The Trío Matamoros was a Cuban trova group, trova being a kind of music usually played by travelling musicians. Their leader Miguel Matamoros wrote this song in 1922 and the group first recorded it in 1928. It was inspired by an incident at a concert when a mother and her daughter asked the group where they came from. The trio were all born in Santiago de Cuba, the second largest city in Cuba after the capital Havana.
SON DE LA LOMA
Mamá, yo quiero saber
de donde son los cantantes
que los encuentro muy galantes
y los quiero conocer
con su trova fascinante
que me la quiero aprender.
¿De dónde serán? ay mamá.
¿Serán de la Habana?
¿Serán de Santiago,
tierra soberana?
Son de la loma y cantan en el llano,
ya verás... tú verás
Mamá, ellos son de la loma;
mamá, ellos cantan en el llano.
Mamá, ellos son de la loma;
mira mamá, ellos cantan en el llano;
mamá, ellos son de la loma.
THEY COME FROM THE HILLS
Mummy, I want to know
Where those singers come from
They are so gallant
And I want to meet these troubadours
And learn
Their fascinating songs
Where do they come from mummy?
Are they from Havana?
Are they from Santiago?
Are they from a sovereign land?
They come from the hills and sing on the plains
You'll see... you'll see
Mummy, they come from the hills
Mummy, they sing on the plains
Mummy, they come from the hills
Look mummy, they sing on the plains
Mummy, they come from the hills
This year is the 40th anniversary of “Repo Man”, one of the coolest films of its time. According to the director Alex Cox, initially he found it impossible to get the film shown in cinemas. It was only the success of the soundtrack that persuaded the men in suits that there was an audience for the movie.
The soundtrack is a snapshot of the LA punk scene, and it features the Latino band The Plugz. They sang mostly in English so this song is a rare opportunity to hear them singing in Spanish. Around this time they also backed Bob Dylan on the Letterman show.
The following year the band appeared in “Static”, another cult film, where they perform “In The Wait”. However, by this time the group was known as Los Cruzados. In the 1990s their frontman formed Tito and Tarantula who contributed to the soundtrack of “From Dusk ‘Til Dawn”.
NB I have some doubts about some of the original Spanish lyrics which made the translation difficult. Suggestions welcome.
EL CLAVO Y LA CRUZ
El clavo de noche
Nos habla con bote
Nos hablan sus manos
Noche tras noche, noche tras noche
[Estribillo:]
Soñando con carros
Vatos no charros
La cruz en sus brazos
Por vida - con safo
La cruz en sus brazos
Por vida - con safo
Camina por calles
Buscando sin luz
El lugar de su cruz
De su cruz, de su cruz
[Estribillo]
THE NAIL AND THE CROSS
The nail of the night
He's talking to us while he's drinking
He's talking with his hands
Night after night, night after night
[Chorus:]
Dreaming about cars
Ordinary guys, not flashy
The cross in his arms
For life, keeping it safe
The cross in his arms
For life, keeping it safe
Walking the streets
Searching without light
The place of his cross
Of his cross, of his cross
[Chorus]
1928 was another amazing year for music in the USA so I’ve decided to give it the full top ten treatment. Don’t forget to check out my similar playlist for 1927.
01 Blind Willie McTell – Mama, ‘Taint Long Fo’ Day
This is such a soulful, timeless record. McTell really was one of the blues greats, and it’s no wonder he inspired a tribute song from Bob Dylan.
02 Mississippi John Hurt – Frankie
Like McTell, Hurt sang in a more intimate vocal style than many of the blues singers who had released records before him. He recorded a great session in 1928, but it didn’t produce any hits and he returned to farming. Hurt disappeared from the music scene before being belatedly ‘rediscovered’ in 1963.
03 Blind Willie Johnson – Dark Was The Night
Blind Willie Johnson was a gospel singer, but he often appears on blues compilations. This wordless track is perhaps his masterpiece.
04 Washington Phillips – Take Your Burden To The Lord And Leave It There
Phillips is one of the most mysterious figures in gospel music. Nobody is even sure what instrument he was playing, but it could be some kind of zither.
