EL CORRIDO DEL VIEJON – Bilingual Lyrics Spanish/English

• By: EL KOMANDER

Lyrics & Translation

[Spanish]

[English]

Quien iba a pensar que el viejo

Who would have thought that the old man

Cuando estaba joven

When he was young

Pero sanguinario

But bloodthirsty

Mataba enterraba

He killed and buried

Mochaba cabezas

Chopped off heads

No habia poder suficiente

There was no power strong enough

Ni ley en el mundo

Nor law in the world

Que lo detuviera

That could stop him

Vivio en la Casa de Piedra

He lived in the House of Stone

Y en la Rumorosa

And in the Rumorosa

Cercas de Tijuana

Near Tijuana

Donde torturaba

Where he tortured

Las tripas sacaba

He would take out the guts

A todos sus enemigos

Of all his enemies

Les sembrara el miedo

He instilled fear in them

Asi lo respetaban

That's how they respected him

Montado en un cuaco blanco

Riding a white horse

Bajaba del cerro

He would come down from the hill

Buscando mujeres

Looking for women

Robaba los bancos

He robbed banks

Pa darse placeres

To indulge himself

Ranchero y mal encachado

A rancher and poorly dressed

Se terciaba un rifle

He would carry a rifle

Tambien un machete

Also a machete

Aborrecia al gobierno

He hated the government

Porque le mataron

Because they killed

A su unico hermano

His only brother

Cuando estaba plebe

When he was a kid

Arriando el ganado

Herding cattle

Por eso a los federales

That's why he killed the federals

Mataba con saña

With fury

En honor a su hermano

In honor of his brother

Un hombre puesto y valiente

A man tough and brave

Con huellas de guerra

With scars of war

Por todo su cuerpo

All over his body

La muerte en la sangre

Death in his blood

Caracter violento

A violent character

Y arremango a federales

And he would charge at federals

Rurales y guachos

Rurales and guachos

En aquellos tiempos

In those times

Ahora vive en Culiacan

Now he lives in Culiacan

Ya no anda en el cuaco

He no longer rides a horse

Trae una Cheyene

He drives a Cheyenne

Una super del once

A super from eleven

Pal que se atraviese

For anyone who gets in his way

Y aunque pasaron los años

And even though the years have passed

Y el viejo este viejo

And the old man is old

Aun se defiende

He still defends himself

...

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
pensar /pensar/ B1	verb - to think, consider
viejo /ˈbje.xo/ A2	adjective - old
sanguinario /sangu.iˈna.ɾjo/ B2	adjective - bloodthirsty, violent
enterra /enˈtɛ.ra/ B2	verb - to bury
cabezas /kaˈβe.sas/ B1	noun - heads
poder /poˈðeɾ/ B1	noun - power verb - to be able, can
ley /lei/ A2	noun - law
mundo /ˈmundo/ A2	noun - world
vivio /ˈbi.βi.ɔ/ B2	verb - to live
casa /ˈka.sa/ A1	noun - house
piedra /ˈpje.ðɾa/ A2	noun - stone
rumorosa /ru.moˈɾo.sa/ B2	adjective - rocky, noisy
tierra /ˈtje.ra/ A2	noun - earth, land
tijuana /tʃiˈwa.na/ C1	proper noun - Tijuana (city)
ganado /ɣaˈnaðo/ B2	noun - livestock
federales /feðeˈɾa.les/ C1	noun - federal police
matar /maˈtaɾ/ B1	verb - to kill
corazón /koɾaˈson/ B2	noun - heart

Key Grammar Structures

• Quien iba a pensar que el viejo

  ➔ Use of subjunctive mood in indirect questions.

  ➔ The phrase "Quien iba a pensar" implies doubt or uncertainty about who would think.

• Mataba enterraba

  ➔ Use of the imperfect tense to describe past habitual actions.

  ➔ The verbs "mataba" and "enterraba" indicate actions that were regularly performed in the past.

• No habia poder suficiente

  ➔ Use of the imperfect tense to express a past state.

  ➔ The phrase "No habia poder suficiente" indicates that there was not enough power at that time.

• Vivio en la Casa de Piedra

  ➔ Use of the simple past tense to indicate a completed action.

  ➔ The verb "vivio" indicates that he lived in a specific place in the past.

• Aun se defiende

  ➔ Use of the present tense to indicate a current state or action.

  ➔ The phrase "Aun se defiende" indicates that he still defends himself.