word weapons

 

 

Harder than a Hurricane

 

Pedro came from Porto Rico

calle luna, calle sol

Lloren Torres caserios

Wars a story never told

 

daddy tried but died a cancer

mama trauma gone of AIDS

no vieques second chances

Castaway amor de rey

 

make it rain

strike a vein

chase the fame

or just go insane

 

make it plain

bring the pain

claim ya stain

we be harder than a hurricane

 

Latin Lord of  Fort Apache

pistol Pete of Simpson street

si la jara try ta gas me 

no retreat and no defeat

 

lootin’ loosies you’se a nuisance

brother smothered in the fray

Huey Newton shootin’ uzis

suckas duck or  fuckin’ pray

 

make it rain

sell cocaine

play the game

or just go insane

 

make it plain

break the chain

say ya name

we be harder than a hurricane

 

A hard rain was falling

down upon my head

I saw my people brawling

over a crumb of stale bread

 

i heard Saint Peter calling

to me from my deathbed

I seen a newborn bawling

and I spit out my meds instead

 

seven-seven in a prison

came of age inside a cage

wrote a note by homing pigeon 

from a slave sent to the grave

 

it said... 

to the mourners from the foreigner 

and to God if she exist

trigga niggas on the corna

fight the power and resist!

 

Ain’t no storm could ever stop us!

neither spain nor hurricane!

see the papas y las guapas!

salsa dancing in the rain!...

 

Make it plain 

hit a vein

break the chain

hide ya stain

got no shame

or ya’ll go insane

 

make it rain

man o mane!

sell cocaine

so much pain

say ya name

nothin’ ta gain!

or just go insane

salsa dance in the rain

 

agua que va caer!

que va caer ya tu va ver

agua que va caer!

un enfriado puedo coger

agua que va caer!

yo vi a todos mi gente correr

agua que va caer!

mira que el cielo se esta nublando

 

agua que va caer!

lágrimas se va bajando

agua que va caer!

sufrimiento se ve caminando

agua que va caer!

aguita bombon pa todo  borikua

agua que va caer!

aguita bombon con todo la fuerza

 

agua que va caer!

¡aguita bombón para Zarabanda!

agua que va caer!

aguita bombon pa’ dar ellegua

agua que va caer!

aguita bombon pa’ dar Oya

agua que va caer!

aguita bombon para mama wanga

 

agua que va caer!

aguita bombon para mama Chola

agua que va caer!

aguita bombon para dar Yemaya

agua que va caer!

aguita bombon para madre Agua

agua que va caer!

aguita bombon para dar Obatala

 

agua que va caer!

aguita bombon para oduduwa

agua que va caer!

aguita bombon para dar a Oba

agua que va caer!

aguita bombon para dar Yemoja

agua que va caer!

aguita bombon para mama africa

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

No Soy de Aqui

Jesus flew on Jet Blue up to New York

heaven bound got down and kissed the ground

devil bass and treble got a pitchfork

chased ‘em ‘round the browner side a town

 

nitty gritty sanctuary city

worlds apart statistic on a chart

walter Mitty welcoming committee

beck and call a wallmart for a heart

 

no soy de aqui

ni de alla

esta vida nos acerca a la verdad

no soy de aqui

ni de alla

adios goodbye y no me diga na'..

Julia was a bruja outta Cuba

commie mami in the promised land

tierra pura tirando basura

sun and sand to livin’ mouth to hand

 

cuddled up wit all dem huddled masses

wretched screaming by your teeming shore

light their asses fascist book of matches

civil war the poor outside the door

 

no soy de aqui

ni de alla

esta moda no se sabe donde va

no soy de aqui

ni de alla

adios goodbye y no me joda ma'...

 

Jose can you see

this free land's not for me

the last refugee  

deportee by decree

 

a brick in the wall

or a bigger strip mall

the rise and the fall

and the last curtain call my name.....

 

no soy de aqui

ni de alla

A mal tiempo buena cara pero besos no son balas          

no soy de aqui

ni de alla

esta mundo no es vaga el que la hace la paga

no soy de aqui

ni de alla

malcriado en el juego pero el amor es ciego

no soy de aqui

ni de alla

esta vida nos ahorcas coma federico garcia lorcas

no soy de aqui

ni de alla

Hazme la maleta mama yo me voy de Nueva Yor'
yo no soy de aqui

ni de alla

Yo me regreso a mi sesos el odio no es amor        

no soy de aqui

ni de alla

mas mejor con gran calor adios en dolor mayor

yo no soy de aqui

ni de alla

Acelera que me voy, acelera que me voy hoy oi oi oi oi oi....

