Music: Osvaldo Pugliese
Lyrics: Homero Manzi
Orchestra: Ricardo Tanturi
Singer: Enrique Campos
This performance: Buenos Aires, March 24 1944 - Record RCA-Victor 60-0392 79588
Curated and Translated by Luigi Seta
Tango Talks! (Detrás de cada tango hay una historia… / Behind every tango there is a story...)
Por ahí dicen que las segundas partes nunca fueron buenas… y las opiniones al respecto están divididas. Este tango nos cuenta la historia de un arrepentido retornando al amor del pasado, con unas pinceladas magistrales las cuales no están exentas de una brutal honestidad.
There it is said that the second parts were never good... and the opinions on this are divided. This tango tells the story of a repentant protagonist returning to the love of the past, with masterful brushstrokes which are not exempt from a brutal honesty.
Hint: Let’s pay attention to the final paragraph: "Today, upon returning..."
Acerca del Autor de la Letra / About the Author of the Lyrics
Homero Manzi (1907-1951)
Manzi encarna, más que ningún otro, la presencia de la poesía en la letra del tango. Fue un poeta que no publicó ningún libro de poesías. El medio de su poética fue siempre la canción, desde los motivos camperos hasta la música urbana, en la que alcanzó su mayor realización.
Manzi embodies, more than any other, the presence of poetry in the lyrics of tango. He was a poet who did not publish any book of poetry. The medium of his poetics was always the song, from folk motifs to urban music, in which he achieved his greatest achievement.
De esa manera gozó de inmensa popularidad, sin renunciar nunca a sus convicciones de poeta. Apeló a la metáfora, incluso surrealista, pero no avanzó demasiado por ese camino, que quizás hubiera dificultado la comprensión de su mensaje por el hombre común.
In this way he enjoyed immense popularity, never giving up his poet's convictions. He appealed to the metaphor, even surreal, but he did not go too far along that road, which might have made it difficult for him to understand his message by the common man.
No utilizó el lunfardo (argot de Buenos Aires) para expresarse, pese al compromiso popular de su obra literaria. A diferencia de otros grandes autores, sus letras no ofrecen crónicas de la realidad social ni imparten consignas morales. Sus versos suelen estar llenos de nostalgia, como el tango mismo.
He did not use the lunfardo (Buenos Aires slang) to express himself, despite the popular commitment of his literary work. Unlike other great authors, his lyrics do not offer chronicles of social reality nor impart moral slogans. His verses are often full of nostalgia, like the tango itself.
The 44 years that Manzi lived also reached him to exercise the journalism and the chair, to penetrate profusely in the cinema and for an intense and a venturesome union and political militancy. The lyrics of tango was, however, its true element, and it is today that keeps it alive in the memory of all those who love tango.
Recién
Castellano:
Hoy, recién, recién,
vuelvo otra vez a tu lado con mi vida escondiendo los fracasos, ocultando las heridas. Y hoy al encontrar la protección de tus manos tan serenas, recién siento que me apena saber que te hice mal. Tenía menos años y el corazón imprudente por calles del engaño rodó, rodó torpemente. Me amabas, tanto y tanto, que me cansó tu tristeza y por no escuchar tu llanto preferí no verte más. *Hoy, recién, recién, miro las cosas sin sombras ni mentiras y comprendo cuanto enseñan las lecciones de la vida.* Hoy, al retornar, pensé encontrar el reproche de tu olvido y tan solo hallé el castigo de todo tu perdón. |
English:
Today, just now,
I'm back to your side with my life again hiding the missteps, hiding the wounds. And today when finding the protection of your so serene hands, I just feel sorry to know that I did you wrong. I was younger and my reckless heart rolled by streets of deception rolled, rolled awkwardly. You loved me, so much, so much, that I got tired of your sadness and for not listening to your crying I preferred not to see you anymore. *Today, just now, I look at things without shadows or lies and I understand how much it teach the lessons of life.* Today, upon returning, I expected to encounter the reproach of your forgetfulness and only found the punishment of all your forgiveness. |
*This part of the lyrics is not sung by Campos, but it illustrates the meaning of the tango message.
*Esta parte de la letra no está cantada por Campos, pero ilustra el sentido del mensaje del tango.
Danced by Pablo Rodriguez & Corina Herrera
Con esta interpretación, llena de un innegable sentimiento y pasión, tan espesos que podemos percibirlos, Pablo y Corina en su particular estilo, nos invitan a viajar al incierto desenlace de la historia. Apoyados en su impresionante técnica y musicalidad nos hacen vivir el nudo de este drama. Kudos! Esto es tango!
Saturday Night Milonga
Tango Element Baltimore 2015
With this interpretation, filled with an undeniable feeling and passion, so thick that we can perceive it, Pablo and Corina in their particular style, are inviting us to travel to the not-so-clear outcome of the story. Based on their impressive technique and musicality, they make us go through the entanglement of this drama. Kudos! This is tango!