05 Lonnie Johnson – Playing With The Strings
Lonnie Johnson had released his first single way back in 1925, which makes him one of the first bluesmen to be recorded. His jazz influenced guitar technique still sounds impressive today.
06 Duke Ellington – The Mooche
Lonnie Johnson also appears on this track, the first recording of one of Duke Ellington’s signature tunes.
07 The Carter Family – Keep On the Sunny Side
An early classic from the first family of country music. The song is actually an old hymn.
08 Jimmie Rodgers – Blue Yodel No 1
The Carters were already stars, but they were eclipsed commercially by ‘The Singing Brakeman’ (Jimmie Rodgers worked on the railways before he became a star). “Blue Yodel No 1” was one of the biggest hits of 1928, selling around a million copies. Both Rodgers and the Carters had made their first recordings at the Bristol sessions the previous year.
09 Bing Crosby – Makin’ Whoopee
This saucy song was one of the dancefloor hits of the year, with Crosby’s version making the top ten.
10 Allison’s Sacred Harp Singers – Weeping Pilgrim
Let’s close with an old hymn. This is a 1928 recording of a song from the Sacred Harp, a book that was first published in 1844. The tradition is still going strong a century later, and these days there are also groups in Europe, particularly in the UK and Germany.
Here is a seasonal Spanish song which is perfect to get your Christmas party started. Most of the versions on YouTube are sung by annoying children’s choirs, but I’ve found a cool ska version performed by The Refrescos.
NB A Zambomba is a Spanish friction drum, consisting of a ceramic pot with a skin and a pole in the middle. To play it, the stick is rubbed to make a deep sound (see the video below). NB Turrón is a sweet similar to nougat. It is traditionally given as a present at Christmas, and is often rock hard.
CANTA RÍE BEBE
Me he comprado una zambomba (bomba)
Un pandero y un tambor (-or)
Y pá completar la fiesta
Los cacharros del fogón
Cógete unas tapaderas (-eras)
Que no hay que dejar dormir (-ir)
Ni al de arriba ni al de abajo
Ni al que tiene guarda aquí
(Refrain:)
Canta, ríe, bebe, que hoy es Nochebuena
Y en estos momentos no hay que tener pena
Dale a la zambomba, dale al almirez
Que mañana es fiesta y al otro tambien
Esta noche hasta los guardias (guardias)
Pescan una borrachera (-era)
Por eso no tengo miedo
A que nadie me detenga
Hasta mañana temprano (-ano)
No me tengo que acostar (-ar)
Pues esta noche me ha dado
Por cantar y por bailar
(Refrain)
Al chico de mi portera (-era)
Hoy le han traído en camilla (-illa)
Por pedir el aguinaldo
Al tendero de la esquina
Al tendero de la esquina (-ina)
Que ha tenido la atención (-ón)
De tirarle a la cabeza
Un pedazo de turrón
(Refrain)
SING, LAUGH, DRINK
I've bought a zambomba
A tambourine and a drum
And to complete the party
The pots from the stove
Grab some saucepan lids
We won't let anyone sleep
Neither upstairs nor downstairs
Not even the security guard
(Refrain:)
Sing, laugh, drink, today is Christmas Eve
Now isn't the time to be shy
Hit the zambomba, hit it with a pestle
Tomorrow there's a party, and the next day too
Tonight even the security guards
Are as drunk as fish
So I’m not worried about
Anyone stopping me
Until early tomorrow morning
I don’t have to go to bed
So tonight I've decided
To sing and dance
(Refrain)
As for the porter’s boy
Today they brought him in on a stretcher
Because he asked for a Christmas gift
From the grocer on the corner
From the grocer on the corner
Who was so kind as
To throw a large chunk of turrón
At his head
(Refrain)
It’s the 30th anniversary of The Graveyard Shift, which was arguably the greatest radio show of the 1990s. The show was hosted by Mark Radcliffe and Marc Riley, and the duo were affectionately known as Mark and Lard. Broadcast on BBC Radio One, it was a mixture of records, comedy items and rambling chat. It was great, and the 10pm to midnight slot meant the duo could do whatever they felt like. Frequent guests included Mark Kermode (cinema), Katie Puckrik (celebrity gossip) and John Hegley (poetry). Moreover, many bands played live on the program, including Tindersticks, Belle and Sebastian and innumerable Britpop acts.
