La cumbia triste
Gonzalo Martinez Lyrics
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En esa ciudad que no mire al mar
Una calle llena de melancolía
Me enseñó el sonido que no olvidaré
Pasando los años, me siento tan lejos
Y una Cumbia triste habla de mi hogar.
Cumbia, cumbia triste
Cumbia, cumbia triste
Dame el sonido de la mar.
Se oye una voz en la distancia
Resonarte bajo platillo y tambor
Esa calle llena de melancolía
Me enseñó el sonido que no olvidaré.
Que vengan los años, que poco me importa
Si esa cumbia triste moja el corazón
Cumbia, cumbia triste
Aire de ciudad
Cumbia, cumbia triste
Dame el sonido de la mar.
The lyrics of La Cumbia Triste by Gonzalo Martinez speak of the singer's nostalgic longing for his home city in Chile. The first verse reminiscences about a street in the city of Barrancas (now known as Pudahuel) that filled him up with melancholic feelings, making him remember the sound that he will never forget. The second verse talks about the voice that resonates from a distance, played underneath the beat of the cumbia. The songwriter talks about how he feels far away from home now, but the cumbia music brings him right back.
The chorus of the song repeats the words "Cumbia, cumbia triste, aire de ciudad" which can be translated into English as "Cumbia, sad cumbia, air of the city." The lyrics emphasize the bittersweet feelings of reminiscing about a place that is never coming back, making the haunting cumbia melody all the more poignant. The last part of the chorus "dame el sonido de la mar" literally translates to "give me the sound of the sea," implying the deep emotional ties that the singer associates with this cumbia music, and how it fills him with memories of homesickness.
Line by Line Meaning
Cuando Pudahuel se llamaba Barrancas
When the city of Pudahuel was named Barrancas
En esa ciudad que no mire al mar
In that city that doesn't face the sea
Una calle llena de melancolía
A street full of melancholy
Me enseñó el sonido que no olvidaré
It taught me a sound I won't forget
Pasando los años, me siento tan lejos
As time goes by, I feel so far away
Y una Cumbia triste habla de mi hogar.
And a sad Cumbia speaks of my home.
Cumbia, cumbia triste
Cumbia, sad cumbia
Aire de ciudad
City air
Dame el sonido de la mar.
Give me the sound of the sea.
Se oye una voz en la distancia
A voice is heard in the distance
Resonarte bajo platillo y tambor
Echoing under cymbals and drums
Esa calle llena de melancolía
That street full of melancholy
Me enseñó el sonido que no olvidaré.
It taught me a sound I won't forget.
Que vengan los años, que poco me importa
Let the years come, it matters little to me
Si esa cumbia triste moja el corazón
If that sad cumbia soaks the heart
Cumbia, cumbia triste
Cumbia, sad cumbia
Aire de ciudad
City air
Dame el sonido de la mar.
Give me the sound of the sea.
Contributed by William P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.