Lyr Add: The Circle (Kris Kristofferson)

Subject: Lyr Add: The Circle Kris Kristofferson
From: Dave'sWife
Date: 25 May 07 - 12:03 PM

This is a beautiful and huanting song about Los Olvidados - The Disappeared, I don't have the spanish words correct so I left them out. the few spanish words in the english lyrics are probably not right either, but what can you do? Anyone who can help out and correct them or add the Spanish verses, please do so. I have been unable to find the lyrics online so I transcribed them by ear.

The Circle
Kris Kristofferson


Who killed this woman, this artist, this mother
Who broke the candle and snuffed out her life
along with her husband and wandered(?) her children
and then sauntered away like a beast in the night

Not I said the the soldier, I just followed orders
and it was my duty to do my job well
Not I said the leader who ordered the slaughter
I'm sad that it happened, but then, War is hell

Not I said the the others who heard of the horror
and turned a cold shoulder to all that was done
in all the confusion, a single conclusion
the circle of sorrow has only begun

Chorus
Straight to the circle on sundays
down through the canyons they come
bearing the names of their mothers and daughters
names of their fathers and sons
Stolen away with no warning
never to ever return
on the Rio Del Muerto
all the bridges are burned

Spanish Chorus

Spanish verse

Slowly the circle of sadness
spins in the plaza mejor
loneseome remains of the madness
and pain of a world gone insane in a war

and a song for the broken survivors
dancing alone in the dark
with the silence of Los Olividados
like a hole in the heart

Los des aparecidos (means ghosts of the departed though literally it means the appeared)
lost in the darkness alone
gone from the face of the earth
with no trace left behind them to mark with a stone

and the faces of Los Olvidados
only survivors recall
but for the pain and the heartbreak
did they matter at all?

but for the pain and the heartbreak
did they matter at all?

You can buy a nice version of this on iTunes by Maria Gomez

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: The Circle Kris Kristofferson
From: Wesley S
Date: 25 May 07 - 12:04 PM

What CD did Kristofferson record this on?

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: The Circle Kris Kristofferson
From: Dave'sWife
Date: 25 May 07 - 12:28 PM

I'm not sure. I have an MP3 of a live version by him. The only CD version I have is from the recent tribute CD - The Pilgrim - A Celebration of Kris Kristofferson. I believe there are a couple of live CDs where Kris himself sings the song. i'll look around and get back to you. Those CDs are likely also available on iTunes

Injcidentally, I have looked up the unusual term Los Aparecidos and while it can mean Ghost, it is a very region-specific term with origins in Mayan folklore. They are known in English as "Those who appear". When they appear to family members, they are harmless. If they appear to others, they can be nasty.

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: The Circle Kris Kristofferson
From: Dave'sWife
Date: 25 May 07 - 12:43 PM

found it. The Circle appears on this CD:

Kris Kristofferson
Broken Freedom Song: Live from San Francisco
Release Date: July 08, 2003
Label: Oh Boy

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: The Circle Kris Kristofferson
From: Wesley S
Date: 25 May 07 - 03:43 PM

Can I assume you've heard "This Old Road" - his new CD? Great stuff.

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: The Circle Kris Kristofferson
From: Dave'sWife
Date: 26 May 07 - 06:54 PM

No, I don't have that one Wesley but I have an Amazon Gift certifictae I earned from product testing and can't think of a better way to spend it! I'm on a major Kristofferson kick lately having spent about $30 on tunes by him at iTunes in the past month or so!

Some people don't like his voice but I always have.

I was born in 1964 into a very musical family and I was just getting into singing and playing the guitar when he hit big as a songwriter. I remember hearing Sammi Smith's version of 'Help me Make it Through The Night' almost every day on the radio in our kitchen when we lived in this neat old cabin on the edge of a forest in a small town where my dad was stationed when he was a NYS Trooper. That and songs like 'Sunday morning comin' down', 'For the good times' and others were some of the first songs I learned to play. I have a sister who is just under 4 years older and a gifted musician so I was exposed to more mature music at a young age.

It was the melodies more than anything that I loved so much. It took me more years and maturity to appreciate his lyrics the way I do now. The melody is one of the most striking things about 'the Circle'. it's simple but it has a clever descending pattern that mirrors the lyrics.


It's nice that Oh Boy records is reissuing some of his early 1980s albums like Third World Warrior which didn't register with most people.   I always loved that album!

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: The Circle Kris Kristofferson
From: Ebbie
Date: 27 May 07 - 12:38 AM

Kristofferson is a wonderful songwriter. His words never seem forced into the space available but they are clean and precise and evocative of hurt and heartbreak and despair and love and hope.

'In the News' is one of those.

Subject: Lyr Add: THE CIRCLE (Kris Kristofferson)
From: GUEST,Kevin McKenna
Date: 27 May 07 - 10:23 AM

THE CIRCLE (Key of D major)

Who killed this woman, this artist, this mother
Who broke the candle and snuffed out her light
Along with her husband and wounded her children
And sauntered away like a beast in the night

Not I said the soldier I just followed orders
And it was my duty to do my job well
Not I said the leader who ordered the slaughter
I'm saddened it happened, but then, war is hell

Not us said the others who heard of the horror
And turned a cold shoulder on all that was done
In all the confusion a single conclusion
The circle of sorrow has only begun

Straight to the circle on Sunday
Down through the canyons they come
Bearing names of their mothers and daughters
Names of their fathers and sons
Stolen away with no warning never to ever return
On el Rio del Muerto, all the bridges are burned

Los desaparecidos solos en la oscuridad
Dejan la faz de la tierra sin rastro ni tumba a donde llorar
Y las caras de los olvidados pocos las recordaran.
Yo me pregunto si valio la pena tanta angustia y dolor.

Slowly the circle of sadness spins in the Plaza Major
Lonesome remains of the madness and pain in a world gone insane in a war
And a song for the broken survivors dancing alone in the dark
With the silence of los olvidados like a hole in the heart

Los desaparecidos lost in the darkness alone
Gone from the face of the earth with no trace left behind them to mark with a stone
And the faces of los olvidados only survivors recall
But for the pain and the heartbreak, did they matter at all
But for the pain and the heartbreak, did they matter at all

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: The Circle (Kris Kristofferson)
From: Dave'sWife
Date: 05 Jun 07 - 07:53 AM

many thanks Kevin_McKenna! Cealry I made a n umber of mistakes. For example I took 'Desaparecidos' and broke it up into two words 'des aparecidos' which means something else entirely! Los Desaparecidos' means the Vanished Ones. Los Aparecidos means: those who apear.

The song refers to the practice of survivors who go down to the plaza and march around in circles with enlarged photos of The Disappeared on placards. The marching can be seen as a protest of their having been wiped off the face of the earth as if they never existed. More likely it has links to ancestor worship that predates the European conquest.

Here's a great site for info:
The Vanished Gallery

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: The Circle (Kris Kristofferson)
From: GUEST
Date: 02 Oct 17 - 09:11 PM

There is a beautiful recorded version of this song by a lady with a guitar and a Spanish accent. I cannot find it anywhere. Help?

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: The Circle (Kris Kristofferson)
From: Stewie
Date: 03 Oct 17 - 09:39 PM

Guest, is this what you are looking for:

Marta Gomez

--Stewie.