La Corriente – Bilingual Lyrics Spanish/English

• By: Silvana Estrada
• Album: Marchita

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into the poetic world of Silvana Estrada with "La Corriente," a song where the flow of water—currents and tides—serves as a powerful metaphor for love and life's inevitable changes. Even without understanding every Spanish word, Estrada's evocative vocal delivery and rich instrumentation allow the core emotions of transformation and indelible connection to resonate deeply, making it a beautiful entry point to appreciate the depth of Mexican singer-songwriter traditions.

[English]

You gave me a couple of songs

And a book about your city

You spun me three times dancing

And I floated, not thinking

You gave me a new current

The straight route to the sea

You arrived on winds from the east to this south

of slow speech

You changed tides and currents

You left your name in the sea

You turned your smiling face

And I, who never learned to swim

You changed tides and currents

You left your name in the sea

You turned your smiling face

And I, who never learned to swim

...

You left, marking destinies

The new desire to fly

To go traveling roads

Until I find you again

You left, covering my fortune

With old words of salt

May the current live on the skin

If it leaves a storm behind

You changed tides and currents

You left your name in the sea

You turned your smiling face

And I, who never learned to swim

You changed tides and currents

You left your name in the sea

You turned your smiling face

And I, who never learned to swim

...

You left, marking destinies

The new desire to fly

To go traveling roads

Until I find you again

You left, covering my fortune

With old words of salt

May the current live on the skin

If it leaves a storm behind

May the current live on the skin

May the current live on the skin

May the current live on the skin

May the current live on the skin

...

[Spanish]

Me diste un par de canciones

Y un libro de tu ciudad

Me diste tres vueltas bailando

Y yo flotando sin pensar

Me diste una nueva corriente

La ruta directa hacia el mar

Llegaste con vientos del este a este sur

de lento hablar

Cambiaste mareas y corrientes

Dejaste tu nombre en el mar

Volteaste la cara sonriente

Y yo que no supe nadar

Cambiaste mareas y corrientes

Dejaste tu nombre en el mar

Volteaste la cara sonriente

Y yo que no supe nadar

Te fuiste marcando destinos

La nueva inquietud por volar

Por ir recorriendo caminos

Hasta volverte a encontrar

Te fuiste cubriendo mi suerte

Con viejas palabras de sal

Que viva en la piel la corriente

Si es que deja un temporal

Cambiaste mareas y corrientes

Dejaste tu nombre en el mar

Volteaste la cara sonriente

Y yo que no supe nadar

Cambiaste mareas y corrientes

Dejaste tu nombre en el mar

Volteaste la cara sonriente

Y yo que no supe nadar

Te fuiste marcando destinos

La nueva inquietud por volar

Por ir recorriendo caminos

Hasta volverte a encontrar

Te fuiste cubriendo mi suerte

Con viejas palabras de sal

Que viva en la piel la corriente

Si es que deja un temporal

Que viva en la piel la corriente

Que viva en la piel la corriente

Que viva en la piel la corriente

Que viva en la piel la corriente

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
corriente /koˈrjente/ B2	noun - a flow of water, air, or electricity; a tendency or movement in society or thought adjective - common, usual, or ordinary
mar /mar/ A2	noun - the large body of salty water that covers much of the earth’s surface
destino /desˈtino/ B2	noun - fate or destiny; the place where someone is going
inquietud /inkjeˈtud/ C1	noun - a feeling of worry, restlessness, or inner unease
marea /maˈɾea/ B2	noun - the regular rise and fall of the sea level caused by the moon and the sun
nadar /naˈðaɾ/ A2	verb - to move through water using arms and legs
camino /kaˈmino/ A2	noun - a way or route for going from one place to another; a path or road
temporal /tempoˈɾal/ B1	noun - a strong storm, especially at sea

Key Grammar Structures

• Me diste un par de canciones

  ➔ Indefinite and definite articles with nouns; simple past tense (preterite) of 'dar'.

  ➔ "Me diste" means 'you gave me' — 'diste' is the preterite form of 'dar' used for completed actions in the past.

• Llegaste con vientos del este a este sur de lento hablar

  ➔ Use of prepositions 'con', 'del', 'a' and descriptive noun phrases.

  ➔ "Llegaste" is preterite of 'llegar' (you arrived). The line uses 'con' to express accompaniment and 'del este' (from the east) as origin.

• Cambiaste mareas y corrientes

  ➔ Preterite tense for completed action with plural direct objects.

  ➔ "Cambiaste" means 'you changed' — expressing a completed alteration in tides and currents.

• Volteaste la cara sonriente

  ➔ Preterite with reflexive or directional verb 'voltear'.

  ➔ "Volteaste" (you turned) describes an instantaneous, completed action in the past.

• Y yo que no supe nadar

  ➔ Combination of conjunction 'que' and negation with preterite of 'saber'.

  ➔ "No supe" means 'I didn’t know how' — 'supe' is preterite of 'saber', used for realizing or knowing something at a point in time.

• Te fuiste marcando destinos

  ➔ Reflexive verb 'irse' in preterite with gerund clause.

  ➔ "Te fuiste marcando" literally 'you left marking...', showing two simultaneous actions: leaving while marking destiny.

• Por ir recorriendo caminos

  ➔ Preposition 'por' introducing an infinitive phrase with gerund.

  ➔ The phrase means 'for going through roads'; 'por' introduces a reason or motivation.

• Que viva en la piel la corriente

  ➔ Subjunctive mood (present) expressing a wish or desire.

  ➔ "Que viva" is like saying 'May it live' — a poetic wish using the present subjunctive.