Guantanamera

"Guantanamera" (Spanish: (the woman) from Guantánamo)[1] is perhaps the best-known Cuban song and that country's most-noted patriotic song, especially when using a poem by the Cuban poet José Martí for the lyrics. The official writing credits have been given to Joseíto Fernández, who first popularized the song on radio as early as 1929 (although it is unclear when the first release as a record occurred). In 1966, a version by American vocal group the Sandpipers, based on an arrangement by the Weavers from their May 1963 Carnegie Hall Reunion concert, became an international hit.

For other uses, see Guantanamera (disambiguation).

"Guantanamera"
Song
LanguageSpanish
Released1929
GenreGuajira-son
Composer(s)Joseíto Fernández

Lyrics

By José Martí

The better known "official" lyrics are based on selections from the poetry collection Versos Sencillos (Simple Verses) by Cuban poet and independence hero José Martí, as adapted by Julián Orbón.[2] The four verses of the song were adapted from four stanzas of Versos Sencillos, each from a different poem. They are presented here in the original Spanish (poem:stanza).

I:1
V:3
XXXIX:1
III:2
Yo soy un hombre sincero
De donde crece la palma,
Y antes de morirme quiero
Echar mis versos del alma.
Mi verso es de un verde claro
Y de un carmín encendido:
Mi verso es un ciervo herido
Que busca en el monte amparo.
Cultivo una rosa blanca
En julio como en enero,
Para el amigo sincero
Que me da su mano franca.
Con los pobres de la tierra
Quiero yo mi suerte echar:
El arroyo de la sierra
Me complace más que el mar.

By Joseíto Fernández

Given the song's musical structure, which fits A–B–A–B (sometimes A–B–B–A) octosyllabic verses, "Guantanamera" lent itself from the beginning to impromptu verses, improvised on the spot, similar to what happens with the Mexican folk song "La Bamba". Joseíto Fernández first used the tune to comment on daily events on his radio program by adapting the lyrics to the song's melody, and then using the song to conclude his show. Through this use, "Guantanamera" became a popular vehicle for romantic, patriotic, humorous, or social commentary in Cuba and elsewhere in the Spanish-speaking world.

The lyrics often sung by Fernández[3] are about a peasant woman or country girl from Guantánamo ("guajira Guantanamera"),[4] with whom he once had a romantic relationship, and who eventually left him. Fernández provided several explanations during his lifetime, including that she did not have a romantic interest in him, but merely a platonic one.

By other artists

Various other versions have combined lyrics based on the José Martí poem. Additional verses commonly sung are:

Y para el cruel que me arranca
el corazón con que vivo
cardo ni oruga cultivo
cultivo la rosa blanca.
Yo sé de un pesar profundo
entre las penas sin nombre:
la esclavitud de los hombres
es la gran pena del mundo.
No me pongan en lo oscuro
A morir como un traidor
Yo soy bueno y como bueno
Moriré de cara al sol[5]

Music

The music for the song is sometimes also attributed to Joseíto Fernández,[1][6] who claimed to have written it at various dates (consensus puts 1929 as its year of origin), and who used it regularly in one of his radio programs. Some claim that the song's structure actually came from Herminio "El Diablo" García Wilson, who could be credited as a co-composer. García's heirs took the matter to court decades later, but lost the case; the People's Supreme Court of Cuba credited Fernández as the sole composer of the music in 1993. Regardless of either claim, Fernández can safely be claimed as being the first to promote the song widely through his radio programs.[7]

Recordings

Joseíto Fernández

Recorded in the 1930s.

Compay Segundo

Recorded in the late 1940s.

