"Smaragdos Margara" by Dúo Guardabarranco, English translation of lyrics

"Smaragdos Margara", 1995
Singers: Salvador Cardenal and Katia Cardenal
Style: Soft, strong vocals; hauntingly pretty and ambiguous
Country: Nicaragua

Listen:

Renditions: original by Dúo Guardabarranco (softly spoken).

I like how music travels the world. I actually first heard this song on Une Histoire de Famille, an album by the Montreal band Hart-Rouge. Everything else on that album is French.

[Expand embedded video]

Translation:

Con una aguja con hilo blanco,
Con la carrucha en tu regazo,
Cóseme el flanco, la herida aguda,
La negra llaga de mi costado~
{Mi desventura, ah~}
(x2; x1)

With a needle with white thread,
With the pulley on your lap,
Sew up my side, my acute wound,
The black ulcer on my side~
{My misfortune, oh~}
(x2; x1 on repeat)

Tú sola, bruja,
Con tus puntadas
Lentas y largas de hábil sutura,
Ciégala, ciégala, ciégala, ciégala-ah-ah-ah~ (x2).

You alone, witch,
With your stitches
Slow and long with skilled seaming,
Seal it, seal it, seal it, seal it-it-it-it~ (x2).

[Repeat from beginning]

Muda boca cerrada por amor, nunca~
Mute mouth closed for love, never~

Translation Notes:

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