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®
Juan Gonzales
Rubén Blades Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Esta basada en hechos ficticios
Cualquier parecido o semejanza con personas
Vivas o muertas es pura coincidencia
La patrulla a llegado al pueblo con la noticia
Que acabaron con Juan Gonzalez el guerrillero
Que por fin el león de sierra reposa muerto
En la cañada del muerto fue la emboscada cogieron
A la guerrilla hambrienta y cansada ayy
En un bohío monte adentro se escucha el llanto.
De una mujer con un niño que esta en pañales
Con ella lloran también los pobres del mundo
Los campos lloran la muerte de Juan Gonzalez
La Sierra viste de luto Mataron a Juan Gonzalez
Se han secado los riachuelos no florecen los rosales
La Sierra viste de luto Mataron a Juan Gonzalez.
The lyrics for Juan Gonzalez by Rubén Blades are a poignant commentary on the devastating impact of violence and war on both the individual and community level. The song begins with a disclaimer, noting that while the story is based on fictitious events, it bears resemblance to the very real experiences of countless people caught up in political conflict. The central event of the song is the death of Juan Gonzalez, a guerrilla fighter who is reported to have been killed by the patrolling soldiers. The description of the incident is brief and matter-of-fact, but the emotional weight of the tragedy is carried in the mournful chorus, "La Sierra viste de luto" ("The Sierra is dressed in mourning").
Line by Line Meaning
A historia que van ah escuchar a continuación
The story you are about to hear is fictional, any resemblance to living or dead persons is purely coincidental.
La patrulla a llegado al pueblo con la noticia
The patrol has arrived in town with news.
Que acabaron con Juan Gonzalez el guerrillero
They killed Juan Gonzalez, the guerrilla fighter.
Que por fin el león de sierra reposa muerto
The lion of the mountains finally rests dead.
La guerrilla murió con el grita un sargento
The sergeant declares that the guerrilla has died.
En la cañada del muerto fue la emboscada cogieron
They ambushed the hungry and tired guerrilla in the canyon of the dead.
A la guerrilla hambrienta y cansada ayy
The guerrilla was hungry and tired.
En un bohío monte adentro se escucha el llanto.
Inside a hut in the mountains, the sound of crying is heard.
De una mujer con un niño que esta en pañales
A woman with a baby in diapers is crying.
Con ella lloran también los pobres del mundo
The poor people of the world cry with her.
Los campos lloran la muerte de Juan Gonzalez
The fields mourn the death of Juan Gonzalez.
La Sierra viste de luto Mataron a Juan Gonzalez
The mountains are dressed in mourning, they killed Juan Gonzalez.
Se han secado los riachuelos no florecen los rosales
Streams have dried up, roses do not bloom.
La Sierra viste de luto Mataron a Juan Gonzalez.
The mountains are dressed in mourning, they killed Juan Gonzalez.
Contributed by James R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
El Melómano Del Swing
LETRA DE LA CANCIÓN:
La patrulla a llegado al pueblo con la noticia
Que acabaron con Juan Gonzalez el guerrillero
que por fin el león de sierra reposa muerto
La guerrilla murió con el grita un sargento
En la cañada del muerto fue la emboscada cogieron
a la guerrilla hambrienta y cansada ayy
En un bohío monte adentro se escucha el llanto.
De una mujer con un niño que esta en pañales
Con ella lloran también los pobres del mundo
Los campos lloran la muerte de Juan Gonzalez
La Sierra viste de luto Mataron a Juan Gonzalez
Se han secado los riachuelos no florecen los rosales
La Sierra viste de luto Mataron a Juan Gonzalez
RAFAEL LACERA
Un gran homenaje a Ernesto el che Guevara, solo el gran maestro Ruben Blades podía hacerlo, todo una obra de arte. gracias por publicarlo.
EULALIO HERRERA
Entre los mejores salseros de la historia , desde 1970 está haciendo éxitos y en la actualidad sigue ganando grammys.
Rafael Bonilla cuero
Con este tema nace la salsa de concepto gracias Rubén aquí mostraste tu estilo no solo de compositor si no la de un gran sonero
luv in hxll
La primera canción del primer álbum del maestro. Impresionante.
ℎ𝑢𝑔𝑜 𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑜𝑧𝑎
Ese poeta y el pete si que son una dinamita🎺👌🎶🎵que sabroso suena.esto 🎺🎺🎺🎺🎺
Odier Cogollo
Único en su estilo, protesto, todo un maestro
El Melómano Del Swing
LETRA DE LA CANCIÓN:
La patrulla a llegado al pueblo con la noticia
Que acabaron con Juan Gonzalez el guerrillero
que por fin el león de sierra reposa muerto
La guerrilla murió con el grita un sargento
En la cañada del muerto fue la emboscada cogieron
a la guerrilla hambrienta y cansada ayy
En un bohío monte adentro se escucha el llanto.
De una mujer con un niño que esta en pañales
Con ella lloran también los pobres del mundo
Los campos lloran la muerte de Juan Gonzalez
La Sierra viste de luto Mataron a Juan Gonzalez
Se han secado los riachuelos no florecen los rosales
La Sierra viste de luto Mataron a Juan Gonzalez
Pascual Palomino
ruben blade, el maestro, y es panameño el mejor.
Ivan Melendez
Siempre lo clasifican como boogaloo pero lo cierto es que este hombre le enseno a tocar salsa a todos los TRUANES de la fania Ivan desde P.R.
Iván Darío Vargas Rivera
Iván desde Colombia