| Willie Nelson – Seven Spanish Angels Lyrics | 12 years ago |
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This song invokes South Mexico's rich history of Aztec and Mayan cultures. The songwriters knew of the Legend of the Lovers. There is a Mayan temple in the Yucatan called Temple of the Seven Dolls, Dzibilchaltún. The Alter of the Sun is a real place also, located in the great Maya city of Palenque in southern Mexico. The song also invokes La Malinche, a slave woman given to Hernan Cortes when he conquered the Maya and Aztecs, as she is depicted in Mexican artwork showing women who stand alongside men in battle. Finally, this song invokes La Noche Triste ("the sorrowful night") on June 30, 1520, an important event during the Spanish conquest of Mexico. What used to be thought of as an Aztec calendar is the actually an altar. The death of this couple, two warriors, alludes to the "Sun Stone" which is a “temalacatl” — a sacrificial altar — the idea was that warriors would be tied to it for gladiatorial sacrifices. Palenque also held other temples, an aqueduct, and a palace with a three-story tower. There are many Aztec altars in Mexico, but since this one is closest to the Temple of 7 dolls (angels) it seems most fitting. There is another altar, the stone of Moctezuma, which depicts11 conquest scenes of the Aztec defeating the Maya. Since it was found in 1988, 4 years after & Spanish Angels was written, it is not the subject of this song, but it was known that the Spanish destroyed the ceremonial center of the Tenochtitlan, and built a large Palace, which is resting on many pre-Columbian artifacts. Another "sun stone" altar that was found in 1790, under the palaces the Spanish built on top of Aztec structures, called the Stone of the Five Eras. It was found when repairs were being done to the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary of Mexico City, built in sections from 1573 to 1813, on top of Aztec religious places as a sign of conquest of these beautiful but now oppressed people. Why is my mention of oppression significant? Because this song is pure allegory, and it fits in with the legends coming out of the region. Ever go into a Mexican restaurant and see really colorful paintings of a handsome Aztec warrior holding a beautiful woman in his arms, next to two mountains? This is a really popular legend. The native peoples are represented by the lovers, the man and woman in this song. Part of the rich cultural history of this area is the Legend of the Lovers. Aztec mythology relates the legend of Mt. Popocatepetl and Mt. Iztaccihuatl ("white woman"), two glacier-iced volcanoes just outside Mexico city, represented as two starred-crossed lovers. The peaks of Izta are in the shape of a reclining woman. The other mountain is the man "Don Goyo", overlooking her. This is something like a Romeo and Juliet story, with the woman killing herself because she couldn't live without her love. In Aztec mythology, the volcanoes were once humans who were deeply in love. This legend features two star-crossed lovers, the young brave warrior Popocat'petl and the beautiful princess Iztacc'huatl. The father of Iztacc'huatl, a mighty ruler, placed a demanding condition upon Popocat'petl before he could take Iztacc'huatl as his bride. His mandate required that Popocat'petl first engage in battle against the tribe's enemy (Maya) and return victorious. Variations of the legend include the added stipulation that Popocat'petl needed to return with the vanquished enemy's head as proof of his success. Popocat'petl set off for battle with Iztacc'huatl waiting for her beloved's return. A false message was sent back to the ruler by Tlaxcala, that the warrior has been slain when in fact, Popocat'petl has won the battle and is ready to return to his Iztacc'huatl. However, the princess upon hearing the false news,dies of a broken heart. Popocat'petl returns alive, but grief-stricken beyond measure, dies next to his beloved. The Gods, touched by the lovers' plight, turn the humans into mountains, so that they may finally be together. They remain so to this day with Popocat'petl residing over his princess Iztacc'huatl, while she lay asleep. On occasion, Popo will spew ash, reminding those watching that he is always in attendance, that he will never leave the side of his beloved Izta. As for the coward, Tlaxcala, who lied to Iztaccihuatl, overcome with repentance for the tragedy that ensued, he went off to die very near his land. He also became a mountain, Pico de Orizaba, another of the region’s volcanoes and now, from afar, watches the eternal dream of the two lovers, never again to be separated. In the same area the culture holds a festival called Day of the Dead. Troy Seals (famous musician family, ie Seals & Croft) and Eddie Setser wrote this song. |
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