Lyr Add: Los Cuatro Muleros + Los Cuatro Generales

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Los Cuatro Muleros & Los Cuatro Generales
From: GUEST,Juan
Date: 27 Sep 11 - 12:12 AM

The actual correct translation (literal as well) would be:

Los quatro generales, los quatro generales
Los quatro generales, mamita mia,
Que se han alzado, que se han alzado

Para la Nochebuena, para la Nochebuena,
Para la Nochebuena, mamita mia,
Seran ahorcados, seran ahorcados

Madrid, que bien resistas, Madrid, que bien resistas
Madrid, que bien resistas, mamita mia,
Los bombardeos, los bombardeos

The Four generals, the four generals
the four generals, mamita mia (oh mother, or my mother)
Who have rebelled, who have rebelled

By Christmas Eve, by Christmas Eve,
will be hanged, will be hanged

Madrid, how well you resist
Madrid, how well you resist, mamita mia,
The bombings, the bombings.

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Los Cuatro Muleros & Los Cuatro Generales
From: GUEST,Per Rasmussen
Date: 24 Sep 09 - 11:27 AM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JaMOWY_fRLo

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Los Cuatro Muleros & Los Cuatro Generales
From: GUEST,Uke
Date: 23 Mar 09 - 07:10 PM

The way it was generally sung in 1940-60s New Zealand by left-wing students is pretty close to Abby Sale's version, but with some differences:


Los Cuatro Generales...
Qué se han alzado.

The four insurgent generals...
They tried to betray us.

At Christmas holy evening...
They all will be hanging.

Madrid you wondrous city...
They wanted to take you.

But your courageous children...
They did not disgrace you.

And all your tears of sorrow...
We shall avenge them.

And all your age-old bondage...
We'll break it asunder.



I wonder who created these English verses - they are brilliant poetry in their own right.

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Los Cuatro Muleros & Los Cuatro Generales
From: GUEST,Welshman
Date: 23 Mar 09 - 06:51 PM

Paul Robeson sang this - for me, the definitive version.

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Los Cuatro Muleros & Los Cuatro Gener
From: GUEST,garridobanjoco
Date: 18 Jun 08 - 03:54 PM

The last verse could be translated:

Why are you looking for a light
down the street?
When your face is pure fire

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Los Cuatro Muleros & Los Cuatro Gener
From: GUEST,garridobanjoco
Date: 18 Jun 08 - 03:42 PM

It's simply a free translation of:

De las bombas se ríen, de las bombas se rien
de las bombas se ríen, mamita mía
Los madrileños

BTW the four generals were Mola (not Mula=mule) Queipo de Llano Varela and Franco.

Subject: RE: Los Cuatro Muleros and Los Cuatro Generales
From: Abby Sale
Date: 12 Mar 05 - 07:52 PM

Over the years, several people have helped me put together the following. I sing it, of course, on Franco's birthday, Dec 4 (1892)

Los Cuatro Generales                               Literal translation                               Typical Singable translation      

Los cuatro generales,                               The four generals,                               The four insurgent generals,   
Los cuatro generales,                               The four generals,                               The four insurgent generals,   
Los cuatro generales,                               The four generals.                               The four insurgent generals.   
Mamita mia,                                              Mamita mia,                                       Mamita mia,                  
Qué se han alzado,                                  They have rebelled,                            They have betrayed you,      
Qué se han alzado.                                  They have rebelled.                            They have betrayed you.      

Para la Nochebuena, (3x)                        When Christmas Eve arrives,               One Christmas holy evening,   
Mamita mia,                                           Mamita mia,                                          Mamita mia,                  
Serán ahorcados, (2x)                            They shall be hanging,                         They shall be hanging,         

Madrid, qué bien resistes,                      Madrid, how well you resist,                  Madrid, you wondrous city,   
Los bombarderos...                               Those with the bombs...                         They want to take you...      

