“You want to leave me, I don’t want to suffer with you, I’m leaving my saint, even if it costs me to die.”
Who hasn’t heard this famous chorus at some point? From Bebo Valdés, Compay Segundo, Omara Portuondo to the Spaniard Diego el Cigala, many have been the artists who have performed the mythical song Lágrimas Negras. Composed in 1929 by the composer from Santiago de Compostela, Miguel Matamoros, it is considered the song that gave rise to the musical genre BOLERO – SON, and was performed for the first time by the Trio Matamoros (Miguel Matamoros, Siro Rodríguez and Rafael Cuto).
It is said that the popular song was born during a trip by the composer to the Dominican Republic. During his stay in Santo Domingo, Matamoros stayed at the hostel of Mrs. Luz Sardaña. According to popular belief, inspiration came when, by chance, one day Matamoros heard the inconsolable crying of a woman in one of the rooms. As time passed and the crying didn’t stop, Matamoros decided to ask Doña Luz what was happening to the girl. There he learned the whole tragic story: the lover of the lady in distress had left her the night before for another woman. It was then that, upon hearing such a tragedy of love combined with the suffering and despair of the abandoned woman, he composed “Lagrimas Negras.”
Without a doubt, the story behind this iconic song is as moving as its melody. Lagrimas Negras has been and will always be one of the most unique Cuban songs of all time.
El Grito 