Elvis Crespo
El lamento del libertario lyrics with English translation
- Language
- Spanish
- Level
- Intermediate
- Released
- 2004
- Genre
- Merengue
- Length
- 3:43
Embarcar pa'l extranjero
Embark for foreign lands
A un país que no es el mío
To a country that isn't mine
A sembrar en suelo frío
To sow in cold soil
Eso no es lo que yo quiero
That's not what I desire
Mi familia es mi desvelo
My family keeps me awake
Sin mí no pueden vivir
Without me, they can't survive
Presiento que van a sufrir
I sense they're going to suffer
Si las dejo desamparadas
If I leave them defenseless
Mi alma está acongojada
My soul is heavy with sorrow
Pa'l norte no quiero ir
I don't want to go north
La vida en el norte es dura
Life up north is tough
Allá mi compai cayó
There my buddy fell
De un espajalo y dejó
From a mishap and left
A mi santa comaviuda
My dear widow behind
Y eso a mí me causa duda
And that fills me with doubt
Y me sirve de escarmienta
And serves as a lesson
Pues según la viuda cuenta
For according to the widow's tale
Aquello allá es peligroso
That place up there is dangerous
Y como soy cauteloso
And since I'm cautious
Ir pa'l norte no me tienta
Going north doesn't tempt me
Y pa'l norte hay que embarcarse
And to the north, one must depart
Para ganar el sustento
To earn a living
Es cuestión de conscierto
It's a matter of arrangement
Que tendría que ponderarse
That would need to be weighed
En la vida hay que afanarse
In life, one must toil
Mientras el cuerpo soporte
As long as the body can take it
Y si fui a nadie le importe
And if I did, let no one care
Se nos mata la ilusión
Our dreams are being crushed
Es bien triste solución
It's a sad solution
Tener que emigrar pa'l norte
To have to migrate north
Key vocabulary
- allá
- thereA1
- alma
- soulB2
- bien
- goodA1
- como
- likeB1
- cuerpo
- bodyC1
- dejo
- leaveB2
- dejó
- leftB1
- dura
- hardA2
- fui
- I wentB1
- ganar
- winA2
Test yourself
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A quick quiz on the key words from this song.
About this song
American singer-songwriter Elvis Crespo has won multiple honors for his contributions to merengue, including a dozen Lo Nuestro Awards across three decades.