Seis figureao (o Si porque canto me arrestan)*
Alfredo Zitarrosa
Six figures (or Yes because they arrest me)
*Also called Six figuriao, Six by eight, Six flowery or Six running, it is the last of the sones of Tamunangue, which are performed and danced at the San Antonio festival. In Alfredo Zitarrosa's records, it sometimes appears as 'Seis figurea'o', while Ángel and Isabel Parra title it 'Yes because they arrest me' Son of Tamunangue
Ay, lalailalaila, laralailala...
Yesterday afternoon I was,
sitting on a little hill,
hunting
a sad little dove.
Tun, tun, sentinel,
tun, tun, lazy,
now with a little laugh,
now with a laugh,
now cua cua cua cua cuá.
Ay, lalailalaila, laralailala...
If they arrest me for singing
I will spend my time crying,
why don't they arrest the roosters,
who spend their time singing.
To the cousin, the cousin, the cousin,
to the cousin, the cousin, the cousin, the bass,
that cheers up the women
the wings of the heart.
Ay, lalailalaila, laralailala...
Of the birds of the mountain,
I am the flower-picker,
I'm going to the mountain,
to suck the best.
Go up there, boy,
tell Estanislao
that the red rooster lost,
send me the colored one.
Ay, lalailalaila, laralailala...
* Ángel and Isabel Parra do not sing these verses.