 

Our Latin Thang

 

Mambo bongo playin' in the street

Congo Chango swaying to the beat

like Cuban Pete ya jumpin' outta ya seat

but you ain't got no shoes on ya feet

 

Subway Joe was on the radio

Bailando Barretto o lavoe

a cop and blow until the end of the show

'cause you knows that a rose never grows

 

Chevere!

Listenin' ta sister Celia sang

chevere!

Sufferin's a deeper shade a swang

chevere!

Ching-a-ling from once when we were kang

chevere!

It was our latin thang

 

rumba cumbia cruising thru the night

bomba tumba rooster lose a fight

like socialites until they turn out the lights

or they read you ya Miranda Rights

 

bitches brew the latin bugalu

two plus two the rent is always due

this bird has flew y dicen quitate tu

because black is the new kinda blue

 

Chevere!

Listenin' ta sister Celia sang

chevere!

Sufferin's a deeper shade a swang

chevere!

Ching-a-ling from once when we were kang

chevere!

It was our latin thang

chevere!

 

Baila!

ay, mi pana, hermana

Baila!

En que no tiene gana

Baila!

En el gran sufrimiento

Baila!

Lagrimas en el viento

Baila!

Mi amigo companero

Baila!

y que no tenga miedo

Baila!

En estos tiempos peligrosos

Baila!

Todos los feos son hermosos

Baila!

 

Mongo songo jammin' on the one

samba bamba 'till the morning sun

maferefun on the wrong side of a gun

play ya drum 'till the slave catcher come

 

Hobo Bobo looking for a home

Colon’s trombone couldn’t get a loan

el rey is gone they found him prone on his throne

Y mataron el negro bembon

 

Chevere!

Listenin’ to sista celia sang

chevere!

Sufferin's a deeper shade a swang

chevere!

Ching-a-ling from once when we were kang

chevere!

Yo no se what manana will brang

Chevere

Ganar la loteria por fin

Chevere!

Sing for bling or a greasy chicken wang

Chevere!

After winter there is always sprang

chevere!

It was our Latin thang…

Chevere! (end on this)

 

Viva la Revolú!

 Yo no soy El Che Guevara

 Y no quiero a pelear

 No me llamo Victor Jara

 pero yo se a cantar

Sin un rifle y sin balas

 Yo no soy el gran varon

 A la buena o la mala 

Solamente mi cancion

 

No dejes tu vida

 en la cruz

 Dios te bendiga

 En la luz

 Yo soy boricua

 How ‘bout you?

 Diga que viva

 La revolu!

 

No soy Maros en Chiapas

 O Fidel en la moncada

 solo toco mi guitarra

 Es mi salsa intifada

 Yo no lanzo cochebombas

 No soy Simon Bol

       Vacilando en la sombra

Lo que quiero es bailar

 

No dejes tu vida

 en la cruz

Dios te bendiga

 En la luz 

somos  boricua

 Yo y tu?

 Diga que viva La revolu!

  

 Diga que viva la revolu!

 Diga que viva la revolu!

 Diga que viva la revolu!

 Diga que viva la revolu! 

 

Traigo una cancion  para Lolita Lebron, lai, le lo lai                   

 No tengo pistola, pero tengo trombone                

 No soy Chairman Gonzalo pero hago trabajo, carajo! 

Y yo traigo mi bajo para los de abajo    

Oye bien mi negrito, musica calantito,               

 ni Albizu ni el grito, soy el viento del pito                

Con tambor y maraca soy la salsa que salva              

 y cuando la guerra se acaba yo voy buscando guayaba

 

Diga que viva la revolu!

 Diga que viva la revolu!

 Diga que viva la revolu!

 Diga que viva la revolu!