The first show was broadcast on the 25th of October 1993, and it ran until the 6th of February 1997. For anyone feeling nostalgic, a large collection of high quality items has been made available here (in eight parts). As a tenuous connection to Spanish Pop Lyrics, one of their comedy items features the band Mecano (listen above). My translation of “Los Amantes” can be found here.
We saw Carlos Gardel earlier in this series, in both 1920 and 1921, and later in the decade his career was going stronger than ever. This tango was written in 1927 and Gardel’s version became a hit in Argentina the following year.
ADIÓS MUCHACHOS
Adiós muchachos, compañeros de mi vida,
barra querida de aquellos tiempos.
Me toca a mi hoy emprender la retirada
debo alejarme de mi buena muchachada.
Adiós, muchachos, ya me voy y me resigno,
contra el destino nadie la talla.
Se terminaron para mí todas las farras.
Mi cuerpo enfermo no resiste más.
Acuden a mi mente recuerdos de otros tiempos,
de los bellos momentos que antaño disfruté,
cerquita de mi madre, santa viejita,
y de mi noviecita, que tanto idolatré.
Se acuerdan que era hermosa, más linda que una diosa,
y que brioso de amor, le di mi corazón.
Mas el Señor, celoso de sus encantos,
hundiéndome en el llanto se la llevó.
Es Dios el juez supremo, no hay quien se le resista,
Ya estoy acostumbrado, su ley a respetar,
pues mi vida deshizo con sus mandatos
llevándome a mi madre y a mi novia también.
Dos lágrimas sinceras derramo en mi partida
por la barra querida que nunca me olvidó,
y al dar a mis amigos mi adiós postrero
les doy con toda mi alma, mi bendición.
Adiós muchachos, compañeros de mi vida,
barra querida de aquellos tiempos.
Me toca a mi hoy emprender la retirada
debo alejarme de mi buena muchachada.
Adiós, muchachos, ya me voy y me resigno,
contra el destino nadie la calla.
Se terminaron para mí todas las farras.
Mi cuerpo enfermo no resiste más.
FAREWELL MY FRIENDS
Farewell my friends, my companions in life
My beloved gang from the good old days
Now it's my turn to retire
I have to distance myself from all my good friends
Farewell my friends, I'm going, resigned to my fate
Nobody can defeat destiny
The parties are all over for me
My sick body can't resist anymore
Memories of other times come into my mind
The beautiful moments I used to enjoy
With my mother, saintlike old lady
And my girlfriend who I idolised so much
Remember, she was lovely, more beautiful than a goddess
Overflowing with love, I gave to her my heart
Alas the Lord, jealous of her charms
Drowning in tears, he took her away
God is the supreme judge, nobody can resist him
I'm used to it, I respect his law
But my life was undone by his commands
He took both my mother and my girlfriend from me
As I left I shed two sincere tears
For my beloved gang that never forgot me
As I give my friends my final farewell
With all my soul, I give them my blessing
Farewell my friends, my companions in life
My beloved gang from the good old days
Now it's my turn to retire
I have to distance myself from all my good friends
Farewell my friends, I'm going, resigned to my fate
Nobody can defeat destiny
The parties are all over for me
My sick body can't resist anymore
This is another track from the excellent ‘La bodeguita del medio’ album by Carlos Puebla from 1957.
“Influencia” considers a topic that is as relevant now as it was then – Spanglish! The lyrics contain many examples of Cuban people using English words when perfectly good Spanish ones already existed. They compare this to the latest dance craze – the cha-cha-cha. Of course, the song itself is a cha-cha-cha.
INFLUENCIA
(Estribillo:)
Nadie se acuerda de hablar en español,
ahora la gente le mete al chachachá
Nadie se acuerda de hablar en español,
ahora la gente le mete al chachachá
En aquel tiempo en que el Amaya se quemó,
y yo no sé si para bien o para mal
todas las cosas tenían nombre en español
En aquel tiempo en que no había chachachá
(Estribillo)
Hoy la bodega "grocery" se llama aquí,
la barbería hoy se llama "barbershop",
el entresuelo hoy se llama "mezzanine"
y la azotea en "penthouse" se convirtió
(Estribillo)
Hasta el fotuto del fotingo ya cambió;
se llama claxon y hasta toca el chachachá.
