It's been quite a journey since Orishas released their first album 'A Lo Cubano' in Spain in May 1999. Lauded by the press throughout Europe ever since it came out, the group launched into a marathon tour that started in summer 1999. From clubs to festivals, the European tour stretched out to just over two years with evening performances of their music catalogue at the Olympia, the Ancienne Belgique and the Royal Festival Hall in England. They were to play at the most prestigious festivals in Europe like the Lowlands (Holland), where they topped the bill along with groups like Deftones and Cypress Hill, and the Roskilde (Denmark), where they brewed up a storm alongside groups as disparate as Tool and Wyclef Jean. Orishas also performed in the year 2000 at festivals like the Paleo Nyon Festival, the La Rochelle Francofolies and Pop Kom.
The group gradually acquired international standing, and after conquering Europe they went on to win over the United States in November 2000, with the American press unanimous in its acclaim: articles and reviews in Time, Rolling Stone, The Source, Vibe ,... Little by little they became an essential live band, capable of sharing the stage with artists as diverse as Compay Segundo, Orquestra Aragon, Iggy Pop, Cypress Hill, Macy Gray and Marcus Miller. Orishas paid their dues on the road and left Europe to take part in various jazz festivals in Canada and South Africa, dropping in on Brazil and Mexico. Orishas left no doubt that their musical fusion, unique in its genre, enables them to break the frontiers of style and to be equally at home in front of a latino, hip hop, pop or rock audience.
December saw their triumphal return to Cuba, where they had occupied the top slots of the radio charts for months and where they gave two concerts that brought together tens of thousands of young Cubans. They had come full circle, because after touring the world Orishas' dream finally came true: playing in front of their families and the people of Cuba.
Collaborations came thick and fast, with Roldan Gonzalez appearing on various French rap albums (Kerry James) or international rap albums (Dari, Da Weasel / Portugal).
After more than 200 concerts worldwide, the group decided to get back to song writing in August 2001. It was only to be expected that they would start working together again with the French producer and composer Niko Noki, (Passi, Bisso Na Bisso), who along with Roldan Gonzalez had been responsible for the tracks on the first album. He in turn engaged the services of a young composer of the future, DJ Mig-One, who had two albums with his group Starflam under his belt. They strung several studio sessions together between Belgium and Paris to knock up no fewer than twenty tracks. In November 2001 the group was ready at last to go back into the studio proper to record the successor to A Lo Cubano. They opted for the EMI studio in Paris, where the cream of Cuban musicians gathered at the group's behest to immortalise the songs of the Emigrante album. The group had matured and learned a great deal from touring the world, the subjects are more profound and given a more international treatment. Having had their eyes opened by the big world has had a visible impact on their writing. As on the first album, Miko Niko is in charge of musical production and most of the tracks, DJ Mig One has penned 3 compositions that underpin the plurality of their influences. The album was mixed at the Polygone studio in Toulouse under the auspices of Mario Rodriguez (Notorious B.I.G., Public Enemy, Mobb Deep, Fonky Family, 113...). Once again the alchemy is perfect. The new album sees the return of two very talented artists and long-standing friends of the group: Passi on La Vida Passa and Yuri Buenaventura on 300 Kg de Rap.
The new album has a pan-European release on April 22, 2002 and is being promoted in a tour that takes in more than ten countries before being presented on the stages of the major European festivals this summer.
La Calle
Orishas Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Invierno esta vez se te adelanto
La mala suerte te persigue hasta durmiendo
El sombrero se te perdió
Las golondrinas no miran al mar fatal
En lágrimas donde fuiste a parar
De proble en proble, de quita y pone,
Cuando se calienta aquí
Llega el problema que me inquieta
Ya no hay comida ya no
La policia llego, la ropa sucia quedo,
En este sistema que nos pone así vez
Mucha democracia y esto para que sirve
Si de papeles carezco, si por ser negro apesto
En esta sociedad corrupta, injusta,
Absurda, escucha, di, dilo,
Que te mando yo pli-plo, o no todos mis negros,
O no todos mis negros yo
Te cogió la calle compay
Saca el sombrero
Te cogió la calle compay
Que vas a hacer
Y dice, cuantos mueren de frío
Son desgraciados,
Pasan a tu lado y que vas a hacer
Cuantos son falsos testigos de crímenes,
Suicidios terribles
Castigos y no puede ser
Como se vive en ciudad
Cuéntame el estrés, como te fue esta vez
Como se vive en soledad, te miran,
Te tachan, rechazan y no pasa na´
[Estribillo]
Quiero ser yo, dime cuanto valgo
Quiero ser yo, dime a donde voy
Las rachas malas y los años
No tienen pa´ cuando parar
Los días son dobles y el tiempo
Se para en el mismo lugar
Las golondrinas no miran al mar fatal
En lágrimas donde fuiste a parar
Solo queda esperar, da igual un día mas
Típico de que me digan testigo
Típico de la miseria en que vivo
Típico de lo que pasa testigo
Típico de lo jodido que he sido
[Estribillo]
Solo queda esperar, da igual un día más
La vida a veces ´mano,
tiene cosa que me asombran,
Unos pasan desmadres, otros mueren a la sombra,
De que realidad nos queremos quejar
Tu en esta pincha calle,
Mr Bond y sus desmadres
Para el pobre no hay funerales
Solo queda esperar
By Berman (buenos aires, Argentina)
The lyrics of Orishas' song "La Calle" offer a poignant depiction of life on the streets, full of struggle and hardship. The first verse talks about the cold winter rain and bad luck that follows even in sleep. The mention of a lost hat and the ironic sight of swallows not looking towards the sea add to the sense of despair. The following section speaks of a life filled with problems, of having to hide one's body in two boxes and of encountering new problems every time one tries to warm up. The reference to the police arriving and dirty laundry being left behind points to the oppressive nature of society. Democracy is called out as a sham, as it fails to help those without papers or those who are discriminated against for being black. The chorus repeats a call to be recognized as an individual and to find one's way in life, despite the obstacles.
