His musical career started at age 17 while he was doing his military service in the recently formed FAR (Revolutionary Armed Forces) created in late 1961 after the failed invasion of Cuba by the U.S.A. led mainly by the C.I.A. and the Cuban exiles in that country, the self-titled "Gusanos", ordered by former president John F. Kennedy.
The bombings by the U.S.A. where targeted mainly towards the urban settlements in La Habana, Santiago de Cuba and San Antonio de los Baños, the latter in which Silvio was living at the time. He was working as an educator for the Alphabetization Program of the Revolution in which he taught History, Mathematics, Geography, Grammar and Politics.
Esteban Baños was the friend that taught him how to play guitar while they were in the army, it was around 1964 when Silvio wrote his first songs. In 1967 he finished his Army training and started his career as a musician mainly as a solo artist but also shortly as a part of the Grupo de Experimentación Sonora del ICAIC (GESI).
Tu imagen
Silvio Rodríguez Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A las seis menos diez
Y no pude dormir
Ni un instante después
Te confundías con mis sábanas
Te me enredabas en la sien
Lucías tan real que casi fui feliz
Pero a las seis y diez
Eran mis solitarias sábanas
Y una habitual mañana gris
Y tú eras mi viento, mas no a favor
Eras mi barca en el pedregal
Eras mi puerta sin tirador
Eras mi beso buscando hogar
Y tú eras un parto de antigüedad
Maña de un diablo desesperado
Eras espuma de soledad
Carne con llagas de desamor
Y así fuiste la otra mitad
De amanecer
Que no alumbró jamás
The lyrics to Silvio Rodriguez's song "Tu Imagen" describe the struggle of letting go of someone who was once so important in your life. The first verse begins with the singer being unable to sleep after receiving a mental image of his ex-partner. The image is so vivid, it's as though the ex-partner is tangled up in his sheets. The singer notes how real the image seemed, but eventually realizes that it was his lonely bedsheets all along.
The second verse paints a bleak picture of the singer's life without his ex-partner. He describes the morning as usual and gray, in contrast to his ex-partner who was his source of light and hope. He continues on to note all of the ways in which his ex-partner completed him, from being his wind to guiding him like a boat in rough waters. However, he also recognizes the fact that his ex-partner was the source of his pain, and despite longing for their embrace, he knows that they were not meant to be.
The overall message of the song is one of acceptance and strength. The singer recognizes the pain that his ex-partner caused him, but also acknowledges that they were an integral part of his past. They provided him with comfort and companionship when he needed it, and for that, he will always hold a special place for them in his heart.
Line by Line Meaning
Tu imagen me llegó
Your image came to me
A las seis menos diez
At ten minutes to six
Y no pude dormir
And I couldn't sleep
Ni un instante después
Not even a moment later
Te confundías con mis sábanas
You blended in with my sheets
Te me enredabas en la sien
You tangled yourself in my mind
Lucías tan real que casi fui feliz
You looked so real that I was almost happy
Pero a las seis y diez
But at six ten
Me comprendí sin ti
I understood myself without you
Eran mis solitarias sábanas
They were just my lonely sheets
Y una habitual mañana gris
And a usual gray morning
Y tú eras mi viento, mas no a favor
And you were my wind, but not in my favor
Eras mi barca en el pedregal
You were my boat in the rocky terrain
Eras mi puerta sin tirador
You were my door without a handle
Eras mi beso buscando hogar
You were my kiss searching for a home
Y tú eras un parto de antigüedad
And you were an ancient birth
Maña de un diablo desesperado
Trickery of a despairing devil
Eras espuma de soledad
You were foam of loneliness
Carne con llagas de desamor
Flesh with wounds from lack of love
Y así fuiste la otra mitad
And thus you were the other half
De amanecer
Of a sunrise
Que no alumbró jamás
That never shone
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Silvio Rodriguez
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Amanecer
Tu imagen me llegó
A las seis menos diez
Y no pude dormir
Ni un instante después
Te confundías con mis sábanas
Te me enredabas en la sien
Lucías tan real
Que casi fui feliz
Pero a las seis y diez
Me comprendí sin ti
Eran mis solitarias sábanas
Y una habitual mañana gris
Y tú eras mi viento, mas no a favor
Eras mi barca en el pedregal
Eras mi puerta sin tirador
Eras mi beso buscando hogar
Y tú eras un parto de antigüedad
Maña de un diablo despertador
Eras espuma de soledad
Carne con llagas de desamor
Y así fuiste la otra mitad
De amanecer
Que no alumbró jamás
Amanecer
Tu imagen me llegó
A las seis menos diez
Y no pude dormir
Ni un instante después
Te confundías con mis sábanas
Te me enredabas en la sien
Lucías tan real
Que casi fui feliz
Pero a las seis y diez
Me comprendí sin ti
Eran mis solitarias sábanas
Y una habitual mañana gris
Y tú eras mi viento, mas no a favor
Eras mi barca en el pedregal
Eras mi puerta sin tirador
Eras mi beso buscando hogar
Y tú eras un parto de antigüedad
Maña de un diablo despertador
Eras espuma de soledad
Carne con llagas de desamor
Y así fuiste la otra mitad
De amanecer
Que no alumbró jamás
Carlos Herrera
Duele...
Joaquin Ramirez
Eres el mejor, Silvio! Desde hace 35 años te escucho y no deja de sorprenderme tanta creatividad, tanto hacer que la vida parezca simple.
Daniel López
Qué canción mas hermosa, es como anillo al dedo para este desamor.
cecilia arratia
Daniel López Verdaderamente triste está canción.
GUS FOTO Y VIDEO
Hermosa canción!, los trabajos posteriores de Silvio, como "Amoríos" no tienen ese feeling.... será que sus mejores canciones ya fueron escritas?
Yuneidis Quintana Bermejo
Cada disco tiene su encanto. En "Amoríos", con bastantes más años, muestra la calma y sosiego que va dando la edad. Está lleno de ternura.
Claudia Reyes
Y así, fuiste la otra mitad...de amanecer...que no alumbró...jamás 💔
Lucas Zurita
Y tú eras mi viento, mas no a favor
Eras mi barca en el pedregal
Eras mi puerta sin tirador
Eras mi beso buscando hogar
Se hace difícil seguir así
Fran Reinoso
Hermosa...