… Read Full Bio ↴Bacilos was a latin music group based in Miami, Florida, United States.
The band was formed in 1995 by three students of the University of Miami and was named after the Spanish word for bacillus. Originally a quartet, the band drew influences from Cuban folk singer Silvio Rodríguez and Argentinian rock singer Fito Páez. The band eventually became a trio consisting of Colombian singer and guitarist Jorge Villamizar, bassist André Lopes and percussionist José Javier Freire before releasing an independent album Madera in 1999.
Bacilos signed with Warner Music in 2000. The selftitled album Bacilos was actually a re-edition of Madera and was nominated for two Latin Grammy awards and went gold in Colombia. The single Tabaco Y Chanel was widely played on Latin radio stations and the success of their major label debut earned them a slot as support artist on a world tour by Spanish artist Alejandro Sanz.
In 2002 Caraluna added to their reputation winning a Grammy for best Latin pop album and making the Billboard Latin album charts. The album also won best album at the Latin Grammies and their song Mi Primer Millón a humorous account of trying to make it in the music industry, again went top 10 in Chile and made the Billboard and world Latin music charts in 2003a humorous account of trying to make it in the music industry, again went top 10 in Chile and made the Billboard and world Latin music charts in 2003 and won best tropical song. The single Caraluna went to #1 in Chile, top 10 in Argentina and charted in the world and Billboard Latin charts in late 2002 and early 2003.
Sólo Un Segundo was the third single from the album going top 10 in Argentina and top 20 in Chile. Bacilos also featured on a duet with Celso Piña which made the Chilean Top 20 in May 2004.
Sin Vergüenza was released in late 2004. The first single Pasos de Gigante went to number 1 in Argentina, #2 in Chile and made top 10 on Billboard's Latin singles charts in late 2004. It has been nominated for a Grammy award for best Latin pop album.
The band announced that they would break up and completed their final tour in the United States on December 15, 2006, when they played at La Covacha, in Miami. Their final live show was on February 21, 2007, at the Festival Internacional de la Canción de Viña del Mar, in Chile.
In October 2017, the band decided for a reunion and released their latest hit, "Por Hacerme el Bueno". In August 2018, the band released their fourth studio album "¿Donde Nos Quedamos?".
On Valentine's day 2020 the band released and EP Cupido y compañía.
The band continues to tour all over north America. Obviously postponed because of the big C.
Cuestión de madera
Bacilos Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
"¿Qué desea usted señor?"
¿Qué voy a querer?, Pensé
Una mesa cerca del balcón
"Solo se puede pasar
Si va usted a comer"
Pobre camarero en realidad
Su reflejo ve mi piel
Es la vieja historia de este mundo colonial
"Siga usted, patrón
¿Qué le sirvo hoy?"
Y así van tantos años
Y así tanta mediocridad
Haciendo nuestras vidas
Al modelo confundido
De una Europa que aquí nunca pudo ser
(Es cuestión de madera, oh, oh)
La fibra del corazón
De las ganas en los huesos por seguir
(Es cuestión de madera, oh, oh, oh, oh)
Siga usted, patrón
¿Qué le sirvo hoy?
No puedo ni quiero convencer
Al camarero de que diablos soy
Me parezco tanto a él
Nunca va a entender, nunca va a comprender
Que su sangre es del color
De un nuevo amanecer
Y así van tantos años
Y así tanta mediocridad
Haciendo nuestras vidas
Al modelo confundido
De una Europa que aquí nunca pudo ser
(Es cuestión de madera, oh, oh)
No se puede negociar
Más que estilo es solo ser lo que se es
(Es cuestión de madera, oh, oh, oh, oh)
Siga usted, patrón
¿Qué le sirvo hoy?
(Es cuestión de madera, oh, oh)
La fibra del corazón
De las ganas en los huesos por seguir
(Es cuestión de madera, oh, oh, oh, oh)
Siga usted, patrón
¿Qué le sirvo hoy?
Y así van tantos años
Y así tanta mediocridad
Haciendo nuestras vidas
Al modelo confundido
De una Europa que aquí nunca pudo ser
(Es cuestión de madera, oh, oh)
La fibra del corazón
De las ganas en los huesos por seguir
(Es cuestión de madera, oh, oh, oh, oh)
Siga usted, patrón
¿Qué le sirvo hoy?
(Es cuestión de madera, oh, oh)
No se puede negociar
Más que estilo es solo ser lo que se es
(Es cuestión de madera, oh, oh, oh, oh)
Siga usted, patrón
¿Qué le sirvo hoy?
The lyrics of "Cuestión de madera" by Bacilos are about the struggle to maintain one's identity and individuality in a society that values conformity and obedience to authority figures. The singer is sitting in a restaurant, waiting for a table, when he observes how the waiter defers to the wishes of the customers, echoing the historical power dynamics of colonialism. The singer reflects on how this pattern of submission and domination has persisted for generations, leading to a culture of mediocrity and confusion. He concludes that the key to breaking free from this cycle is to embrace the "fibra del corazón" or the strength of one's own heart, and to resist the pressure to conform.
The theme of identity and resistance in "Cuestión de madera" reflects the broader social and political context of Latin America in the late 1990s, when the song was first released. Many countries in the region were emerging from periods of dictatorship and struggling to define their national identities in the face of globalization and neoliberal policies. The song's lyrics also draw on the influence of various musical genres, such as rock and salsa, as well as the Afro-Caribbean rhythms of the band's native Colombia.
Line by Line Meaning
Después de un buen rato de esperar
After waiting for a long time
Que desea usted señor
What would you like, sir?
Que voy a querer pensé
I thought about what I wanted to order
Una mesa cerca del balcón
A table near the balcony
Solo se puede pasar
You can only go through
Si va you'd a comer
If you're going to eat
Pobre camarero en realidad
Poor waiter in reality
Su reflejo ve mi piel
He sees his reflection on my skin
Y pierdo valor
And I lose value
Es la vieja historia de este mundo colonial:
It's the old story of this colonial world:
Siga you'd patrón que le sirvo hoy
Follow your boss and serve him today
Y así van tantos años
And so it goes for so many years
Y así tanta mediocridad
And so much mediocrity
Haciendo nuestras vidas al modelo confundido
Living our lives according to a confused model
De una Europa que aquí nunca pudo ser
Of a Europe that could never exist here
Es cuestión de madera oh oh
It's a matter of wood oh oh
La fibra del corazón
The fiber of the heart
De las ganas en los huesos por seguir
Of the eagerness in the bones to keep going
Siga you'd patrón que le sirvo hoy
Follow your boss and serve him today
No puedo ni quiero convencer
I can't and don't want to convince
Al camarero de que diablos soy
The waiter of who the hell I am
Me parezco tanto a el
I look so much like him
Nunca va a entender nunca va a comprender
He'll never understand, he'll never comprehend
Que su sangre es del color
That his blood is of the color
De un nuevo amanecer
Of a new dawn
No se puede negociar
You can't negotiate
Más que estilo es solo ser lo que se es
It's not just about style, it's only about being who you are
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Jorge Villamizar
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind