Guantanamera
sung by Patricia Cummings
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This is my high school senior picture and represents what I looked like about the time I first sang this song and played it on the guitar. (1969 photo)
First of all, individuals have written to ask what the words in the Chorus mean. "Guantanamera" means woman from Guantanamo (a place in Cuba). "Guajira" means young girl. In this case, it appears to be a term of endearment.
I have sung this song since the 1960s, when I was first learning Spanish and it was a popular tune made famous by legendary folksinger, Pete Seeger, who just celebrated his 90th birthday in 2009. He was born in May, 1919.
The song is based on "Versos Sencillos," or "Simple Verses," written by José Martí, a Cuban freedom fighter who is still a national hero. To learn more about his life visit the file I have set up about him. There is a Crazy Quilt block shown there, that I made in his honor.
Be sure to read two other beautiful verses from "Versos Sencillos" by clicking the following link.
The sheet music from 1966 for this song includes English lyrics that do not correspond to the Spanish verses. They were the product of the mind of Bernard Gasso.
Cover of sheet music that apparently depicts a Guantanamo Bay beach.
Guantanamera
as translated by Patricia Cummings
Yo soy un hombre sincero
de donde crece la palma
Yo soy un hombre sincero
de donde crece la palma
Y antes de morirme, quiero
echar mis versos del alma.
I am a sincere man
from the land where the palms grow
and before dying, I wish to
share (recite/sing out) the verses of my soul.
Mi verso es de un verde claro
y de un carmin encendido
Mi verso es de un verde claro
y de un carmin encendido
Mi verso es de un ciervo herido
que busca en el monte amparo.
My verse is of a clear green
and of an incendiary red
Mi verse is of a wounded deer
who seeks refuge in the mountain scrubland or forest.
Con los pobres de la tierra
quiero yo mi suerte echar*
Con los pobres de la tierra
quiero yo mi suerte echar
Y el arroyo de la sierra
Me complace más que el mar.
*"Echar la suerte" is an idiomatic expression described by a native speaker as meaning "to bet, or risk to chance. If you do it with someone, then you are somehow 'choosing to share in whatever happens to another person or group', he says. To him, "cast one's lots" seems like a reasonable translation.
With the poor of the earth
I wish to share my luck -
(another translation is "I wish to cast my lots.")
The mountain stream
pleases me more than the sea.
Pete Seeger
We will ever be indebted to Pete Seeger, who along with Woody Guthrie and others, kept American folk music alive, even when he was under investigation by a Senate subcommittee for being a Communist. Even in America, and even in the 20th century, those who love freedom have had to fight for it. Freedom isn't free.
The music for this song was written by José Fernández Díaz, but was adapted by Pete Seeger and Julian Orbón. Other versions of the song exist such as that of Los Lobos and Celia Cruz, I am told.
Many thanks to "SagittaDei," a native speaker of Spanish who offered additional ideas for this file.
Quilter's Muse Publications, Concord, NH, 2009. All rights reserved. This file has been set in place for educational purposes.