The second verse references the many people who die from cold and the falsely accused who face terrible punishments. The stress and loneliness of city life are described, where one is judged and rejected for no reason. The bridge highlights the typical stigma of being from poverty and of being a witness to injustice. The song's conclusion is a resigned acceptance, of waiting for another day, because the struggle never ends.
Overall, "La Calle" is a heart-wrenching song that highlights the struggles of those living on the streets and the oppressed. It offers a powerful message of resilience and the desire to be seen as a human being, despite societal barriers.
Line by Line Meaning
Afuera llueve tápate porque el invierno
It's raining outside, cover yourself because winter has arrived
Invierno esta vez se te adelanto
Winter arrived earlier this time
La mala suerte te persigue hasta durmiendo
Bad luck follows you even in your sleep
El sombrero se te perdió
You lost your hat
Las golondrinas no miran al mar fatal
The swallows don't look at the fatal sea
En lágrimas donde fuiste a parar
In tears, where did you end up?
De proble en proble, de quita y pone,
From problem to problem, from taking and putting
De dos cajones que tapar mi cuerpo así
With two boxes covering my body like this
Cuando se calienta aquí
When it gets warm here
Llega el problema que me inquieta
The problem that worries me arrives
Ya no hay comida ya no
There's no more food
La policia llego, la ropa sucia quedo,
The police came, the dirty laundry was left
En este sistema que nos pone así vez
In this system that puts us like this
Mucha democracia y esto para que sirve
Lots of democracy, and what is it for?
Si de papeles carezco, si por ser negro apesto
If I lack papers, if I stink for being black
En esta sociedad corrupta, injusta,
In this corrupt, unfair society
Absurda, escucha, di, dilo,
Absurd, listen, say it, say it
Que te mando yo pli-plo, o no todos mis negros,
What do I tell you pli-plo, or not all of my black people
Te cogió la calle compay
The street caught you, friend
Saca el sombrero
Take your hat off
Que vas a hacer
What are you going to do?
Y dice, cuantos mueren de frío
And it says, how many die of cold
Son desgraciados,
They are unfortunate
Pasan a tu lado y que vas a hacer
They pass by your side and what are you going to do
Cuantos son falsos testigos de crímenes,
How many are false witnesses of crimes
Suicidios terribles
Terrible suicides
Castigos y no puede ser
Punishments and it can't be
Como se vive en ciudad
How it's lived in the city
Cuéntame el estrés, como te fue esta vez
Tell me the stress, how did it go this time
Como se vive en soledad, te miran,
How it's lived in solitude, they look at you
Te tachan, rechazan y no pasa na´
They mark you, reject you and nothing happens
Quiero ser yo, dime cuanto valgo
I want to be me, tell me how much I'm worth
Quiero ser yo, dime a donde voy
I want to be me, tell me where I'm going
Las rachas malas y los años
The bad streaks and the years
No tienen pa´ cuando parar
They don't have a stop time
Los días son dobles y el tiempo
The days are double and the time
Se para en el mismo lugar
Stops in the same place
Típico de que me digan testigo
Typical of them to call me a witness
Típico de la miseria en que vivo
Typical of the poverty I live in
Típico de lo que pasa testigo
Typical of what happens as a witness
Típico de lo jodido que he sido
Typical of how screwed up I've been
La vida a veces ´mano,
Life sometimes, bro
tiene cosa que me asombran,
Has things that surprise me
Unos pasan desmadres, otros mueren a la sombra,
Some go crazy, others die in the shadows
De que realidad nos queremos quejar
What reality do we want to complain about?
Tu en esta pincha calle,
You in this damn street
Mr Bond y sus desmadres
Mr Bond and his craziness
Para el pobre no hay funerales
There are no funerals for the poor
Solo queda esperar
All that's left is to wait
da igual un día mas
One more day doesn't matter
Estribillo
Chorus
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: FREDDY MARTINEAU, HIRAM RIVERI MEDINA, MARC DAMBLE, ROLDAN GONZALEZ RIVERO, YOTUEL ROMERO MANZANARES
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind