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No Gringo Lyrics
father says head down
we don't want them finding you
mother says practice now
all the words you know
oh Arizona's burning
they say the fence turned round
now the razor wire keeps us out
mother says with luck
we'll sleep under a roof tonight
father says in the truck
we'll be crushed in tight
oh Chicago don't forget me
as the miles between us grow
keep the maple tree carved with the name of my love
the hills we would sled race down
Lake Michigan stay endless and painted in sky
goodbye
Mother says years ago
the whole world was ours to rule
father says let it go
those days are gone for good
all the signs read no gringo
but somehow we'll find our way
maybe waiting at dawn by the factory doors
sunburnt and bent in the fields
please don't turn us in
we'll be silent as the grave
as time
no gringo
no Gringo aquí
words as levies against the flood
hoy cerrado
there's too many to feed
room for only our own kind, our own blood
no gringo, no gringo aquí
you have stayed in this land for too long
tan amargo
but there's no time to grieve
you just pack up your things and move on
we don't want them finding you
mother says practice now
all the words you know
they say the fence turned round
now the razor wire keeps us out
we'll sleep under a roof tonight
father says in the truck
we'll be crushed in tight
as the miles between us grow
keep the maple tree carved with the name of my love
the hills we would sled race down
Lake Michigan stay endless and painted in sky
goodbye
the whole world was ours to rule
father says let it go
those days are gone for good
but somehow we'll find our way
maybe waiting at dawn by the factory doors
sunburnt and bent in the fields
please don't turn us in
we'll be silent as the grave
as time
no Gringo aquí
words as levies against the flood
hoy cerrado
there's too many to feed
room for only our own kind, our own blood
no gringo, no gringo aquí
you have stayed in this land for too long
tan amargo
but there's no time to grieve
you just pack up your things and move on
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It's a fascinating song. Like Enough To Go By, it is set in the future, but this one is far darker.
No Gringo is is a future in which the U.S. has fallen from power,
"Mother says years ago the whole world was ours to rule father says let it go those days are gone for good"
and now U.S. citizens are struggling their way south of the border into Mexico looking for work
"they say the fence turned round now the razor wire keeps us out"
But since the US is the weaker country, the Mexican government has turned the tables and is trying to keep US labor from their country:
"all the signs read no gringo but somehow we'll find our way maybe waiting at dawn by the factory doors sunburnt and bent in the fields"
The song is told from the perspective of a young child, missing her hometown
"oh Chicago don't forget me as the miles between us grow keep the maple tree carved with the name of my love the hills we would sled race down"
and being asked by her parents to help them fit in:
"father says head down we don't want them finding you mother says practice now all the words you know"
Amazing stuff.
Great explination. Couldn't agree more. Beautiful song...everytime I listen to it, I see a SF-Movie in my head.
Great explination. Couldn't agree more. Beautiful song...everytime I listen to it, I see a SF-Movie in my head.
I agree. It's a sad song with a great Latin style. I love this song.
I agree. It's a sad song with a great Latin style. I love this song.
@connor35 You neglect to mention the why to the song. It's a pretty clear protest song decrying the conditions that the US puts Latin American migrants through. She's saying, you think this is wrong and sad? It's a nightmare for you, but it's real life for Latin American migrants. Very 2000s kind of social awareness song, reminds me of the music video for MIA's Borders.
@connor35 You neglect to mention the why to the song. It's a pretty clear protest song decrying the conditions that the US puts Latin American migrants through. She's saying, you think this is wrong and sad? It's a nightmare for you, but it's real life for Latin American migrants. Very 2000s kind of social awareness song, reminds me of the music video for MIA's Borders.
This is beautiful, and incredibly haunting. Vienna Teng always has amazing lyrics.
The only thing is that I think (from listening to the song) that instead of "No gringo aqua" at the end, it is "No gringo aqui", with the accent on the i in aqui.
Strangely apropos song for Arizona, nowadays.