Pete Seeger

Shortly after the Weavers’ Carnegie Hall reunion concert recording in May 1963, Seeger recorded the song on his album We Shall Overcome, performed live at Carnegie Hall. The recording is described by Stewart Mason at Allmusic as the "definitive version" of the song.[8][9]

The version of the song created by Martí and Orbón was used by Pete Seeger as the basis of his reworked version, which he based on a performance of the song by Héctor Angulo. Seeger combined Martí's verse with the tune, with the intention that it be used by the peace movement at the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis. He urged that people sing the song as a symbol of unity between the American and Cuban peoples, and called for it to be sung in Spanish to "hasten the day [that] the USA... is some sort of bilingual country."[10]

The Sandpipers
"Guantanamera"
Single by The Sandpipers
B-side"What Makes You Dream, Pretty Girl?"
Released1966
Recorded1966
GenrePop, easy listening, Latin, Folk
Length3:10
LabelA&M
Songwriter(s)Héctor Angulo, José Martí, Pete Seeger
Producer(s)Tommy LiPuma
The Sandpipers singles chronology
"Everything in the Garden"
(1966)		 "Guantanamera"
(1966)		 "Louie Louie"
(1966)

The most commercially successful version of "Guantanamera" in the English-speaking world was recorded by the easy listening vocal group, The Sandpipers, in 1966. Their recording was based on the Weavers' 1963 Carnegie Hall reunion concert rendition and was arranged by Mort Garson and produced by Tommy LiPuma. In addition to the group's vocals, the version includes Robie Lester on background vocals and narration by producer LiPuma.[11] It reached No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100[12] and No. 7 on the UK Singles Chart.[13]

Celia Cruz

"Guantanamera" is one of the songs most commonly identified with Cuban singer Celia Cruz (1925–2003). She recorded it on at least 241 different records,[14] her earliest commercial recording being on the Mexican label Tico Records[15] in 1968. She mentions her special memories of singing "Guantanamera" nine times in her posthumous 2004 autobiography.[16]

Charts
The Sandpipers
Chart (1966) Peak
position
Canadian RPM Top Tracks 10
Ireland (IRMA)[17] 3
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[18] 3
New Zealand (Listener)[19] 7
South Africa (Springbok Radio)[20] 2
UK Singles (OCC)[21] 7
US Billboard Hot 100[22] 9
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[23] 3
West Germany (Official German Charts)[24] 22

Other recordings

It has been recorded by many other solo artists, notably by Willy Chirino, Julio Iglesias, Joan Baez, Albita, Jimmy Buffett, Celia Cruz, Bobby Darin, Raul Malo, Joe Dassin, Muslim Magomayev, José Feliciano, Biser Kirov, Wyclef Jean, Puerto Plata, Trini Lopez, La Lupe, Nana Mouskouri, Tito Puente, Andy Russell, Gloria Estefan, Pete Seeger, Robert Wyatt (under the title "Caimanera"), and by such groups as The Mavericks, Buena Vista Social Club, Los Lobos, Todos Tus Muertos, and the Gipsy Kings.

  • The tune of this song is a commonly used in British football chant, such as "There's only one [insert player/manager name]". For example, it was used for Paul Gascoigne ("There's only one Paul Gascoigne"), but modified for Gary Stevens ("There's only two Gary Stevens") since there were two players of the same name active at the same time.[25] Other chants using the same tune include "You only sing when you're winning", and "You're getting sacked in the morning".[26] It is also used on the soundtrack of Pro Evolution Soccer 2014, a football video game developed and published by Konami. Captain Morgan Original Spiced Rum's 2019 television commercial campaign also features this chant.[27] Real Madrid also use this tune to sing “Reyes de Europa”.
  • In 1998 on Australian television, Holden advertised the Holden Rodeo using the song, substituting "One Tonne Rodeo" for "Guantanamera".
  • Tony Lockett, a player in the Australian Football League, was praised in the song "One Tony Lockett", using the tune of "Guantanamera", performed by James Freud and the Reserves.[28]
  • Wyclef Jean presents The Carnival featuring the Refugee Camp Allstars released a song titled “Guantanamera” in 1997. Their song is not a cover of the original, but an incorporation with additional lyrics/music.
  • It is sung in the movie For Love or Country: The Arturo Sandoval Story.
  • The song is famously played in The Godfather Part II, at the New Year's Eve party in Cuba where Michael Corleone tells his brother Fredo Corleone that he knows that he betrayed him.[29]
  • It is performed as a dance number in the animated movie Antz.
  • Richard Stallman wrote and sang a version titled Guantanamero, an ironic commentary on the Guantanamo prison and the War on Terror.[30]
  • The song features a variety of lyrics conforming to the action in the third part of the 1968 Cuban film Lucía.
  • Confronted by rabid dogs, a villain tries to contain them by singing "Guantanamera" to them in the 1994 comedy film, A Low Down Dirty Shame.
  • In Money Heist season 3, "La casa de papel".
  • In The Backyardigans episode, "Surf's Up", Austin the Kangaroo sings a song in the tune called "Mystery Lifeguard" on Tall Palm Beach.

