Pablo Guerrero’s “Y vives con la ventana abierta”

One of Pablo Guerrero’s best, of his LP of 1976 Porque amamos el fuego (Because we love fire), a great folk-rock album full of burning, sweet, tender and combative poetry by this songwriter, folksinger and poet from Extremadura. “Y vives con la ventana abierta” is a song that is a tribute to all those people who, although the depressing, demoralizing and cruel reality, refuse to turn their backs to it and try to make something for the change of injusticies. The song ends with a declaration and a sentence against the war and to a kind of people of the middle of 70s, who practice daily crime (policemen and extreme-right sympathizers) and to those extreme-right and conservative politicians and several demagogues who were talking day by day in Tv, press and radio, with a barroque but empty speech, opposite to the singers and songwriters, who fill with hope the souls of their auience.

Y vives con la ventana abierta

Afuera cae la nieve y tú sales
y te llenas de frío
Afuera pasa un río y tú sales
te sumerges entero.
Y vives con la ventana abierta
tienes abierta la ventana.

Afuera un hombre canta y tú sumas
a su voz esperanza.
Afuera hay una fecha y haces algo
para que sea mañana.
Y vives con la ventana abierta
tienes abierta la ventana.

Afuera hay una guerra y es tu enemigo
cada hombre que mata
Afuera hay charlatanes, sus palabras
están llenas de nada.
Y vives con la ventana abierta
tienes abierta la ventana.

And you live with your window open

Outside the snow is falling and you get out/ and get full with cold./ Outside a river is running and you get out/ you dive into it completely./ And you live with your window open/ you have your window open.// Outside a man is singing and you join/ to his voice the hope./ Outside there’s a date and you do something/ for it’ll be tomorrow./ And you live with your window open/ you have your window open.// Outside there’s a war and your enemy is/ every man that kills./ Outside there are charlatans, their words/ are full with nothing./ And you live with your window open/ you have your window open.

Pablo Guerrero