Chembé

My name is cain
I grew up in Barranquilla
But I was born in Suan de la Trinida'
Got a high school diploma hanging on the wall that ain't
Worth a damn thing
Aloe plant tied with a red ribbon behind
The door
And I've sent more than one to comb their hair and see
If they got scared

Got a picture of the sacred heart of Jesus
On the bedroom wall
And a title of 'coje punta'
From the neighbor at the end of the block

In the bathroom, I put soap scraps into little balls
And an old cough with a dry throat I caught at a
Jorge Baron concert

Carry a calendar of the Divine Child
And a naked picture of Toti in my wallet
And a scapular,
The holy shroud of the Virgin of Carmen
That my grandma gave me

At the house party
Some chicken and rice
And Russian salad to make it last!
And every now and then I use baking soda and milk of magnesia as
Deodorant

Got a neighbor who takes out speakers to the door and makes
A racket
And every now and then he organizes a raffle and I travel with boxes
Tied up with rope

An uncle who thinks he's young but is older than the
Quaker Oats man
And a cousin who leaves batteries in the fridge so they
'Recharge'

I save jam jars
To use them later as cups
And I'm one of those who brings chicken and Chinese rice to the wife
When she's drunk

I haggle, ask for a discount
And in the 'buy 1 get 2' I'm a fan
And when I was little my mom pushed me towards the piñatas
So I'd get more gifts

I carry a black comb
In the back pocket of my pants
And I've named my dog
Laica, Lasy, Rocky, Rambo, Chuki, Cuqui, Firulay or Nerón

I go to concerts and shows
With tickets I exchange for bottle caps
I pee in pools
And in the bathroom I put newspaper and napkins when there's no
Money!

I don't plan on dying until I'm 90
And I worry when I see a doctor
Banks don't trust me anymore because I'm a danger
In the credit bureau..

I know by heart aton tiruriruriru
And tutaina tuturu maina
And they traumatized me with that boogeyman
With the 'go to sleep my child, go to sleep now!'

I eat pineapple
Salt bread
Poor man's feast
Cheese bread
Donut
And cassava cake
Whine
Diabolín
Pineapple rice
Cheese bread and butter

And when I get hurt I use
Compound rum
Chinese ointment, vicks vaporub and menthol

Damn!!!
And they call me 'corroncho' because I get amazed
I get happy and applaud when the plane lands

And before
The products mentioned before
In this song
Haven't paid a dime for advertising
So don't go buyin' that stuff now just because you heard it here..