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®
Me cambiaron las preguntas
Rubén Blades Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Con gente que sube y baja y se lleva bien,
Todos juntitos como buenos hermanos,
Siempre felices
Pero el tren de nuestra infancia se perdió por otra vía,
Parece que en su lugar, nos tocó un tranvía,
Donde al subir, compai, y hasta les cuento
Nos roban la cartera sin movernos del asiento
Cuando me aprendí todas las respuestas, me cambiaron todas las preguntas
Cuando me aprendí todas las respuestas, me cambiaron todas las preguntas
A este mundo complicado, no voy a entenderlo nunca
Mi abuelita me contaba lo bonito que es soñar,
Que jamás tú tienes, que despertar
Todo es posible si te portas bien, te llevan a Disney
Pero del sueño que ella hablaba desperté con pesadilla,
Donde el ratón de Disney, era una ardilla
Así es la vida y no me voy a quejar
Después que haya salud, que importa lo demás
Cuando me aprendí todas las respuestas, me cambiaron todas las preguntas
Cuando me aprendí todas las respuestas, me cambiaron todas las preguntas
A este mundo complicado, no voy a entenderlo nunca
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
Yo no se si tu, yo no se si que
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
Están construyendo un muro, contra el indocumentado
Y para la mano de obra (dilo Rubén) ilegales contrataron
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
Yo no se que cosa es
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
Pa' la paz, hacen la guerra,
No lo puedo comprender
Si la guerra contra el hambre, Rubén,
Esa es la guerra que tienen que hacer
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
En casa de Eligia Elena
Se le desmayó la abuela,
Porque en medio de la sala,
Había un cuadro de Mandela
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
Óyeme bien,
Acá en los países nuestros disque se acabó el machismo
Y aunque la mujer trabaja igual que el hombre
Nunca se gana lo mismo
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
Yo no se que cosa es
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
Yo no se, no se decirte como fue
Hay un negro presidente en los Estados Unidos,
Y a pesar de que el progreso es evidente,
Todavía estamos jodidos
Instrumental
Hay Gilbertito
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
Esto se pondrá peor, crisis en la economía
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
Pero el centro comercial, ese si no se vacía
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
En vida Mausetu Chinadera comunista
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
Hoy día tienen más plata que los capitalistas
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
Piden salsa de verdad con salseros de la habana
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
Pero la van a arruinar si compran discos piratas
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
Le tiraron a los bancos plata cuan si fuera soga
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
Pero al pueblo hipotecado abandonado que hace ahora
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
No se sabe donde vamos no se sabe que hora es
Yo no se si soy yo, yo no se si soy yo, yo no se si soy yo
Gracias Gilbertito, camínalo Rubén
Un saludo para doña Gertrudis
In Rubén Blades's song "Me cambiaron las preguntas," the singer reflects on the unexpected and challenging aspects of life that have taken him by surprise. He uses the metaphor of a train, which he was taught in childhood was a place where people got along and were happy, to describe the idealistic vision of life he once held. However, he now finds himself on a different kind of "train," a tram where people steal from him without moving from their seats. He talks about how every time he thinks he has all the answers, life changes the questions. He is confused and frustrated by the complexities of the world he lives in.
The song continues with various examples of how the world is different from what he was taught, such as the experience of his grandmother being shocked by a Mandela painting or the fact that, despite progress being made, there are still issues of inequality and hardship. The song also highlights the contradictions in society, such as building a wall to keep out undocumented immigrants while hiring them as cheap labor. The song ends on a note of uncertainty, with the singer unsure of where the world is headed or what the future holds.
Overall, "Me cambiaron las preguntas" offers a commentary on the disillusionment and confusion many people experience as they navigate the complexities of the world. It speaks to the idea that life is not always as simple or straightforward as we are taught to believe.
Line by Line Meaning
Me enseñaron cuando niño que la vida, hay que era un tren,
As a child, I was taught that life is like a train, with people who get on and off and get along well, always happy as good brothers and sisters.
Cuando me aprendí todas las respuestas, me cambiaron todas las preguntas
Just when I thought I had all the answers, they changed all the questions, and now I don't think I'll ever understand this complicated world.
Mi abuelita me contaba lo bonito que es soñar,
My grandmother used to tell me how beautiful it is to dream,
Pero del sueño que ella hablaba desperté con pesadilla,
But from the dream she spoke of, I woke up with a nightmare,
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
I don't know if it's me, or if the world is the one that's upside down.
Están construyendo un muro, contra el indocumentado
They're building a wall against the undocumented,
Pa' la paz, hacen la guerra, No lo puedo comprender
For peace, they make war, I just can't understand it,
En casa de Eligia Elena Se le desmayó la abuela, Porque en medio de la sala, Había un cuadro de Mandela
In the house of Eligia Elena, her grandmother fainted, because there was a painting of Mandela in the middle of the room.
Óyeme bien, Acá en los países nuestros disque se acabó el machismo
Listen to me well, they say that in our countries, machismo has ended,
Hay un negro presidente en los Estados Unidos, Y a pesar de que el progreso es evidente, Todavía estamos jodidos
There's a black president in the United States, and even though progress is evident, we're still screwed.
Yo no se si soy yo, o el mundo que esta al revés
I don't know if it's me or the world that's upside down.
Esto se pondrá peor, crisis en la economía, Pero el centro comercial, ese si no se vacía
Things will get worse; there's an economic crisis, but the shopping mall never empties.
En vida Mausetu Chinadera comunista, Hoy día tienen más plata que los capitalistas
While alive, Mausetu Chinadera was a communist, but today they have more money than the capitalists.
Piden salsa de verdad con salseros de la habana, Pero la van a arruinar si compran discos piratas
They want real salsa with Havana's finest salsa artists, but they'll ruin it if they buy pirated records.
Le tiraron a los bancos plata cuan si fuera soga, Pero al pueblo hipotecado abandonado que hace ahora
They threw money at banks like it was rope, but what now for the struggling, abandoned people with mortgages?
No se sabe donde vamos no se sabe que hora es
We don't know where we're headed or what time it is.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jenn All
"Cuando me aprendí todas las respuestas, me cambiaron todas las preguntas". Así mismo es! Desde que escuché ese tema por primera vez me apropié de la frase porque así me siento cada día más
Casaviejas
Temazo!, buena letra, buen ritmo, lo tiene todo 9/10
amado aleman
¡ Que par de maestros en la musica! Todo les queda de maravilla. Ellos son orgullo de nosotros los latinos.
Hacen musica para todos Los que los seguimos en todos Los tiempos.
Jesus Tantte
Excelente tema, tiene mucho sabor...
dhiemart32
Buena combinación Santa Rosa y Blades !
Decoparty MVR
Excelente melodia! pura realidad
dimatoto306
Salsa para alegrar la vida
EMPAQUES AL VACÍO EN CALI
Tremenda canción...
Karina Riascos
es una letra para analizar muy social muy chevere obvio algunas mentes estrecha no la entenderían ... yo no si soy yo o el mundo que está al revés ( trata del racismo, la tiranía machismo, la desigualdad ) hay que escuchar los pregones .
Jenny Vict
No soy yo, el mundo esta al revés. 😜