References
  1. Cheal, David (March 13, 2015). "The Life of a Song: 'Guantanamera'". Financial Times. Financial Times Ltd. Retrieved May 22, 2016. His chorus sings the praises of a guajira (peasant woman) from Guantánamo (the Guantanamera of the title)
  2. Martí, José (2005). Versos Sencillos (Dual-language ed.). Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Co. ISBN 0-7864-2386-2. OCLC 61151508.
  3. Hamilton, Valerie (March 24, 2016). "How 'Guantanamera' went from Cuba's unofficial anthem to a Swedish recycling jingle". Public Radio International. Public Radio International. Retrieved May 22, 2016. The song's refrain, “guajira Guantanamera,” means “country girl from Guantanamo.
  4. "Define gua-ji-ra". Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, LLC. 2016. Retrieved May 22, 2016. literally, peasant woman
  5. "Playing For Change - Guantanamera lyrics". lyricstranslate.com. Retrieved September 16, 2019.
  6. Vizcaíno, María Argelia, Aspectos de la Guantanamera, La Página de José Martí Archived July 14, 2006, at the Wayback Machine, Part 1, and Manuel, Peter (2006), "The Saga of a Song: Authorship and Ownership in the Case of 'Guantanamera'". Latin American Music Review 27/2, pp. 1–47
  7. "Jose Marti. La Guantanamera por María Argelia Vizcaíno #2-2". Josemarti.org. Archived from the original on December 19, 2003. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
  8. Stewart Mason, Review of Pete Seeger at Carnegie Hall, Allmusic.com. Retrieved May 24, 2013
  9. Gilliland, John (1969). "Show 34 – Revolt of the Fat Angel: American musicians respond to the British invaders. [Part 2]: UNT Digital Library" (audio). Pop Chronicles. Digital.library.unt.edu. Retrieved April 29, 2011.
  10. Josh Kun (November 2005). Audiotopia: Music, Race, and America. p. 6. ISBN 9780520938649. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
  11. Michael Bourne (1995). "The Billboard Interview: Tommy LiPuma" (PDF). Billboard magazine. Retrieved June 14, 2017.
  12. Whitburn, Joel (2003). Top Pop Singles 1955–2002 (1st ed.). Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 618. ISBN 0-89820-155-1.
  13. Betts, Graham (2004). Complete UK Hit Singles 1952–2004 (1st ed.). London: Collins. p. 92. ISBN 0-00-717931-6.
  14. "Searching for "guantanamera celia cruz"on Discogs". DISCOGS. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  15. "Celia Cruz - Guantanamera". Discogs. Retrieved December 22, 2018.
  16. "Celia Cruz, My Life, an autobiography". Retrieved December 22, 2018.
  17. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Guantanamera". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved June 4, 2018.
  18. "Dutchcharts.nl – The Sandpipers – Guantanamera" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  19. Flavour of New Zealand, 25 November 1966
  20. "SA Charts 1965–March 1989". Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  21. "Sandpipers: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
  22. "The Sandpipers Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  23. "The Sandpipers Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard.
  24. "Offiziellecharts.de – The Sandpipers – Guantanamera". GfK Entertainment Charts. To see peak chart position, click "TITEL VON The Sandpipers"
  25. Rushdie, Salman (December 26, 2008). "The People's Game". Step Across This Line. ISBN 9781407021379.
  26. Tom Lamont. "Tom Lamont on the chant-makers of British football". The Guardian. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
  27. King, Bill. "Getting to the root of my love of ginger," The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Wednesday, August 7, 2019. Retrieved August 21, 2019
  28. "James Freud and the Reserves - One Tony Lockett (CD)". Discogs. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
  29. Movie Port. "Godfather Part 2:"I know it was you Fredo" and Cuban Revolution". YouTube. Retrieved March 22, 2020.
  30. "Guantanamero - Richard Stallman". stallman.org.
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