Obsesión is a 1935 Spanish-language bolero written by Puerto Rican songwriter Pedro Flores. It was recorded in New York with Flores’ Cuarteto Flores and became one of Flores’ best-known tunes, helping to popularize the bolero in the United States. The song tells of an all-consuming love that can break any barrier, and its opening lines convey love overcoming sky and sea; a famous lyric is “Love is the bread of life, love is the divine cup.” While there is no single album listed for the original recording, it is tied to Flores’ 1930s recordings. Over the years Obsesión has been covered by many artists including Pedro Vargas in a duet with Beny Moré, Javier Solís, Ceferino Nieto, Iran Eory, Jochy Hernández, Lucho Gatica, Julio Iglesias on the America album (1976), Isaac Delgado on La Primera Noche (1994), and the Spanish Harlem Orchestra on Un Gran Día en el Barrio (2002). The song’s influence extends into literature and cinema, notably shaping José Emilio Pacheco’s Las batallas en el desierto and the film Mariana, Mariana (1987).