   

All The Arms We Need

Out!... side a war is ragin’

ain’t no shelter from the storm

The times they are a-changin’

And the battle lines been drawn

 

the saviors rattle sabres

killing cattle by the score

and chattel’s trapped in cages

master locks upon every door

 

The dead we steady grievin’

departed hearts still gon’ bleed

But i keep on believin’

that we are all the arms we’ll ever need…

 

we sow the seed

a rose is better than a weed

we pray and we plead

too Jesus!... but we can barely breathe…

 

There’s brothers bangin’ brother’s

Others hanging from a noose

And bridges is built for jumpers

suckas never will call a truce

 

the faceless race is rolling

bastard breed conceived in greed

so po po is still patrolling

calvary to the, uh, poplar tree

 

the blanket’s was laced with smallpox

General Lee on to, huh, Tuskegee

it’s three years here if you throw rocks

but we be all the arms that we will ever need

 

the lord shouted down from above

and ordered when push comes to shove

you’re either a hawk or a dove

but I would rather be a soldier of love?

of love!……

 

true love is ever dying

In the ground by sounding sea

And worse the earth is crying

knocked her down on her one wounded knee

 

But lovers will still be lovin’

All agree it is guaranteed

‘cause when nuthin’ just leaves you nuthin’

We will be all the arms that we’ll ever need…

 

we sow the seed

a spanish rose or just a vanished  weed

we’re millions to feed

but we got all the arms that we’ll ever need

say it again, yall... we are all the arms that we’ll ever need

si we be all the arms….

until we is…..

freed….

 

Strictly Street n Subway

Doesn't matter where ya come from

If ya don't know where ya been

but when they ain't no chase to run from

that's the place where you begin

 I was born torn from the gutter

battle cry ready to die

bread and butter was my mother’s

                 inner-city lullaby                 

 but I'm strictly street and subway

BMT to IRT

I said I'm strictly street and subway

DOB to R.I.P.

 Makes no difference where ya livin'

in this game the shames the same

Unforgiven in a prison

stake ya claim though maimed or lame

 I was raised inside these tunnels

caught beneath its grinding teeth

blackboard jumble third rail stumble

thug or thief Indian chief

 but I'm strictly street and subway

IND to IRT

I said I'm strictly street and subway

DOB to R.I.P.

My name I flame on this train

a dangerous game the cost a lost fame

slum tumbles down in the tunnels

rebels and rubble gavels and shovels

 scrawled scriptures history in pictures

mythical mixtures magic elixirs

sprayed subways underworld ballets

sub-terrain swordplay b-boys on broadway

 write night how bright I ignite

take flight in black light despite the white flight

in trenches with monkey wrenches

barbed-wire fences expensive defenses

 click clack a pack on my back

hijack on the track attack on what's whack

uptown get up or get down

the peoples playground a king with no crown....

 nothin' pleasant 'bout the present

livin's fast blast from the past

rent a tent a ten cent peasant

built to last like broken glass

 fade to black in New Jack City

live and die in neon sky

ghetto gangsters and graffiti

amplify my alibi....

 crucified inside a sewer

my abode this heavy load

seems my dreams was none or fewer

trod on godforsaken road...

 but I'm strictly street and subway

IRT to BMT

I said I'm strictly street and subway

EMT to R.I.P.

 Yes I'm strictly street and subway

BMT to IND

you know I'm strictly street and subway

END to END

 It's like a jungle sometimes it make me wonder how I keep from going under  

It's like a jungle sometimes it make me wonder how I keep from going under  

It's like a jungle sometimes it make me wonder how I keep from going under... ground!

 In the jungle brother

set me free!

In the jungle brother

let me be!

In the jungle brother

can't you see?

In the jungle brother

I gots to be me!

In the jungle brother

home sweet home!

In the jungle brother

where I roam!

In the jungle brother

danger zone!

In the jungle brother

so welcome to the terrordome!

 

Bronx is Burning

 

One, two,

Uno, dos, tres, cuatro

 

Bronx is burning

In the summer heat

higher learning

on every ghetto Street

 

Moshulu

is goin’ up in smoke

de ja vu

uptown is gettin’ woke

 

Strike a match

and pass the gasoline

record scratch

808 drum machine

 

Fordham Road’s

A raisin in the sun

Lock and load

The party’s just begun

 

send a message thru the wire

gonna set this game on fire

see the flames is gettin’ higher

 

Bronx is burning

Syrup sweet

tables turning

back to a Latin beat

 

gettin’ lit

on bruckner blvd

it is writ 

on memories burnt and charred

 

light the fuse

or toss the molotav

pay ya dues

or face the fiery mob

 

fireworks

ashtray on pelham bay

DJ Herc

And love will light the way

 

send a message thru the wire

gonna set this game on fire

see the flames is gettin’ higher and higher and higher 

 

fuego!, fuego!

Los yanquis qeuren fuego!

Fuego!, fuego!

Sordo, mudo o ciego!

Fuego!, fuego!

La lucha no es juego!

Fuego!, fuego!

La revolú ya llego!