La romería con "picnic" se confundió
y hasta a la fonda ya le llaman "restaurant"
(Estribillo)
Al pollo frito "fried chicken" dicen hoy
y la completa tan humilde ahora blue play
a la salchicha con el pan dicen "hot dog"
y lo moderno el piropo ahora es
Chachachá...
(Estribillo)
INFLUENCE
(Chorus:)
Nobody remembers how to speak in Spanish
These days people do the cha-cha-cha
Nobody remembers how to speak in Spanish
These days people do the cha-cha-cha
At the time when Amaya burned (?)
And I don't know if it was for better or worse
Everything used to have a name in Spanish
In those days there was no cha-cha-cha
(Chorus)
These days they call the grocer's "the grocery"
And the barber's is called "the barbershop"
The middle floor is called "the mezzanine"
And the terraced roof has been converted into a "penthouse"
(Chorus)
Even the horn on an old banger has been changed
It's called a "claxon" and it plays the cha-cha-cha
An open air celebration gets confused with a "picnic"
And even a cheap place to eat is called a "restaurant"
(Chorus)
These days they call 'pollo frito' "fried chicken"
And completely humble is now "blue play" (?)
For sausage with bread they say "hot dog"
And the modern compliment is:
Cha-cha-cha...
(Chorus)
Are you ready for Chilean indie rock? This song is from the album “No sí son” (2013) by Tus Amigos Nuevos. The lyrics contain many wry references to the band’s homeland, and suggest that their frontman Diego Lorenzini might be the Chilean Stephen Malkmus.
BABY BOOMERS
Baby boomers
Denme unos 15 minutitos más
Baby boomers
También crecí jugando gran capital
El mismísimo verano que pasamos en Pelluhue
Y no sabíamos lo que era Internet
La economía repuntaba pero nadie se enteraba
Las fogatas eran nuestro interés
Baby boomers
Denme unos 15 minutitos más
Baby boomers
Se nos pasó volando la transición
Escuchando rock latino aprendí a ser argentino
Como los que te gustaban a vos.
Las mujeres no eran mudas ni tampoco eran tan rubias
Nunca supe como era Brasil
Dale Manu, dale Manu, dale Manu, ohhh!
La miraba y me ignoraba sus amigos me llevaban disfrazado
A ganar su kermés.
La kermés en Curanipe a la que no fue porque supe
Le gustaba ir a la playa a tomar
Se ve tan linda
Ya la quisiera toda para mí
Se ve tan grande
Más adelante tendré una novia así
Baby boomers
¿Por qué trataron tan mal a Redolés?
Baby boomers
¿No notan que está empezando a temblar?
BABY BOOMERS
Baby boomers
Give me another 15 minutes
Baby boomers
I grew up playing with big money too
The very summer we spent in Pelluhue
And we didn't know what the internet was
The economy was picking up but no one knew
We were only interested in campfires
Baby boomers
Give me another 15 minutes
Baby boomers
The transition flew by
Listening to Latin rock I learned to be Argentinian
Like the ones you liked
The women were neither dumb nor blond
I never knew what Brazil was like
Give it to me Manu, give it to me Manu, ohhh!
She looked at her and ignored me, her friends took me in disguise
To win her at the fair
The fair in Curanipe that she did not go to because I knew
He liked to go to the beach to drink
She looks so cute
I would like her all for myself
She looks so great
Later I will have a girlfriend like that
Baby boomers
Why was Redolés treated so badly?
Baby boomers
Can't you see that he's starting to shake?
NB Pelluhue and Curanipe are popular coastal resorts in Chile.
NB Mauricio Redolés is a Chilean poet and singer-songwriter who was tortured by the authorities in 1973.
