Salsa’s Living Lyrical Legend

Last Saturday I went to see Rubén Blades play live. Blades may very well be the greatest salsa music composer still playing today. This is due, in large part, to the fact that he is a healthy salsa musician, far removed from the late night excesses of his contemporaries, many of which have passed away. Blades even served as Minister of Tourism for his native Panama in 2004 and holds a degree in International Law from Harvard University.

His songs rank among the best loved salsa classics in the genre’s history, such as “El Cantante,” “Pedro Navaja,” and “Decisiones.” As such, his lyrics can easily be considered to be some of the most frequently recited poems in the Spanish language.

Blades’s “El Cantante,” or “The Singer,” became Héctor Lavoe‘s emblematic tune. Lavoe was the enfant terrible of salsa in the seventies, who sang like no one before and no body after. Here is a link to Lavoe performing the song. And, below are the song’s lyrics in both Spanish and English.

The Singer

I am the singer

who you’ve come to hear today

the best of my repertory

I will offer you today

I sing to life

to laughter and sorrow

to difficult moments

and to good times

You’ve come to have fun

and paid at the door

there’s no time for sorrow

come on singer begin

I get stopped in the street

and many people tell me

“Hey Héctor you’re made

surrounded by women and parties”

But nobody wonders

if I cry or suffer

if I carry a sorrow

that hurts very deep

I am the Singer

because I know how to sing

and the public pays

to listen to me.

I am the Singer

very popular wherever I go

but when the show is over

I am just another person

And I go on with my life

with laughter and sorrow

with bitter moments

and with good times.

I am the Singer

and my business is to sing

and to those that will listen

I will offer my song

Chorus –

Today I offer you my best songs…

El Cantante

Yo soy el cantante
que hoy han venido a escuchar
lo mejor del repertorio
a ustedes voy a brindar

Y canto a la vida
de risas y penas
de momentos malos
y de cosas buenas

Vinieron a divertirse
y pagaron en la puerta
no hay tiempo para tristeza
vamos cantante comienza

Me paran siempre en la calle
mucha gente que comenta
¡Oye Hector ah! tu estas hecho
siempre con hembras y en fiestas

Y nadie pregunta
si sufro si lloro
si tengo una pena
que hiere muy hondo.

Yo soy el Cantante
porque lo mío es cantar
y el público paga
para poderme escuchar

Yo soy el cantante
muy popular donde quiera
pero cuando el show se acaba
soy otro humano cualquiera

Y sigo mi vida
con risas y penas
con ratos amargos
y con cosas buenas

Yo soy el cantante
y mi negocio es cantar
y a los que me siguen
mi canción voy a brindar

Coro:
Hoy te dedico mis mejores pregones…