El Cantor de Bolívia

The Singer of Bolivia

El Cantor de Bolívia

His blood was a poemSu sangre era un poema
and hugged his heartY abrazó su corazón
And it was formed with versesY fue formando con versos
For your land a flowerPara su tierra una flor
And marched towards the sacrificeY marchó hacia el sacrificio
To burn it next to the sunA quemarla junto al sol
They were verses against bulletsEran versos contra balas
And a bullet killed himY una bala lo mató
A bullet killed himUna bala lo mató

His body fell in the jungleSu cuerpo cayó en la selva
And his blood was spilledY su sangre se regó
And the cholos approachedY se acercaron los cholos
To raise your songA levantar su canción
The cholos who sing it todayLos cholos que hoy la cantan
They brought it from the sunLa trajeron desde el sol
They were verses against bulletsEran versos contra balas
And his song did not dieY su canción no murió
And his song did not dieY su canción no murió

I'm following my pathVoy siguiendo mi camino
I am aware of my luckConciente voy de mi suerte
I'm retracing destinyVoy desandando el destino
I am sure of my deathSeguro voy de mi muerte
And how do I know that I dieY como sé que yo muero
I leave my song to the peopleDejo al pueblo mi canción
Because we menPorque nosotros los hombres
Today we are tomorrow notHoy somos mañana no

This is how the poet sangAsí cantaba el poeta
This is how the minstrel sangAsí cantaba el juglar
Not because they killed himNo porque lo hayan matado
has stopped singingHa dejado de cantar

They criticize the IndianAl indio le critícan
Because he chews cocaPorque masca coca
Without taking him out for thatSin sacarle por eso
The gum from the mouthEl chicle de la boca
The child is criticizedAl niño le critican
Why doesn't he bathe?Porque no se baña
But let him go hungryPero que pase hambre
They are not surprisedNo les extraña

His blood was a poemSu sangre era un poema
and hugged his heartY abrazó su corazón
And it was formed with versesY fue formando con versos
For your country a flowerPara su patria una flor
His name was Benjo Cruz.Se llamaba benjo cruz
He was the singer of BoliviaEra el cantor de bolivia
And marched towards the sacrificeY marchó hacia el sacrificio
To burn your soul in the sunA quemar su alama en el sol