By 1927 the recording industry (including ‘race records’) was booming in the US, and there was so much great music that I’ve decided to include a ten track playlist. Thankfully, there is a noticeable improvement in audio quality compared to recordings made earlier in the decade. This is because electric recording was introduced in 1926 and by 1927 it had become standard. Another technological development was the sturdy carbon microphone. This made it possible for engineers to travel and record musicians on location rather than bringing them to the recording studio e.g. the Bristol sessions (see below).
01 Blind Lemon Jefferson – Matchbox Blues
After he starting recording (see my post in 1926), Blind Lemon Jefferson quickly became the best selling blues artist of his time. This is one of his greatest performances.
02 Bessie Smith – After You’ve Gone
The sudden rise of bluesmen and their guitars meant that the ‘classic’ blues style of women like Bessie Smith started to go out of fashion. This was her last really big hit.
03 Blind Mamie Forehand – Wouldn’t Mind Dying If Dying Was All
There were also a lot of great gospel records around in 1927, though this one doesn’t sound that different from the country blues of the time. The song is from Blind Mamie Forehand’s only single, where she is accompanied by her husband’s guitar.
04 Norfolk Jubilee Quartet – Wonder Where Is the Gambling Man
This is an example of the ‘jubilee’ style of gospel singing. By the late twenties these a capella groups were really able to create a lot of energy and excitement. Compare this to the version of “This Train” that we heard back in 1922 to get an idea of how fast things were changing.
05 Joe Venuti & Eddie Lang – Wild Cat
The duo Joe Venuti (violin) and Eddie Lang (guitar) sound like they’re having great fun on this instrumental, which anticipates the swinging work of the Quintette du Hot Club de France in the 1930s.
06 Gertrude Lawrence – Someone to Watch Over Me
George Gershwin and his brother Ida were adding a delicious slice of jazzy sophistication to the pop charts during the 1920s. They wrote this song in 1926 but it became a huge hit for Gertrude Lawrence the following year.
07 The Carter Family – Bury Me Under the Weeping Willow
1927 was also a big year for country music. The Carter Family recorded for the first time at the legendary sessions in Bristol, Tennessee, including this song.
08 Fred Waring – I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for Ice Cream
A lot of the German entries in this series about the 1920s have been humourous. Novelty songs were also hugely popular in the USA and here is one of the more memorable ones.
09 Louis Armstrong – Potato Head Blues
We heard Louis back in 1925, playing with Bessie Smith. Here he is doing his own thing on one of his best recordings.
10 Allison’s Sacred Harp Singers – White (I’m A Long Time Travelling)
Sacred Harp is a form of shape note singing which became popular in the American South. At the start of this performance the group sings ‘the shapes’ (fa, so, la, mi) before moving onto the words. Normally this music is sung a capella, but this performance features an organ. It’s number 288 in the book if you want to sing along!
‘La bodeguita del medio’ is the name of a famous restaurant-bar in Havana, Cuba, which opened in 1942. Literally it would translate as something like ‘The little bar in the centre’.
In 1957 Carlos Puebla recorded a superb album there, which really captures the atmosphere of sitting in a bar in (pre-revolutionary) Cuba. He led a trio which also included Santiago Martínez and Pedro Sosa.
TE ESPERO
Como te quiero mi vida
y eso no tiene remedio
(Estribillo:)
En la bodeguita del medio
te voy a esperar querida
En la bodeguita del medio
te voy a esperar querida
Para que me digas si
y que no me digas no
Y para saber por fin
si me das tu corazón
Para saber si a mi herida
puedes ponerle remedio
(Estribillo)
Para que me digas si
y que no me digas no
Y para saber por fin
si me das tu corazón
Para saber si a mi herida
puedes ponerle remedio
(Estribillo)
I'LL WAIT FOR YOU
I love you so much my darling
and there's no cure for that
(Chorus:)
In La Bodeguita del Medio
I'll wait for you my dear
In La Bodeguita del Medio
I'll wait for you my dear
So tell me yes
and don't tell me no
And to finally know
if you will give me your heart
To know if you can
heal my pain
(Chorus)
So tell me yes
and don't tell me no
And to finally know
if you will give me your heart
To know if you can
heal my pain
(Chorus)
Spanish Pop Lyrics 