El Güije Lyrics in English by Silvio Rodriguez

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Below, I translated the lyrics of the song El Güije by Silvio Rodriguez from Spanish to English.

These lyrics have verified word for word translations. Click any lyric word to see the translation and hear the pronunciation!

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From the bottom I am arrive in an Africa where

the bride of the night is going to

get rid of silver on my waters

of darkness I am so small that I

drain beat and so fleeting that who I

reaches to see you believes that without sun the

reality is fragile and there are creatures that

it can not be

and

the lemon mane mud complexes

cobos of dawn without pain

never reflected cough

I am a total shadow

there is what there is a being blue

that i can hardly dream

only sometimes they looked at me without fear and without

With God

only once a woman's weight

and I felt the heart

candid to sing it

that of the sweet taste

that I do not have

disbanded from what no longer moves

from the sun bottom of the fried lagoon where

the bride of the night is going to

get rid of silver on my waters

of darkness

I am startle of the reckless

who get lost in their late night and

Although I am not waiting for death, I

I am very from loneliness

I am take care of loneliness

I am a son

the gas

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Güije — mythical water sprite

The word "Güije" refers to a mythical creature from Cuban folklore, often described as a small, dark-skinned water sprite or goblin that inhabits rivers and lagoons.

In the song, Silvio Rodríguez personifies himself as this elusive and mysterious being, singing "Yo soy Güije de la soledad" (I am Güije of solitude). This makes the word incredibly unique and central to understanding the song's poetic and cultural depth, as it's not a common word found in everyday Spanish or most songs.

Silvio Rodriguez invites us into a mysterious world with "El Güije," a song that feels like a whispered secret from the depths of a lagoon. The lyrics introduce us to a tiny, fleeting creature, so small it "se escurra batir" [slips away] and so quick that anyone who sees it "cree que sin sol la realidad es frágil" [believes that without sun reality is fragile]. This creature, the Güije, seems to embody the unseen, the almost-imagined parts of the world, like "complejos de barro melena de limón / cobos de madrugada sin dolor" [complexes of mud, lemon mane / early morning cobos without pain].

Our Güije is a "sombra total" [total shadow], a "siendo azul que apenas puedo soñar" [blue being I can barely dream]. It lives in solitude, a "sobresalto de los imprudentes / que se extravían en su trasnochar" [startle for the imprudent / who get lost in their late nights]. The song suggests a longing, too, as the Güije recalls a rare moment: "Solo una vez un peso de mujer / y me sentía el corazón / cándido que lo cante / esa del dulce sabor / que no tengo" [Only once the weight of a woman / and I felt the candid heart / that sings it / that of the sweet taste / that I don't have]. It’s a beautiful, melancholic reflection on existence, solitude, and the fleeting touch of connection, all set against the backdrop of a moonlit lagoon where "la novia de la noche va a / deshacerse en platería sobre mis aguas / de oscuridad" [the bride of the night will / dissolve into silver on my waters / of darkness].

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Silvio Rodriguez El Güije Lyrics