Bemba Colora
Celia Cruz Lyrics

En la llanura habanera
In the plains of Havana

Entre madrugas y guines
Between early mornings and guava fruits

Como lindos coma guines
Like beautiful guava fruits

Canta la huerta habanera
The Havana orchard sings

Bemba colorá'
Red lips

Que buena está la bemba
Oh, how good those lips look

Le gusta mucho una bemba
He likes a lot of those lips

Córrela, córrela, córrela, córrela
Chase it, chase it, chase it, chase it

Colorá, bemba, colorá
Red, lips, red

Colorá, colorá, colora
Red, red, red

Bemba Corola'
Red lips

Bemba eh, colorá
Red lips, oh, red

Esa es colorá
That is red lips

Bemba colorá'
Red lips

Bemba colorá'
Red lips

Bemba colorá
Red lips

Colorá
Red

Hace unos años salí
Some years ago I left

De mi tierrita adorada
From my beloved homeland

Y todavía recuerdo
And I still remember

Sus calles y sus cañadas
Its streets and its canyons

Sus bohíos, yo adoraba
Its huts, I loved them

A las palmeras agarraba
I held onto the palm trees

Siempre, siempre iban techados
Always, always were covered

Con trozos de vieja yagua
With pieces of old palm fronds

Soy marinero con buen bahía
I am a sailor with a good bay

Colorá'
Red

Yo tengo cuatro palomas
I have four doves

En una cuenca de loma
In a hollow on a hill

A todas les pongo agua
I give them all water

Todas beben su buchito
They all drink their sip

Ninguna se pone brava
None of them get angry

Que buenas son mis palomas
How good my doves are

Que buenas son
How good they are

Ay, colorá, colorá
Oh, red, red

Colorá'
Red

Un pajarillo en su jaula
A little bird in his cage

Vuela y vuela sin cesar
Flies and flies nonstop

Y siempre buscando el mar
And always looking for the sea

Si vio por donde escapar
If he saw a way to escape

Pobrecito, ay, como sufre
Poor thing, oh, how he suffers

Buscando su libertad, y yo
Looking for his freedom, and I

Yo como el pájaro quiero
I, like the bird, want

Mi libertad recobrar
To regain my freedom

Colora'
Red

Ven, ven, ven, ven
Come, come, come, come

Colorá'
Red

Ven, ven, ven, ven
Come, come, come, come

Colorá'
Red

Ven, ven, ven, ven
Come, come, come, come

Colorá
Red, red

De que color
What color

Colorá'
Red

De que color
What color

Colorá'
Red

De que color
What color

Colorá'
Red

Enterraron por la tarde
They buried in the afternoon

Colorá'
Red

A la hija de Juan Simón,
Juan Simon's daughter,

Era Simón en el pueblo
Simon was the only gravedigger in town

El único enterrador,
The only one who buried

El mismo a su propia hija
Himself, his own daughter

Y tu verás
And you will see

Al cementerio la llevó
He took her to the cemetery

El mismo cavó la fosa
He dug the grave himself

Implorando una oración
Imploring for a prayer

Colorá, en una mano
Red one in one hand

En una mano la pala
A shovel in one hand

Y en la otra el azadón
And a hoe in the other

Y cuando le preguntaban
And when they asked him

De donde vienes Juan Simón
Where are you coming from, Juan Simon

Y dijo yo, yo soy enterrador
And he said, I am a gravedigger

Y vengo a
And I come to

Colorá'
Red

A Jaime Serrada le baja el sudor
Jaime Serrada is sweating

Colorá'
Red

Le llego los
It arrived at him

Colorá'
Red

Les llego los
It arrived at them

Colorá'
Red

Súbelo,
Raise it,

Colora'
Red

Súbelo Pedro, súbelo, súbelo
Raise it, Pedro, raise it, raise it

Colorá
Red

Colorá
Red

Colorá'
Red

Ay colora, ay colorao'
Oh, red, oh, red

Arriba
Up

Colorao'
Red

Colorá'
Red

Colorao'
Red

Colorao'
Red