Cacho Castaña developed an interest in music during his early years, and by age fourteen, he was a piano teacher. Raised in modest circumstances in the Flores neighborhood, he worked with his father, a shoe cobbler, until age 16. He began his career in music in his teens as a pianist in Oscar Espósito's orquesta típica, one of numerous such groups that performed tango music at the time, and also performed in the Chamamé folk genre.
Castaña became famous as a bolero singer during the 1970s, performing on Argentine television programs such as Tiempo Final and Un Cortado, among others. He authored numerous hits, including Me gusta, me gusta ("I like it, I like it"), Lo llaman el matador ("He's Nicknamed the Killer") and Hay que encontrar al ladrón ("The Thief Must be Found"), and his signature bolero: Para vivir un gran amor ("To Live a Great Love"). His lyrics became known for their extemporaneous and often autobiographical style, which he described as "writing as I would speak."
He is much better known, however, for his contributions to tango music: some of his compositions are considered classics by his fans, including Qué tango hay que cantar ("What Tango Must One Sing", with Rubén Juárez), Garganta con Arena ("Throat full of sand", an homage to Roberto Goyeneche, his mentor), "Tita de Buenos Aires", (Tita de Buenos Aires, dedicated to Tita Merello), A dónde vas? Quedate en Buenos Aires ("Where are you going? Stay in Buenos Aires"), and his ode to the Flores neighborhood: Café la Humedad. Castaña composed around 2,500 songs, of which 500 have been recorded. He produced 44 records, of which fifteen became gold records (over 20,000 sold, per CAPIF ratings), and ten, platinum (over 40,000 sold).
Castaña also starred in thirteen Argentine films, including two for which he wrote the score, El mundo que inventamos ("The World We Created", 1973) and Los hijos de López ("López's Sons", 1980); numerous picaresque comedies; and in Felicidades (2000). A confirmed bachelor for much of his life, his numerous relationships included one with Susana Giménez during the 1970s (Giménez would later become a top-rated talk show hostess in Argentina). He ultimately married Andrea Sblano, the 27-year-old daughter of a close friend, in 2006; among his other close friends was former President Carlos Menem. His television appearances in later years included a cameo on the popular Argentine telenovela, Los Roldán. He earned a Konex Award in 2005 for his work as songwriter, and his tango album released that year, Espalda con espalda ("Shoulder to Shoulder") earned a Gardel Prize.He was invited to perform "with all the other monsters" in Leopoldo Federico's series, Selección Nacional de Tango Argentino (an event he considered "the happiest day of my life"), and was inducted into the National Academy of Tango in 2007.
Castaña's career declined during the 1990s, but rebounded after 2003, and he became active in Argentina's stage and festival circuit. He headlined numerous Corrientes Avenue shows, and was a regular performer in the National Peña Festival, in Villa María. A heavy smoker, he developed emphysema in later years, and was twice hospitalized as he prepared to appear in shows. He and his wife opened a children's clothing boutique, Las Castañitas.[8] Their marriage suffered, however, and they separated in 2011. He was again hospitalized following the separation, and made a speedy recovery.
After two weeks hospitalized, Cacho Castaña died on October 15, 2019.
Garganta Con Arena
Cacho Castaña Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
El día no amanece
Polaco Goyeneche
Cantame un tango más
Ya ves
La noche se hace larga
Tu vida tiene un marca
Cantar, siempre cantar
Tu voz
Que al tango lo emociona
Diciendo el punto y coma
Que nadie le cantó
Tu voz
De duendes y fantasmas
Respira con el asma
De un viejo bandoneón
Canta
Garganta con arena
Tu voz tiene la pena
Que Malena no cantó
Canta,
Que Juárez te condena
Al lastimar tu pena
Con su blanco bandoneón
Canta
La gente está aplaudiendo
Y aunque te estés muriendo
No conocen tu dolor
Canta
Que Troilo desde el cielo
Debajo de tu almohada
Un verso te dejó
Cantor
De un tango algo insolente
Hiciste que a la gente
Le duela tu dolor
Cantor
De un tango equilibrista
Más que cantor artista
Con vicios de cantor
Ya ves
A mí y a Buenos Aires
Nos falta siempre el aire
Cuando no esta tu voz
A vos
Que tanto me enseñaste
El día que cantaste
Conmigo una canción
The lyrics of the song “Garganta con Arena” by Cacho Castaña tell the story of a passionate tango singer who is praised by the audience for his emotional and intense voice. The song is a tribute to the singing style of Polaco Goyeneche, a renowned tango singer from Buenos Aires. The singer encourages Goyeneche to sing more tangos with his characteristic voice that is full of duendes (spirits) and fantasmas (ghosts). The lyrics mention the physical toll that singing takes on Goyeneche, as he struggles with his asthma and the burden of his sorrows.
The song also describes the audience's reaction to Goyeneche's singing. They are deeply moved by the way he conveys his emotions through his singing, but they do not really understand the pain and the struggles that he is expressing. The lyrics make reference to the famous tango “Malena,” which is about a woman who suffers for the love of a man, and suggest that Goyeneche's voice contains even more sadness than the lyrics of that song. The song concludes by recognizing Goyeneche as an artist who has inspired others to sing and to express their own pain through tango music.
Line by Line Meaning
Ya ves
You see
El día no amanece
The day does not dawn
Polaco Goyeneche
Polaco Goyeneche (a famous Argentine tango singer)
Cantame un tango más
Sing one more tango for me
La noche se hace larga
The night becomes long
Tu vida tiene un marca
Your life has a mark
Cantar, siempre cantar
Sing, always sing
Tu voz
Your voice
Que al tango lo emociona
That emotionally moves the tango
Diciendo el punto y coma
Saying the semicolon
Que nadie le cantó
That no one sang to him
De duendes y fantasmas
Of goblins and ghosts
Respira con el asma
Breathes with asthma
De un viejo bandoneón
Of an old bandoneón (an Argentine instrument)
Canta
Sing
Garganta con arena
Throat full of sand
Tu voz tiene la pena
Your voice has the pain
Que Malena no cantó
That Malena did not sing
Que Juárez te condena
That Juárez condemns you
Al lastimar tu pena
By hurting your pain
Con su blanco bandoneón
With his white bandoneón
La gente está aplaudiendo
People are applauding
Y aunque te estés muriendo
And even if you are dying
No conocen tu dolor
They don't know your pain
Que Troilo desde el cielo
That Troilo from heaven
Debajo de tu almohada
Under your pillow
Un verso te dejó
Left you a verse
Cantor
Singer
De un tango algo insolente
Of a somewhat insolent tango
Hiciste que a la gente
You made people
Le duela tu dolor
Feel your pain
De un tango equilibrista
Of a tango acrobat
Más que cantor artista
More than a singer artist
Con vicios de cantor
With singer's vices
A mí y a Buenos Aires
To me and to Buenos Aires
Nos falta siempre el aire
We always lack air
Cuando no está tu voz
When your voice is not there
A vos
To you
Que tanto me enseñaste
That taught me so much
El día que cantaste
The day you sang
Conmigo una canción
A song with me
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: HUMBERTO VICENTE CASTAGNA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind