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®
La Mora
Rubén Blades Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Acaba de llega' que hace rato estoy esperando
¡avanza muje'!
Allá en la Siria, hay una mora
Que tiene los ojos tan lindos
Lucero encanta'o
¡AY MORA!
Allá en la Siria, hay una mora
Que tiene los ojos tan lindos
Lucero encanta'o
¡AY MORA!
Acábame de quere'
No me martirices mai
Que mi corazón está que se devora
Por quererte tanto mora
Por quererte tanto mora ¡ay morita!
Allá en la Siria, allá-llá, allá-llá vive la mora
¡ay que mira pero ven, ven, ven mi corazón te lo implora!
Cuando volverá
Y es que ese amor gitano a mi me devora
Cuando volverá
¡ue! acaba de llegar, acaba de llegar, oye mora
Cuando volverá
Los buenos tiempos
Cuando volverá
Con esa mora
Cuando volverá
Y los romances
Cuando volverá
Allá en la loma
Cuando volverá
En un castillo en la Siria allá está la mora
Cuando volverá
Móntate en tu alfombra esa que es voladora
Cuando volverá
Ay mora, mora, mora, mora, mora, mora, amor pa la mora
Cuando volverá
Que yo tengo una cosita aquí y es para ti
Cuando volverá
La noche buena
Cuando volverá
Esa estrellita
Cuando volverá
Esa gitana, eh
Cuando volverá
Que es tan bonita
Cuando volverá
Es que en la Siria caballero, por la Siria, por allá está la mora
Cuando volverá
Yo me acuerdo en la placita donde tomamos ron con soda
Cuando volverá
Donde le pegue al faquir que te gritaba bembona
Cuando volverá
Ay! acaba de llegar, llega ya mora.
Cuando volverá
Óyeme mora
Cuando volverá
Acaba de llegar
Cuando volverá
Súbete a un camello
Cuando volverá
Y ven pa acá
Que dios bendiga la esquina izquierda
Del tacón derecho en la chancleta del cura
Que bendijo tu salero mujer
Iubule!
Ole! y sigue oliendo
Que me muero esperando tu querer
Allá en la Siria señores allá está la mora
Vive en un castillo que arriba una loma
Cuando volverá
Ven acaba de llegar, acaba de llegar oye mora
Cuando volverá
Ven, ven, ven, ven que mi corazón de te lo implora
Cuando volverá
Vuelve morita
Cuando volverá
Por la manaña
Cuando volverá
Para cantarte
Cuando volverá
En tu ventana
Cuando volverá
Ven, morita ven pa acá. ven mora, ven pa acá, ven, mora ven
Cuando volverá
Que yo tengo una cosita aquí pa ti, pa ti
Cuando volverá
Aaa caminar conmigo bajo los lindos rosales
Cuando volverá
A decirme que me quieres como tu solita sabes
Cuando volverá
Los tiempos buenos
Cuando volverá
Tiempos de amor
Cuando volverá
Noches de playa
Cuando volverá
Días de sol
Cuando volverá
Que es lo que pasa que nos estamos alejando tanto
Cuando volverá
Será que viene en camello o caminando
Cuando volverá
Ay acaba de llegar, acaba de llegar oye mora
Cuando volverá
Mi corazón, mira mama te lo implora
Cuando volverá
Mujer ingrata
Cuando volverá
Vente pa acá
Cuando volverá
A la bachata
Cuando volverá
Vamos a rumbear
Dime cuando cuando cuando
Cuando volverá
Que hace rato morita que estoy esperando
Cuando volverá
Móntate en tu alfombra esa que es voladora
Cuando volverá
Ay acaba de llegar, mi corazón te lo implora
Cuando volverá
Oye mi ruego
Cuando volverá
Linda morita
Cuando volverá
De toas las flores, ay la mas bonita
Ole!
Que el cielo te colme de habichuelas
The lyrics to Rubén Blades's song La Mora tell the story of a man who is eagerly waiting for a woman known as La Mora, whom he describes as having beautiful eyes like the enchanting stars. The lyrics indicate that he is deeply in love with her, as he implores her to love him and not torture him with her absence. There are references to Syria throughout the song, suggesting that the woman may be from that country, and the lyrics also include mentions of camels, gypsies, and magic carpets.
The song is primarily in Spanish and is infused with Afro-Caribbean rhythms with a touch of Middle Eastern influences, reflecting the diversity of cultures present in the Americas, particularly in Latin America. The song's mix of different genres and cultural references highlights the blending of cultures that has occurred throughout the region's history.
The repetition of the phrase "Cuando volverá" ("When will she return?") throughout the song creates a sense of anticipation and longing, emphasizing the man's desire for La Mora to come back to him. Ultimately, the song is a tribute to the power of love and the enduring human desire for connection and companionship.
