Aguardiente is a fantastic compound word, combining agua (water) and ardiente (burning). It literally translates to "burning water" or "firewater" and refers to a strong alcoholic spirit popular in many Spanish-speaking countries.
In the song, the singer proudly declares that aguardiente is the best drink, helping to paint a vivid picture of the traditional mariachi lifestyle. It's a culturally rich word that's sure to make your Spanish vocabulary more flavorful!
"Canción Del Mariachi" is all about bold swagger and living the wandering musician life to the fullest. The narrator wastes zero time introducing himself as a total winner: "Soy un hombre muy honrado / Que me gusta lo mejor" ("I am a very honest man / Who likes the best"). He brags that he has no shortage of cash, romance, or women, riding through the mountains guided only by the night sky: "Las estrellas y la luna / Ellas me dicen donde voy" ("The stars and the moon / They tell me where I go"). At the center of this freewheeling life is a deep passion for his beloved, calling out "Ay mi morena / De mi corazón" ("Oh, my dark-skinned beauty / Of my heart"). In Spanish, morena is an affectionate term often used for a woman with brown skin or dark hair.
The rest of the track lays out his absolute favorite pleasures: music and strong drinks. He sings "Me gusta cantar el Son" ("I like to sing the Son"), referring to traditional Mexican folk music styles that mix rhythmic guitar strumming with lively storytelling. When he is not playing his guitar with a mariachi band backing him up, he is enjoying firewater and tequila: "Aguardiente es lo mejor / También el tequila blanco / Con su sal le da sabor" ("Aguardiente is the best / Also white tequila / With its salt gives it flavor"). Aguardiente literally translates to "fire water" or "burning water" and refers to potent distilled liquor. It is a boastful, sunny party track about loving good drinks, traditional tunes, and the open road.
Los Lobos formed in East Los Angeles in 1973, when guitarist David Hidalgo and drummer Louie Pérez, both students at Garfield High School, started playing together. They brought in Cesar Rosas and Conrado Lozano and spent years working weddings and quinceañeras around East LA before saxophonist Steve Berlin joined the lineup, rounding out the band that still tours today.
Their sound mixes rock and roll with cumbia, norteño, and traditional Mexican son, and it earned them a Grammy for the EP …And a Time to Dance. Their cover of Ritchie Valens' "La Bamba" went to number one worldwide in 1987, and the following year they won a second Grammy for La Pistola y El Corazón, a record built entirely around mariachi and Tejano instrumentation. By 1992 they released Kiko, the album critics still point to as their high-water mark.