Atahualpa Yupanqui (22 January 1908 - 23 May 1992) was an Argentine singer,… Read Full Bio ↴Atahualpa Yupanqui (22 January 1908 - 23 May 1992) was an Argentine singer, songwriter, guitarist, and writer.

Yupanqui was born Héctor Roberto Chavero Haram in Pergamino (Buenos Aires Province), in the Argentine pampas, about 200 kilometers away from Buenos Aires. His family moved to Tucumán when he was ten. In a bow to two legendary Incan kings, he adopted the stage name Atahualpa Yupanqui, which became famous the world over.

In his early years, Yupanqui travelled extensively through the northwest of Argentina and the Altiplano studying the indigenous culture. He also became radicalized and joined the Communist Party of Argentina. In 1931, he took part in the failed uprising of the Kennedy brothers and was forced to seek refuge in Uruguay. He returned to Argentina in 1934.

In 1935, Yupanqui paid his first visit to Buenos Aires; his compositions were growing in popularity, and he was invited to perform on the radio. Shortly thereafter, he made the acquaintance of pianist Antonieta Paula Pepin Fitzpatrick, nicknamed "Nenette", who became his lifelong companion and musical collaborator under the pseudonym "Pablo Del Cerro".

Because of his Communist Party affiliation (which lasted until 1952), his work suffered from censorship during Juan Perón's presidency; he was detained and incarcerated several times. He left for Europe in 1949. Édith Piaf invited him to perform in Paris in June of that year. He subsequently toured extensively throughout Europe.

In 1952, Yupanqui returned to Buenos Aires. He broke with the Communist Party, which made it easier for him to book radio performances.

Recognition of Yupanqui's ethnographic work became widespread during the 1960s, and nueva canción artists such as Mercedes Sosa recorded his compositions and made him popular among the younger musicians, who referred to him as Don Ata.

Yupanqui alternated between houses in Buenos Aires and Cerro Colorado, Córdoba province. During 1963-1964, he toured Colombia, Japan, Morocco, Egypt, Israel, and Italy. In 1967, he toured Spain, and settled in Paris. He returned regularly to Argentina, but these visits became less frequent when the military dictatorship of Jorge Videla came to power in 1976.

Yupanqui died in Nimes, France in 1992 at the age of 84; he was buried in the Cerro Colorado Cementery.

Trabajo Quiero Trabajo
Atahualpa Yupanqui Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Cruzando los salitrales
Uno se muere de sed
Aquello es puro desierto
Y allí no hay nada que hacer
Trabajo, quiero trabajo
Porque esto no puede ser
Un día veré al desierto
Convertido en un vergel

El río es puro paisaje
Lejos sus aguas se van
Pero mis campos se queman
Sin acequias ni canal
Trabajo, quiero trabajo
Porque esto no puede ser
Un día veré a mi campo
Convertido en un vergel

Las entrañas de la tierra
Va el minero á revolver
Saca tesoros ajenos
Y muere de hambre después

Trabajo, quiero trabajo
Porque esto no puede ser
No quiero que nadie pase
Las penas que yo pasé

Despacito, paisanito
Despacito y tenga fe
Que en la noche del minero
Ya comienza á amanecer

Trabajo, quiero trabajo
Porque esto no puede ser

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Atahualpa Yupanqui's song Trabajo Quiero Trabajo speaks about the hardships and struggles of the people who are living in the desert areas in Argentina. The song reflects the idea that people need work, and that work is necessary for them to survive, and ultimately to transform the barren land into a fertile one. The song emphasizes that the workers and their labor power are the key elements that transform the world.

The opening lines of the song mention the challenge of crossing the Salinas Grandes, a barren desert region in northwest Argentina, and how the lack of water and resources make it difficult to survive. The singer expresses his desire for work because it is impossible to bear the harsh living conditions in the desert. He hopes to see the desert transformed into an orchard one day, which can only be achieved through hard work.

In the second stanza, Yupanqui speaks of the importance of water for agriculture, and the inequality in the distribution of resources. He talks about how the river flows away from his fields, leaving them dry and burning in the sun. He yearns for his fields to be transformed into lush green lands that prosper and flourish, but this can only happen if he finds work to build the canals for water distribution.

The third stanza of the song portrays the struggles of the miners who are forced to work in the mines in search of treasures. However, they still die of hunger and poverty, reflecting the harsh realities of the capitalist exploitation of workers. This stanza also shows the solidarity of the singer towards his fellow workers and his desire for a better future for all workers.

Line by Line Meaning

Cruzando los salitrales
While crossing the saltpeter fields

Uno se muere de sed
One dies of thirst

Aquello es puro desierto
That is pure desert

Y allí no hay nada que hacer
And there is nothing to do there

Trabajo, quiero trabajo
Work, I want work

Porque esto no puede ser
Because this cannot be

Un día veré al desierto
One day I will see the desert

Convertido en un vergel
Converted into a garden

El río es puro paisaje
The river is pure scenery

Lejos sus aguas se van
Far away its waters go

Pero mis campos se queman
But my fields burn