Line by Line Meaning
Óyeme mora!
Listen to me, my dear!
Acaba de llega' que hace rato estoy esperando
You have just arrived; I have been waiting for you for a while.
¡avanza muje'!
Come forward, woman!
Allá en la Siria, hay una mora
There is a woman living in Syria.
Que tiene los ojos tan lindos
She has such beautiful eyes.
Lucero encanta'o
Her eyes are like stars that enchant me.
¡AY MORA!
Oh, my dear!
Acábame de quere'
Love me completely.
No me martirices mai
Do not torture me, my dear.
Que mi corazón está que se devora
My heart is consuming itself.
Por quererte tanto mora
I love you so much, my dear.
¡ay morita!
Oh, my little dear!
Allá en la Siria, allá-llá, allá-llá vive la mora
The woman lives there, in Syria.
¡ay que mira pero ven, ven, ven mi corazón te lo implora!
Oh, look at me, come, come, come; my heart implores you!
Cuando volverá
When will she return?
Y es que ese amor gitano a mi me devora
This gypsy love is consuming me.
¡ue! acaba de llegar, acaba de llegar, oye mora
Hey, she just arrived, just arrived, listen, my dear.
Los buenos tiempos
The good times.
Con esa mora
With that woman.
Y los romances
And romances.
En un castillo en la Siria allá está la mora
The woman is in a castle in Syria.
Móntate en tu alfombra esa que es voladora
Ride on your flying carpet.
Ay mora, mora, mora, mora, mora, mora, amor pa la mora
Oh, my dear, love for the woman.
Que yo tengo una cosita aquí y es para ti
I have something here for you.
La noche buena
Christmas Eve.
Esa estrellita
That little star.
Esa gitana, eh
That gypsy woman.
Que es tan bonita
Who is so beautiful.
Es que en la Siria caballero, por la Siria, por allá está la mora
The woman is in Syria, sir, over there.
Yo me acuerdo en la placita donde tomamos ron con soda
I remember the little square where we drank rum and soda.
Donde le pegue al faquir que te gritaba bembona
Where I hit the fakir who insulted you.
Ay! acaba de llegar, llega ya mora.
Oh, she just arrived, come on, my dear.
Súbete a un camello
Get on a camel.
Y ven pa acá
And come here!
Que dios bendiga la esquina izquierda
God bless the left corner.
Del tacón derecho en la chancleta del cura
Of the right heel in the priest's sandal.
Que bendijo tu salero mujer
That blessed your charm, woman.
Iubule!
A shout of joy.
Ole! y sigue oliendo
Ole! And keeps smelling.
Que me muero esperando tu querer
I am dying waiting for your love.
Vive en un castillo que arriba una loma
She lives in a castle on top of a hill.
Ven, ven, ven, ven que mi corazón de te lo implora
Come, come, come; my heart implores you.
Vuelve morita
Come back, my little dear.
Por la manaña
In the morning.
Para cantarte
To sing to you.
En tu ventana
In your window.
Ven, morita ven pa acá, ven, mora ven
Come, my little dear, come here, come, my dear, come.
Que yo tengo una cosita aquí pa ti, pa ti
I have something here for you, for you.
Aaa caminar conmigo bajo los lindos rosales
Come walk with me under the beautiful roses.
A decirme que me quieres como tu solita sabes
Tell me that you love me as only you know how.
Los tiempos buenos
The good times.
Tiempos de amor
Times of love.
Noches de playa
Nights at the beach.
Días de sol
Days of sun.
Que es lo que pasa que nos estamos alejando tanto
What is happening that we are getting so far apart?
Será que viene en camello o caminando
Is she coming on a camel or on foot?
Ay acaba de llegar, acaba de llegar oye mora
Oh, she just arrived, just arrived, listen, my dear.
Mi corazón, mira mama te lo implora
My heart, look, mom, implores you.
Mujer ingrata
Ungrateful woman.
Vente pa acá
Come here.
A la bachata
To the bachata (a musical genre).
Vamos a rumbear
Let's party.
Dime cuando cuando cuando
Tell me when.
Que hace rato morita que estoy esperando
I have been waiting for you for a while, my little dear.
Ay acaba de llegar, mi corazón te lo implora
Oh, you just arrived; my heart implores you.
Oye mi ruego
Listen to my plea.
Linda morita
Beautiful little dear.
De toas las flores, ay la mas bonita
Of all the flowers, oh, the most beautiful.
Que el cielo te colme de habichuelas
May the sky bless you with beans.
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
Written by: ELISEO GRENET
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind