Learned to Hate Rock 'n' Roll" – 4:40
  4. "Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)" (Pink Noise mix) – 5:27
  1. "Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)" (Mark Picchiotti's Deep and Dark vocal) – 7:58
  2. "Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)" (Mark Picchiotti's Shelter dub) – 8:40
  3. "Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)" (Deep Dish Liquid remix) – 9:57
  4. "Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)" (Deep Dish dub) – 11:46
  1. "Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)" – 4:01
  2. "Betrayed" – 5:17
  1. "Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)"
  2. "Go West"

US CD single[13]

  1. "Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)" (album version) – 4:01
  2. "Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)" (Mark Picchiotti's Deep and Dark vocal) – 7:58
  3. "To Step Aside" (album version) – 3:48
  4. "To Step Aside" (Ralphie's disco vox) – 9:07
  5. "The Calm Before the Storm" – 2:45
  6. "Betrayed" – 5:32

US 2×12-inch single[14]

  1. "Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)" (Mark Picchiotti's Deep and Dark vocal) – 7:58
  2. "Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is)" (Deep Dish Liquid remix) – 9:57
  3. "To Step Aside" (Ralphie's disco vox) – 9:07
  4. "To Step Aside" (Hasbrouck Heights mix) – 8:50
  5. "To Step Aside" (Davidson Ospina dub) – 7:30
  6. "To Step Aside" (Ralphie's Old School dub) – 7:33
  7. "To Step Aside" (Brutal Bill mix) – 7:50
  8. "To Step Aside" (Ralphi's house vox II) – 7:32

Personnel

Personnel are adapted from the Bilingual album booklet.[15]

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1996)! scope="col"
Peak
position
Czech Republic (IFPI ČR)[16] 2
Denmark (Tracklisten)[17] 9
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100 Singles)[18] 24
Hungary (MAHASZ)[19] 3
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[20] 30
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40 Tipparade)[21] 11
Netherlands (Dutch Single Tip)[22] 9
Spain (AFYVE)[23] 4

Year-end charts

Chart (1996)! scope="col"
Position
Australia (ARIA)[24] 97

Release history

Region! scope="col"
DateFormat(s)Label(s)
United Kingdom12 August 1996Parlophone[25]
2 September 19962×12-inch vinyl[26]
Japan11 September 1996Maxi-CD[27]
29 January 1997Mini-CDEMI[28]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Bilingual: How Pet Shop Boys Caught the Latin-Pop Wave First. Elliott. Mark. Dig!. 2 September 2021. 13 November 2021.
  2. Web site: Pet Shop Boys Songs: 20 Synth-Pop Hits Always on Our Mind. Edwards. Luke. Dig!. 19 November 2020. 13 November 2021.
  3. Ironically, despite the Portuguese title, it was not a hit in Portugal, nor in the other major Lusophone country, Brazil.
  4. Jones, Ross (17 August 1996). "Reviews: Singles". The Guardian.
  5. Reviews: Singles. Music Week. 3 August 1996. 21. 1 September 2021.
  6. Talking Music. Alan. Jones. Music Week. 20 July 1996. 42. 1 September 2021.
  7. Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is). Pet Shop Boys. 1996. UK & Australian CD1 liner notes. Parlophone. CDR 6443, 7243 8 83147 2 5.
  8. Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is). Pet Shop Boys. 1996. Japanese maxi-CD single liner notes. EMI Music Japan, Parlophone. TOCP-8978.
  9. Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is). Pet Shop Boys. 1996. UK & Australian CD2 liner notes. Parlophone. CDRS 6443, 7243 883162 2 4.
  10. Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is). Pet Shop Boys. 1996. UK cassette single sleeve. Parlophone. TCR 6443.
  11. Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is). Pet Shop Boys. 1996. European CD single liner notes. Parlophone. 7243 883194 2 3.
  12. Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is). Pet Shop Boys. 1997. Japanese mini-CD single liner notes. EMI Music Japan. TODP-2541.
  13. Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is) and To Step Aside. Pet Shop Boys. 1997. US CD single liner notes. Atlantic Records. 2-85430.
  14. Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is) and To Step Aside. Pet Shop Boys. 1997. US 2×12-inch single vinyl discs. Atlantic Records. 0-85430.
  15. Bilingual. Bilingual (album). Pet Shop Boys. 1996. UK CD album booklet. Parlophone. CDPCSD170, 7243 8 53102 2 5.
  16. Top National Sellers. Music & Media. 13. 39. 28 September 1996. 22. 29800226. World Radio History.
  17. Top National Sellers. Music & Media. 13. 38. 21 September 1996. 18. 29800226. World Radio History.
  18. Eurochart Hot 100 Singles. Music & Media. 13. 37. 14 September 1996. 16. 29800226. World Radio History.
  19. Top National Sellers. Music & Media. 13. 37. 14 September 1996. 18. 29800226. World Radio History.
  20. News: Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (No. 188 vikuna 21.9. – 27.9. '96). DV. is. 20 September 1996. 16. 1021-8254. Timarit.is.
  21. Web site: Pet Shop Boys – Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is). Dutch Top 40. nl. 26 October 2020.
  22. Web site: Pet Shop Boys – Se a vida é (That's the Way Life Is). Dutch Charts. nl. 25 July 2021.
  23. Book: Salaverri, Fernando. September 2005. Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002. es. 1st. Madrid. Fundación Autor/SGAE. 84-8048-639-2.
  24. Australian Top 100 Singles 1996. The ARIA Report. Imgur. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20151102010347/http://i.imgur.com/t1PYbhG.jpg. 2 November 2015.
  25. New Releases: Singles. Music Week. 39. 10 August 1996. 7 June 2021.
  26. New Releases: Singles. Music Week. 31. 31 August 1996.
  27. Web site: Se A Vida E ペット・ショップ・ボーイズ. Se a vida é Pet Shop Boys. Oricon. ja. 22 January 2024.
  28. Web site: Se A Vida E ペット・ショップ・ボーイズ. Se a vida é Pet Shop Boys. Oricon. ja. 22 January 2024.

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