La Camisa Negra – Bilingual Lyrics Spanish/English

• By: Juanes
• Album: MTV Unplugged

Lyrics & Translation

Learning a language through music is a fantastic journey, and Juanes' 'La Camisa Negra' is the perfect song to start with for Spanish. Its catchy rhythm makes it easy to remember the lyrics, which are full of colloquialisms and clever wordplay from Colombia. You can learn about expressing feelings of heartbreak in a culturally specific way and appreciate the musical style of 'guasca'. The song's fast pace in certain parts also provides a fun challenge for improving your listening comprehension.

[English]

One for being poor and ugly, man

But this craving, oh man

...

I’m wearing the black shirt

Today my love is in mourning

Today I carry a sorrow in my soul

And it’s because of your spell

Today I know you no longer love me

And that’s what hurts me the most

Is that I’m wearing the black shirt

And I feel a pain that hurts me

It looks like I’m all alone

And it was all your lies

What cursed bad luck mine is

That day I found you

Drinking the deadly poison of your love

I was left dying and full of pain

I breathed in that bitter smoke of your goodbye

And since you left, I only have

I’m wearing the black shirt

Because I have a black soul

I lost my calm for you

And I almost lost even my bed

Bed, bed, come on, baby

I tell you in secret

That I’m wearing the black shirt

And beneath it I carry the ghost

To bury it whenever you want, momma

...

Just as you hear it, girl

I’m wearing the black shirt

Your love no longer interests me

What once tasted like glory

Today tastes like pure

Wednesday afternoon and you’re not coming

Not even showing signs

And I, with the black shirt

And your suitcases at the door

It seems I’m all that’s left

And it was all your lies

What cursed bad luck mine is

That day I found you

Drinking the deadly poison of your love

I was left dying and full of pain

I breathed in that bitter smoke of your goodbye

And since you left, I only have

I’m wearing the black shirt

Because I have a black soul

I lost my calm for you

And I almost lost even my bed

Bed, bed, come on, baby

I tell you in secret

That I’m wearing the black shirt

And beneath it I carry the ghost

I’m wearing the black shirt

Because I have a black soul

I lost my calm for you

And I almost lost even my bed

Bed, bed, come on, baby

I tell you in secret

That I’m wearing the black shirt

And beneath it I carry the ghost

...

[Spanish]

Uno por pobre y feo, hombre

Pero antoja'o, ay ome

Tengo la camisa negra

Hoy mi amor está de luto

Hoy tengo en el alma una pena

Y es por culpa de tu embrujo

Hoy sé que tú ya no me quieres

Y eso es lo que más me hiere

Que tengo la camisa negra

Y una pena que me duele

Mal parece que solo me quedé

Y fue pura todita tu mentira

Qué maldita mala suerte la mía

Que aquel día te encontré

Por beber del veneno malevo de tu amor

Yo quedé moribundo y lleno de dolor

Respiré de ese humo amargo de tu adiós

Y desde que tú te fuiste, yo solo tengo

Tengo la camisa negra

Porque negra tengo el alma

Yo por ti perdí la calma

Y casi pierdo hasta mi cama

Cama, cama, come on, baby

Te digo con disimulo

Que tengo la camisa negra

Y debajo tengo el difunto

Pa' enterrártelo cuando quieras, mamita

Así como lo oyes, mi'ja

Tengo la camisa negra

Ya tu amor no me interesa

Lo que ayer me supo a gloria

Hoy me sabe a pura

Miércoles por la tarde y tú que no llegas

Ni siquiera muestras señas

Y yo con la camisa negra

Y tus maletas en la puerta

Mal parece que solo me quedé

Y fue pura todita tu mentira

Qué maldita mala suerte la mía

Que aquel día te encontré

Por beber del veneno malevo de tu amor

Yo quedé moribundo y lleno de dolor

Respiré de ese humo amargo de tu adiós

Y desde que tú te fuiste, yo solo tengo

Tengo la camisa negra

Porque negra tengo el alma

Yo por ti perdí la calma

Y casi pierdo hasta mi cama

Cama, cama, come on, baby

Te digo con disimulo

Que tengo la camisa negra

Y debajo tengo el difunto

Tengo la camisa negra

Porque negra tengo el alma

Yo por ti perdí la calma

Y casi pierdo hasta mi cama

Cama, cama, come on, baby

Te digo con disimulo

Que tengo la camisa negra

Y debajo tengo el difunto

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
pobre /ˈpo.βre/ A2	adjective - poor
feo /ˈfe.o/ A2	adjective - ugly
camisa /kaˈmi.sa/ A1	noun - shirt
negra /ˈne.ɣɾa/ A1	adjective - black
amor /aˈmoɾ/ A2	noun - love
pena /ˈpe.na/ A2	noun - sorrow, sadness
culpa /ˈkul.pa/ B1	noun - fault, guilt
embujo /emˈbuxo/ B2	noun - enchantment, spell
mentira /menˈti.ɾja/ A2	noun - lie, falsehood
suerte /ˈsweɾ.te/ B1	noun - luck, fortune
veneno /beˈne.no/ B2	noun - poison
dolor /doˈloɾ/ B1	noun - pain, sorrow
humo /ˈu.mo/ A2	noun - smoke
adiós /aˈðjos/ A2	noun - goodbye

Key Grammar Structures

• Tengo la camisa negra

  ➔ Present tense (1st person singular) to express possession.

  ➔ The phrase "Tengo" means "I have," indicating possession of the shirt.

• Hoy tengo en el alma una pena

  ➔ Present tense to express current feelings.

  ➔ The phrase "tengo en el alma" means "I have in my soul," indicating deep emotional pain.

• Y eso es lo que más me hiere

  ➔ Use of demonstrative pronoun to emphasize a specific feeling.

  ➔ The phrase "eso es lo que más me hiere" translates to "that is what hurts me the most," highlighting the pain caused by love.

• Por beber del veneno malevo de tu amor

  ➔ Use of preposition to indicate the cause of an action.

  ➔ The phrase "por beber" means "for drinking," indicating the reason for the speaker's suffering.

• Yo quedé moribundo y lleno de dolor

  ➔ Use of past tense to describe a state resulting from an action.

  ➔ The phrase "quedé moribundo" means "I was left dying," indicating the speaker's emotional state.

• Y desde que tú te fuiste, yo solo tengo

  ➔ Use of conjunction to connect clauses indicating time.

  ➔ The phrase "desde que tú te fuiste" means "since you left," indicating the time frame of the speaker's feelings.

• Porque negra tengo el alma

  ➔ Use of conjunction to explain a reason.

  ➔ The phrase "porque negra tengo el alma" translates to "because I have a black soul," indicating the speaker's emotional state.

• Y casi pierdo hasta mi cama

  ➔ Use of adverb to indicate degree.

  ➔ The word "casi" means "almost," indicating the extent of loss experienced by the speaker.