Guantanamera

Poetry has inspired some of my favorite music. Debussy's "Prelude to L'après-midi d'un faune" comes to mind, as does Celia Cruz's version of "Guantanamera," which is based on poems by Cuban poet José Martí. Martí's Versos Sencillos, a collection of 46 poems, begins famously with the line "Yo soy un hombre sincero," as does "Guantanamera." The original "Guantanamera" is actually an amalgamation of three poems from Versos Sencillos: stanzas 1 and 2 of "Yo soy un hombre sincero" (poem 1), the last stanza of "Yo quiero salir del mundo" (poem 23), and the first stanza of "Tiene el leoporda un abrigo" (poem 45). "Guantanamera" was written sometime in 1940 and first recorded in 1941. Since then, it has inspired over 150 versions.

In honor of Cruz, who died this past past Wednesday, I have posted the last four stanzas of Martí's "Yo soy un hombre sincero":

Oculto en mi pecho bravo La pena que me lo hiere: El hijo de un pueblo esclavo Vive por él, calla y muere.

Todo es hermoso y constante,
Todo es música y razón,
Y todo, como el diamante,
Antes que luz es carbón.

Yo sé que el necio se entierra
Con gran lujo y con gran llanto.
Y que no hay fruta en la tierra
Como la del camposanto.

Callo, y entiendo, y me quito
La pompa del rimador:
Cuelgo de un árbol marchito
Mi muceta de doctor.

Links:
*English translation of the four verses
*English translation of Versos Sencillos
*José (Joseito) Fernández Díaz, author of the original "Guantanamera"
*Dean Reed sings "Guantanamera"