 

what happens to a word deferred

a sin to kill a mockingbird

as children build on edenwald

preparing for the rise and fall

 

and riders hide inside the flames

of inner-city hunger games

with firefights on morris heights
they roam the days we own the nights
 

a coup on Sedgwick avenue

for Anthony and Amadou!

ain’t no peace for the police force

the people seize the grand concourse

 

a stones thrown in crotona park

wait until dark to light the spark

and fiddle as the city burns

it’s the Hunts Point of no return

 

SOUTH BRONX, THE SOUTH SOUTH BRONX! 

 

Candela!

The Phoenix rises from the fire

Candela!

With matches and a burning tire

Candela!

Anima sola in the flame

Candela!

and soul linked in a human chain

Candela!

Elijah called the fire from heaven

Candela!

the torch is lit seven eleven

Candela!

The dynamite that might ignite

Candela!

Becomes the slums eternal light

 

Candela!

Can you smell it wafting thru the air?

Candela!

no holy hell will stand a prayer

Candela!

A porto rican palestine

Candela!

with kerosene and holy wine

Candela!

God gave Noah the rainbow sign

Candela!

No more wáter but fire next time

Candela!

No more wáter but fire next time

Candela!

No more wáter but fire next time….

Can-de-la!!!

 

  

Abrazos Para Ti 

aqui donde yo naci

en estas calles sin amor

poverty and misery

mi color es mi dolor


payin' dues and gettin' used

enganar y atacar

New York City hard time blues

este mundo se va acabar

un abrazo para ti, mami

heart to heart and hand to hand

un abrazo para ti, papi

Nuyorican's understand


en este mundo sin perdon

el amor todo lo puede

el ladron roba ladron 

sin hogar un casa quiere


Spanish Harlem to the Bronx

dos son menos la sentida

we all get what we don't want

sacrificio o saliva


un abrazo para ti, mami

every woman every man

un abrazo para ti, papi

Nuyorican's understand


en este mundo desgraciado

a pagar sera a llorar

no tengo nadie a mi lado

este tierra va temblar


Loisaida down to Brooklyn

un Corazon abandonada

just don't let em catch you lookin'

quien mal anda mal acaba


un abrazo para ti, mami

heart to heart and hand to hand

un abrazo para ti, papi

every woman every man

un abrazo para ti, mami

spread your arms across the land

un abrazo para ti, papi

Nuyorican's understand


un abrazo para ti

be my shelter from the storm

un abrazo para ti

keep me warm and safe from harm

un abrazo para ti

Puerto Rico es pura flama

un abrazo para ti

ven y ama me mi mama

un abrazo para ti

have and hold enfold me tighter

un abrazo para ti

be my lover not a fighter

un abrazo para ti

counter fit me like a glove

un abrazo para ti

sending my message of love

un abrazo para ti

come and sing it with me gente

un abrazo para ti

nada contra la corriente

un abrazo para ti

donde el Corazon se inclina

un abrazo para ti

yo se que a pie camina

un abrazo para ti

amor no respeta ley

un abrazo para ti

ni obodece a rey

un abrazo para ti

every man, boy, woman, girl

un abrazo para ti

wrap your arms around the world! 

 

The Ballad of Oscar Lopez Rivera

He was just a Puerto Rican boy

South Side of Chicago Illinois

migrant camps doo-wop under street lamps

Ortiz was the Junior Welterweight Champ

 West Side Story was on the silver screen

rice and beans and life could be a dream

urban blight in the still of the night

everything was alright

 dreams and dynamite

dreams and dynamite

dreams and dynamite

dreams and dynamite

 Uncle Sam sent the man to Viet Nam

Birmingham Mississippi Goddamn

riots start up in Humboldt Park

Torn apart from here to Newark

 A bronze star in somebody elses war

Matador back out on the killing floor

civil rights plebescites blacks and whites

uptight out of sight

 dreams and dynamite

dreams and dynamite

dreams and dynamite

dreams and dynamite

 Lions den another attica again

Evanston and the FALN

sent to prison the mission sedition

innervision the streets of division

 proud as hell inside and FCI cell

louder than even a Jayuya yell

damn right you either fall or you fight

Puerto Ricans unite!

 dreams and dynamite

dreams and dynamite

dreams and dynamite

dreams and dynamite

 I got dreams and dynamite

TNT make everything right

to get free ya gotta light up the night

with dynamite!, dynamite!, dynamite!

 we gotta stand up and write people

got to fight for ya rights, mi gente

gotta fight, we gotta fight

got to fight for your rights!