Blades's father is a percussionist-turned-detective and his mother was a singer and radio performer. His grandfather, Reuben Blades, was an English-speaking native of St. Lucia who came to work on the canal, as he tells in the song West Indian Man on the album Amor y Control ("That's where the Blades comes from.") (1992)
After obtaining degrees in political science and law at Panama's Universidad Nacional, Blades worked at the Bank of Panama as a lawyer. In 1974, Blades moved to the United States, staying temporarily with his exiled parents in Miami before moving to New York City. Blades began his musical career in New York writing songs while working in the mailroom at Fania Records, and soon was working with salseros Ray Barretto and Larry Harlow. Shortly thereafter Blades started collaborating with trombonist and band leader Willie Colón, and they recorded several albums together. Their album Siembra (1978) became the best-selling salsa record in history.
After 1980, Blades tried to terminate his contract with Fania, but he was contractually obliged to record several more albums. These are generally considered toss-offs and Blades himself told his fans to avoid them. When he was free of his contractual obligations, Blades signed with another label, Elektra, and assembled a top-notch band (known variously as Seis Del Solar or Son Del Solar) and recorded a number of albums with them.
In the early 1980s, Blades began his career in films as a composer of soundtracks.
In 1982, Blades got his first acting role in The Last Fight writing the title song as well as portraying a singer-turned-boxer vying for a championship against a fighter who was played by real life world champion boxer Salvador Sánchez.
In 1985, Blades gained widespread recognition as co-writer and star of the independent film Crossover Dreams as a New York salsa singer willing to do anything to break into the mainstream. This same year he earned a master's degree in international law from Harvard University. He was also the subject of Robert Mugge's documentary The Return of Ruben Blades, which debuted at that year's Denver Film Festival. During the 1990s, he acted in films, mounted his unsuccessful presidential bid, founding the party Movimiento Papa Egoró, and continued to make salsa records.
His many film appearances include The Milagro Beanfield War (1988), The Two Jakes (1990), Mo' Better Blues (1990), and Devil's Own (1997). In 1999, he played Mexican artist Diego Rivera in Tim Robbins' Cradle Will Rock.
In 1997, Blades headed the cast of singer/songwriter Paul Simon's first Broadway musical, The Capeman, based on a true story about a violent youth who becomes a poet in prison. In the 2003 film Once Upon a Time in Mexico, starring Johnny Depp, Antonio Banderas, and Willem Dafoe, he played the role of a retired FBI agent.
Blades' 1999 album Tiempos which he made with the 12-piece Costa Rican band Editus, represented a break from his salsa past and a rejection of commercial trends in Latin music.
Some might say that "his biggest mistake was releasing an English-language album in 1988 in the wake of his 1987 Grammy for Escenas" [sic] but in fact, he tends to avoid commercial choices. After winning his first Grammy for Escenas in 1986 he recorded the album Agua de Luna based on the short stories of Gabriel Garcia Marquez in 1987. The next year he released the English language collaboration with rock artists Sting, Elvis Costello, and Lou Reed the same year as Antecedente, another Grammy winner. In 2003 he followed the World Music Grammy winner Mundo with a web site free download project. As he said in 2005 when receiving the ASCAP Founders Award about his non-commercial choices, "That's the way I think."
In 2004 he put his artistic careers on hold when he began serving as Minister of Tourism of Panama.
Source: Wikipedia®
20 De Diciembre
Rubén Blades Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Que prendió hasta el zinc, Santa Claus trajo en navidad
Bombas para avenida a, por estar cerca del cuartel
Se quema el barrio y sus discos de Ismael
Entre la sombra, un general rinde el machete, sin pelear
Ahora y siempre, recordemos
Ahora y siempre, compañeros
La confusión era infernal
Llovían bengalas, lanzadas desde el mar
Cuántos murieron? No lo sé
Niño Jesús, dígalo usted
De eso se prefiere no hablar
Un trauma nacional aún sin sanar
Nunca se podrá resolver sin
Que enfrentemos al ayer
Ahora y siempre, recordemos
Ahora y siempre, compañeros
The lyrics of Rubén Blades's song 20 De Diciembre depict the devastating events that occurred on December 20, 1989, during the United States invasion of Panama. The first verse describes the intense fire that engulfed the Chorrillo neighborhood, comparing it to the destruction of Berlin during World War II. The reference to Santa Claus bringing bombs instead of presents underlines the harsh reality of the invasion. The inclusion of the line "Se quema el barrio y sus discos de Ismael" adds a personal touch, as it refers to a popular nightclub owned by salsa legend Ismael Rivera that was destroyed during the bombing.
The second verse continues with the chaos of the invasion, with confusion and fireworks raining down. The singer acknowledges the loss of life, questioning how many actually died and appealing to the religious figure of the Niño Jesús for answers. The final lines suggest that the trauma of the invasion still lingers, and that the wounds can only be healed by facing the past and coming to terms with it.
Overall, the lyrics of 20 De Diciembre serve as a reminder of the human cost of war and the importance of acknowledging and remembering the traumatic events of the past.
Line by Line Meaning
Chorrillo ardió, como Berlín, un fuego intenso
The Chorrillo neighborhood burned down like Berlin, in a fierce fire
Que prendió hasta el zinc, Santa Claus trajo en navidad
The fire even burned down the zinc roofs, as Santa Claus brought bombs as gifts on Christmas Day
Bombas para avenida a, por estar cerca del cuartel
Bombs were dropped on the avenue, as it was close to the military barracks
Se quema el barrio y sus discos de Ismael
The neighborhood and even Ismael's music discs burned down
Entre la sombra, un general rinde el machete, sin pelear
In the shadows, a general surrenders his machete without fighting
Ahora y siempre, recordemos
Now and always, let's remember
Ahora y siempre, compañeros
Now and always, comrades
La confusión era infernal
The confusion was overwhelming
Llovían bengalas, lanzadas desde el mar
Flares rained down, launched from the sea
Cuántos murieron? No lo sé
How many died? I don't know
Niño Jesús, dígalo usted
Baby Jesus, tell us
De eso se prefiere no hablar
We prefer not to talk about that
Un trauma nacional aún sin sanar
A national trauma still not healed
Nunca se podrá resolver sin
It will never be resolved without
Que enfrentemos al ayer
Confronting the past
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: RUBEN BLADES
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@AlexArcia-ym9yv
Para está fecha murió mi profesor de música y inglés vivía en el chorrillo gran ser humano y también varias compañeros del colegio 😢😢😢 prohibido olvidar paz a sus almas 😢😢😢 gracias 🇵🇦 profesor por en señar las nota musicales
@ernestomaynard
Prohibido olvidar 34 años después seguimos llorando nuestros mártires, seguimos sintiendo dolor por esa invasión cruel y sanguinaria, tenía 11 años en aquel entonces y simplemente no puedo borrar de mi mente ese trauma, mis hermanos panameños asesinados, mi país destruido, el miedo, el desprecio de los soldados gringos, jamás se va a borrar de mi mente el 20 de diciembre de 1989.
@eliasguilaspes5826
En honor a nuestro caídos
@juliocesargonzalezserna1714
Como siempre maestro blades que cancion
@marioalbertourrioladuarte9326
Paz a su Alma a los Martires.
@Allxtw
Prohibido Olvidar
@aurisquintero7013
2021 prohibido olvidar.
@KALEISAB30
Todavía duele. 20-12-2023
@danielantoniomitrealba5525
Orden en vida real broo tanda saludos desde Colón nuevo arcoíris 🌈 puerto escondido
@AntonioMartinez-ih4ok
En una hora ya sobrepasaron a Noriega