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Chan Chan

From Alto Cedro I go to Marcané,
Then to Cueto, I go to Mayarí
 
The love I have for you
I can't deny it
I drool all over
And I can't help it
 
When Juanica and Chan Chan
Sifted sand in the sea
The way she was shaking the "sieve"1
was making Chan Chan embarrassed
 
Clear the road of straws
'Cause I want to sit down
On this trunk that I see
And I can't arrive there that way
 
From Alto Cedro I go to Marcané,
Then to Cueto, I go to Mayarí
 
  • 1. the sieve - it's in quotation marks so that you can get the double meaning :)
Originele teksten

Chan Chan

Klik om de originele tekst te zien. (Spaans)

Gegeven reacties
fred.silva76fred.silva76    Di, 05/08/2014 - 16:32

Hello,

A very nice translation with only one tiny mistake, in my humble opinion:
It should be: Llego a Cueto, voy para Mayari - meaning, I arrive at Cueto (or, I get to Cueto) and leave to Mayari. It makes more sense to me, since the goal here is to present a constant traveler, a kind of helpless nomad. Plus, the sound of the word "luego" has a clearly pronounced U in every region where it is spoken.
Does this make sense to you?

You know the verb "llegar" (to arrive) - you translated it accurately in another verse ;)

Anyway, in general it is a very very good translation, this was really the only detail I could spot. Kudos :)

peterbennettdotnetpeterbennettdotnet    Zat, 09/08/2014 - 19:44

Hi Fred,
You seem to be on the ball with this, and yours is a very recent comment! I wondered if you could do any interpretation for us... the last verse...
Clear the road of straws
Cause I want to sit down
On this trunk that I see
And I can't arrive there that way
...what''s he going on about? ;-) I can see he might want to sit on a trunk to tidy himself up but how are the straws preventing this? I think I'm missing something.
Muchas gracias, Pete

antoinette.kingojiantoinette.kingoji    Ma, 20/04/2015 - 13:31

im not sure, but where I'm from in Africa we speak in proverbs. Which helps me to understand this in a way. (i may not be accurate but its worth a try)

1)clear the road of straws... i want to sit down on this trunk that i see, but i can not arrive there...
could mean that he is in a haste to get to his destination, there are obstacles that are in his way (straws). the obstacles are preventing him arriving sooner than he may like to. he wants to hurry up and arrive so he can do what he wants, he is tired of the "wait."
the trunk could be temptation to give up, there is something that is tempting him from achieving his objective. "i can not arrive there that way" He cannot reach his destination if he gives in.

so basically he is trying to achieve something, there are obstacles in his way, it is not easy because of possible factors or temptations. but he knows he can not give in... because he will not reach his destination.
can apply to any thing we are trying to achieve that may be hard, and we feel like giving up but we know that we "can't get there that way"

hope i helped. this is just my analogy. could be wrong

annabellannaannabellanna    Woe, 06/04/2016 - 12:03

Compay Segundo explained that Chan Chan and his wife Juanica were building their home, so they went to the shore to take the sand they needed. He put it into the sieve and his wife, while shaking it, shook his bottom too, exciting him.
So probably you are right. This is a metaphoric language. But I can't understand if the meaning is: "I have to finish my work, so please, stop tempting me!" or if it's referred to sexual activity, and he ask her to help preventing him arriving sooner than he may like to.

David McLeanDavid McLean    Woe, 19/10/2016 - 17:46

Sorry, but the translation as I see it is a little pornographic, but also a little obvious. Juanica is shaking the sieve and Chan Chan is watching and becomes aroused. Juanita see his arousal and tells him to clear the way (undress or undo his fly) so she can sit on that "log" that she sees. Literally, she is saying she can't sit on the log unless the path is clear.

A T RA T R    Zat, 01/02/2020 - 23:55

Following up on David McLean's comment: "Clear the road of straws,'Cause I want to sit down, On this trunk that I see, And I can't arrive there that way"
the word "paja" in spanish is a euphemism for a man masturbating, Juanica is telling Chan Chan to stop masturbating, beause sitting on his "trunk" is the only way she can arrive or "llegar" a spanish euphemism to reaching sexual climax. Truly the songwriter is a poet! :)