Cacho Castaña (Humberto Vicente Castagna, Buenos Aires, Argentina, June 11… Read Full Bio ↴Cacho Castaña (Humberto Vicente Castagna, Buenos Aires, Argentina, June 11, 1942 – October 15, 2019), was an Argentine singer and actor.

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.

Soy Un Tango Así
Cacho Castaña Lyrics

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Mensajero de emociones
Traigo un beso en mis solapas desteñidas
De una novia que esta ausente
Porque no le di mi vida
Y parado en las esquinas me quedé

Soy un tango
Vengo del barrio del bacán y de la mina

Y del dramón de aquella pálida vecina
Que quizás nunca a su vida
Llegue el tren

Mensajero
De un Buenos Aires con bastón y con sombrero
De un obelisco compadrón y aventurero
Que siempre espera que le cuelguen
Un farol

Habitante silencioso
Polizonte de algún libro de poemas
Voy del brazo del alcohol y de la pena
Y algún fuelle me condena
Porque sabe más que yo

Soy un tango
Duermo en la cama que me prestan los poetas
Y a veces sueño con un director de orquesta
Que me acompaña en soledad
Y no me quiero despertar

Mensajero
De un Buenos Aires con bastón y con sombrero
De un obelisco compadrón y aventurero

Que siempre espera que le cuelguen
Un farol

Overall Meaning

In Cacho Castaña's song "Soy Un Tango Así," the singer introduces himself as a messenger of emotions, carrying a faded kiss from a girlfriend who left him because he did not give her his life. The singer bemoans his fate as he stands on street corners, reflecting on his origins in the "bacán" and "mina" neighborhoods, where he witnessed the drama of a pale neighbor who likely never got what she wanted out of life. The Buenos Aires he describes is nostalgic, with images of canes and hats, the obelisk and the adventurer: a city where he lives among poets, alcohol, pain, and the haunting sound of the bandoneón, the accordion-like instrument that is a hallmark of the tango.

The song's lyrics capture the essence of the tango, an Argentine dance that originated among the working-class neighborhoods of Buenos Aires in the late 19th century. The tango became a popular dance form in the early 20th century, reaching Europe and the United States in the 1910s and 1920s, where it became an instant hit. The tango was a reflection of the impoverished neighborhoods where it originated, where immigrants from across Europe lived and worked in difficult conditions. The music was rooted in the rhythms of African slaves who had been brought to South America, and it was infused with elements of European classical music, Italian opera, and Spanish folk music. Over time, the tango became a symbol of Argentine identity, and it remains a beloved cultural icon to this day.

Line by Line Meaning

Mensajero de emociones
I am a messenger of emotions

Traigo un beso en mis solapas desteñidas
I carry a kiss on my faded lapels

De una novia que esta ausente
From a girlfriend who is absent

Porque no le di mi vida
Because I didn't give her my life

Y parado en las esquinas me quedé
And I stayed standing on the corners

Soy un tango
I am a tango

Vengo del barrio del bacán y de la mina
I come from the neighborhood of the fancy and the poor

Y del dramón de aquella pálida vecina
And from the drama of that pale neighbor

Que quizás nunca a su vida
Who perhaps never had in her life

Llegue el tren
A train arrive

Mensajero
I am a messenger