De las bombas se rien,                           They laugh about the bombs,                  But your courageous children,
Los Madrileños...                                  The people of Madrid...                         They did not disgrace you...   

Puente de los Franceses,                        The Frenchman's Bridge,                               -----------------------------
Nadie te pasa...                                       Nobody crosses...

Porque tus milicianos,                           Because your army,
Que bien te guardan...                           How well they guard you...

Subject: RE: Los Cuatro Muleros and Los Cuatro Generales
From: Wolfgang
Date: 12 Mar 05 - 05:11 PM

Link to German lyrics

Wolfgang

1. Die Herren Generale, die Herren Generale,die Herren Generale,' mamita mia hab`n uns verraten, mamita mia hab`n uns verraten 2. |: Wer hat denn diese Herren:| |:so schlecht beraten? :| 3. |:Madrid, du wunderbare :| |:dich wollten sie nehmen. :| 4. |: Doch deiner treuen Söhne :| |: brauchst dich nicht zu schämen. :| 5. |: Und alle deine Tränen, :| |: die werden wir rächen. :| 6. |: Und alle unsre Knechtschaft, :| |:die werden wir brechen

---

Lyrics copy-pasted from the link cited above.
-Joe Offer-

Subject: RE: Los Cuatro Muleros and Los Cuatro Generales
From: GUEST,Derald Glidden
Date: 11 Mar 05 - 07:53 PM

The name of the 4th general is Queipo de Llano.

Subject: RE: Los Cuatro Muleros and Los Cuatro Generales
From: GUEST,Plus Ultra
Date: 21 Jan 03 - 07:37 AM

There's anothr verse refering to the brave resistance of the Madrileños. It was usually sung right after

Madrid, que bien resistEs, Madrid, que bien resistEs
Madrid, que bien resistEs, mamita mia,
Los bombardeos, los bombardeos

(notice the indicative E instead of subjunctive A)

and it goes:

De las bombas se ríen, de las bombas se ríen
de las bombas se ríen, mamita mía
los madrileños, los madrileños.

For other verses, try this

http://www.uni-bonn.de/~uzs320/mamita.htm
http://agora.ya.com/biblio81/songs_rev/puentefranceses.html
http://icodrepublicano.iespana.es/icodrepublicano/letrascanciones.htm

Subject: RE: Los Cuatro Muleros and Los Cuatro Generales
From: Wolfgang
Date: 21 Jan 03 - 06:32 AM

A German vertsion can be heard here (click on 'Die Herren Generale')

Wolfgang

Subject: RE: Los Cuatro Muleros and Los Cuatro Generales
From: GUEST,Q
Date: 20 Jan 03 - 10:04 PM

I have an LP with this song, sung by the great Germaine Montero. The translation on the sleeve:

Los Quatro Muleros

Of the four mule drivers,
My Mother, the ones who go for water,
The one with the gray mule
Has stolen my heart.

Of the four mule drivers,
My Mother, the ones who go to the river,
The one with the gray mule
My Mother, is my husband.

Why do you look for lighting
for your house, up and down the street,
When in his soft face,
My Mother, there are live coals?

The last verse is:
Ya que tu casa alumbre,
mamita mia,
La calle abajo, la calle arriba,
Si de tu cara sale,
Mamita mia,
la brasa viva.
(From Andalusia)

Subject: RE: LYR ADD: Los Cuatro Muleros and Los Cuatro Ge
From: judy
Date: 02 Jul 98 - 02:09 AM

Jerry

Thank you so much for your exceptional guesses and research.

enjoy! judy

Subject: RE: LYR ADD: Los Cuatro Muleros and Los Cuatro Ge
From: Jerry Friedman
Date: 01 Jul 98 - 07:45 PM

An actual print dictionary (U. of Chicago) says that "tordo/a" is "dapple-gray". So I was close. And I might as well have rendered "bombardeos" as "bombardments".

