Al Otro Lado del Rio (Jorge Drexler)

A song about determination used in the final scene of the much-acclaimed Film 'The Motorcycle Diaries' about Che Guevara's early life.

An arrangement for the Cuatro based on the original by the wonderful Uruguayan musician Jorge Drexler who won the Oscar for this song. You can find the original here:
youtube.com/watch?v=rvC0f7yL9ag

Performed live at Movimientos @ Notting Hill Arts Club:
myspace.com/movimientos

Thanks for listening,
Al

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TRANSLATION:
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"On the Other Side of the Stream"

Plunge my oar in the water,
Carrying your oar on me,
I think I see a light
On the other side of the stream,

All day been only just coping,
Little by little with the cold,
I think I see a light,
To the other bank I must row,

Above all I know,
I know that not all is lost,
So many tears, so much woe
And faith is all but the cost,
I hear a beckoning voice
Call through the frost

Row, row, row
Row, row, row

On this shore of the world
What's not shackled runs wild,
I think I see a light,
I must row against the tide,
I'm so seriously sailing,
So deep inside do I smile,
I think I see a light,
I must endure another while,

Above all I know,
I know that not all is lost,
So many tears, so much woe,
And faith is all but the cost,
I hear a beckoning voice
Call through the frost

Row, row, row
Row, row, row

Plunge my oar in the water,
Carrying your oar on me,
I think I see a light
On the other side of the stream.

[ © Alex Etchart 2008 ]

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• plunge
• oar
• water
• light
• bank
• shore
• lost
• tears
• woe
• row
• breath
• carry
• see
• day
• coping
• cold
• above
• all
• know
• not
• faith
• cost
• voice
• hear
• frost
• other
• side
• stream
• determination
• fe
• diarios
• motocicletas
• motorcycle
• diaries
• nuns
• monjas
• last
• final
• scene
• última
• escena

[alexetchart]

Les agradezco mucho el apoyo.

Debo de decir a esta altura que en realidad si el camarógrafo diese vuelta, verían un público tranquilo y apreciativo. Solo que entraba ruido de la otra sala.

Digo pa' darles un poco de contexto. ¡Vamo' arriba las audiencias apreciativas!

[dominiquelizarzaburu]

you've got a very special voice! i like it a lot! thank you for singing in spanish! i'm ecuadorian.. and i really would have hated it if you had sung it in english! gracias y suerte! :) ah.. y es verdad.. la audiencia no deja apreciar nada.. pasan hablando.. y solo al final aplauden.. ash.. parecen monos en un espectáculo..

[alexetchart]

@dominiquelizarzaburu I'm flattered. Separately, If I may: however much you may or may not like my personal translation of this particular song (see the description), I believe that in some cases translations can help bridge the gap between cultures and/or share unique messages so long as the intention is well-aligned with the original. E.g. 'Las Casitas del Barrio Alto' -uno de los temas más fuertes y populares de Victor Jara- fué adaptada del original en inglés de la yanqui Martha Young... Paz

[dominiquelizarzaburu]

@alexetchart I just saw your translation of the song.. I didn't mean to upset you with the "no english" thing.. it's just that i love songs in the language that they are composed, because, if you see it this way, there are a lot of songs that are beautiful in their own language, and when they translate them, they are not as deep as they were, that happens e.g with Francis Cabrel's song Je l'aime a mourir, in spanish, La quiero a morir. it's good anyway :), oh and I saw ur translation! well done!

[alexetchart]

@dominiquelizarzaburu Not at all. I totally agree: I've heard and read many translations that I feel lose the essence of a song or piece, particularly scholars on Lorca haha. Still I think it's worth a try in order to give the layman access to stories the language barrier won't permit. I once had a Japanese friend decipher a song I loved the sound of, and, in the process, I learnt much about her culture, particularly where a word had a complex concept behind it that needed many words in English!

[juantube77]

genial canción y genial interpretación!!!

la audiencia: UNA MIERDAAAAAA

[manquiranch]

Alexetchart, que sencillo haces tu tocar en la guitarra, se ve mucha tecnica, mucho esfuerzo, LA GENTE NO SE HA DADO CUENTA QUE SI DESEA PLATICAR HAY MILES DE LUGARES, los lugares como ese deberian reservar el derecho de admision para gente que valla solo a escuchar. Felicidades, tienes mucho estilo ojala y trasciendas y que nunca te detenga ese balbuceo de quien no sabe escuchar. Shalom

[hrmp1]

Nice perfomance! ;-)

[tigredebarro]

bien!!!! muy buena versión.

poco silencio de la audiencia para mi gusto.

con cariño desde Argentina