El Choclo

With this tango that is mocking and compadrito
The ambition of my suburb tied two wings
With this tango, tango was born, and like a shout
It came out of the sordid slum seeking the sky
Strange spell of a love turned into cadence
That opened paths with no law but hope
Mixture of rage, pain, faith, and absences
Crying in the innocence of its playful rhythm

By your miracle of ominous notes
The paicas and grelas were born, without thinking
Moon in the puddles, canyengue in the hips
And a fierce longing in the way of loving

Evoking you, beloved tango
I feel the tiles of a dance floor tremble
And I hear the grumble of my past
Today, with no mother by my side
I feel her arriving on tiptoe to kiss me
When your song is born to the sound of a bandoneon

Carancanfunfa set sail to the sea with your flag
And in a pernó mixed Paris with Puente Alsina
You were a compadre of the gavión and the mina
And even a comadre of the bacán and the pebeta
Because of you, shusheta, cana, prisoner, and mischief
Voices were born with your destiny
Mass of skirts, kerosene, slash, and knife
That burned in the tenements and burned in my heart