Subject: RE: LYR ADD: Los Cuatro Muleros and Los Cuatro Ge
From: Jerry Friedman
Date: 25 Jun 98 - 12:57 PM

Now for another try. I assume "ahorchado" is "ahorcado", hanged.

The four generals
Who rebelled

On (by?) Christmas Eve
Will be hanged.

Madrid, may you resist well
The bombardment.

Subject: RE: LYR ADD: Los Cuatro Muleros and Los Cuatro Ge
From: Jerry Friedman
Date: 25 Jun 98 - 12:50 PM

There seem to be some dialect words (or mistakes?) in the Spanish text. The only meaning I can find for "torda" is "female thrush"--as an adjective, could it be "speckled like a thrush"? Like you, I'm guessing "mario" should be "marido", husband (maybe in the common pronunciation with a silent d). I'm very unclear on the last verse, but certainly "le lumbre" should be "la lumbre" (light). "Sale" is the third-person singular of "salir", to come out, to exit. I'm going to try "radiates".

I'm using Langenscheidt's Spanish-English dictionary. There's a German-English dictionary at the same site, incidentally.

The Four Mule Drivers

Of the four mule drivers, my darling mama,
Who go to the river,
The one with the (speckled?) mule, my darling mama,
Brown-haired and tall,

Of the four mule drivers, my darling mama,
Who go to the water,
The one with the (speckled?) mule, my darling mama,
Steals my soul.

Of the four mule drivers, etc.
The one with the (speckled?) mule, my darling mama,
Is my husband.

(Where?) do you look for light, my darling mama,
(Up the street? In the upper street?)
If from your face radiates, my darling mama,
The live coal.

Maybe someone can improve this.

Subject: Lyr Add: LOS QUATRO MULEROS + LOS QUATRO GENERALES
From: judy
Date: 24 Jun 98 - 06:34 PM

A song many people may know as *Los Quatro Generales*, a song from the Spanish Civil War uses the Andalusian tune *Los Quatro Muleros*. The four Generals are Franco, Mula, Varela and Cuerpo de Llana.

Here are both:

LOS QUATRO MULEROS

De los quatro muleros, de los quatro muleros,
De los quatro muleros, mamita mia,
Que van al rio, que van al rio
El de la mula torda, el de la mula torda,
El de la mula torda, mamita mia,
Moreno y alto, moreno y alto

De los quatro muleros, de los quatro muleros,
De los quatro muleros, mamita mia,
Que van al agua, que van al agua
El de la mula torda, el de la mula torda,
El de la mula torda, mamita mia,
Me roba el alma, me roba el alma.

De los quatro muleros, de los quatro muleros,
De los quatro muleros, mamita mia,
Que van al rio, que van al rio
El de la mula torda, el de la mula torda,
El de la mula torda, mamita mia,
Es mi mario, es mi mario

A que buscas le lumbre, a que buscas le lumbre
A que buscas le lumbre, mamita mia,
La calle arriba, la calle arriba
Si de tu cara sale, si de tu cara sale
Si de tu cara sale, mamita mia,
La brasa viva, la brasa viva

I'm guessing on the translation here:

Of the four mule drivers who went to the river/water
The last one who was dark and tall was my husband
Whoever looks for the (lumbre) on the last street
If your dirty face (??!?) your arm lives

(Sorry, that last line just has to mean something else??!?)

LOS QUATRO GENERALES

Los quatro generales, los quatro generales
Los quatro generales, mamita mia,
Que se han alzado, que se han alzado

Para la Nochebuena, para la Nochebuena,
Para la Nochebuena, mamita mia,
Seran ahorcados, seran ahorcados

Madrid, que bien resistas, Madrid, que bien resistas
Madrid, que bien resistas, mamita mia,
Los bombardeos, los bombardeos

The translation as close as I can is

The four generals who tried to betray us at Christmas will be hanging
Madrid, who resisted so well the bombardments

(And I have another verse in English with no accompanying Spanish verse)
But your courageous children did not disgrace you.

Perhaps someone can help me out. HELP!

enjoy!
judy