Tag Archives: Cumbia

Bleeding Balm: Other Mexicos

 

For me the balm shall bleed, and amber flow,
The coral redden, and the ruby glow,
The pearly shell its lucid globe infold,
And Phœbus warm the ripening ore to gold.
The time shall come, when, free as seas or wind,
Unbounded Thames shall flow for all man-kind,
Whole nations enter with each swelling tide,
And seas but join the regions they divide;
Earth’s distant ends our glory shall behold,
And the new world launch forth to seek the old.
Then ships of uncouth form shall stem the tide,
And feather’d people crowd my wealthy side;
And naked youths and painted chiefs admire
Our speech, our colour, and our strange attire!
O stretch thy reign, fair Peace! from shore to shore,
Till conquest cease, and slavery be no more;
Till the freed Indians in their native groves
Reap their own fruits, and woo their sable loves;
Peru once more a race of kings behold,
And other Mexicos be roof’d with gold.

Pope Afrom: Windsor Forest

for more heroic iambic pentameter
with Pre-Columbian Cumbia go HERE

Natacha Atlas

This song was featured on a tape I was given in Central America in 2002 . The music came pulsing up to my dwelling one tropical morning from the house next door. Normally one hears a lot of Cumbia, disco and 70’s pop there but this was an unearthly Arabic groove. I loved it the first time I heard it. Later, the neighbor recorded a cassette for me which I still have. The singer was unknown to me for 14 years until yesterday when I walked into a museum gift store and heard the song playing. I asked the cashier who it was and he wrote down for me her name and the title of the song. Now I know.

Kidda (كده)

Natacha Atlas

Oh night / Why my darling? / My darling why?
My darling why is it like this when I love you?

Why? I know you love me / Why, oh time?

My soul
Where is the justice, your highness the judge?
There is no justice in your hands and death is usual around you…

You made me love you / Why, why, why?
Oh master / Why? / Oh darling
One day you will face your destiny
and demand mercy from my inspiration
Oh soul , I mourned, I mourned, I mourned…
-black-veiled-orma-woman

نتاشا أطلس‎‎

Doble Sentido

ECUADORIAN POETRY in MOTION !
(a double-dose of Doble Sentido)

Behold in amazement the God-given attributes of these humble equatorial bridesmaids. Their sinuous abilities on the physical level are not to be outdone by their lyrical prowess on the linguistic as they skillfully combine images of the countryside and the harem with ribald double-entendres in Spanish, which is, in fact, the name of their group.

I bet they can serve up some sexy llapingachos too…
Makes a gringo poet wish he was Ecuatoriano sometimes.

Here in their own words, with feminine sincerity and unfeigned Latina faith, they testify to their characters (humildes y cariñosas) as they bare their beautiful souls to you
(now that you have borne the baring of their regal bearing):

🎄 Cumbialong to Bethlehem 🎁

Con mi burrito sabanero voy camino de Belen,
con mi burrito sabanero voy camino de Belen,
        With my little burro I’m on the way to Bethlehem
si me ven, si me ven, voy camino de Belen
si me ven, si me ven, voy camino de Belen
        if you see me, if you see me, I’m on the way to Bethlehem
El lucerito mañanero ilumina mi sendero
el lucerito mañanero ilumina mi sendero
        the little morning star lights my way
si me ven, si me ven voy camino de Belen  [2X]

Con mi cuatrico voy cantando, mi burrito va trotando,
Con mi cuatrico voy cantando,mi burrito va trotando
        with my cuatro I go singing, my burro goes trotting

si me ven, si me ven voy camino de Belen (2X)

duki duki duki duki,duki duki duki da
apurate mi burrito que ya vamos a llegar
        hurry up, my little burro, we’re about to arrive

duki duki duki duki,duki duki duki duu
apurate mi burrito vamos a ver a Jesus
        hurry up, my little burro, we’re going to see Jesus