Lyrics for Si Somos Americanos (Written by R. Alarcón, Chile)

Si somos americanos / somos hermanos señores
tenemos las mismas flores / tenemos las mismas manos.

Si somos americanos / seremos buenos vecinos
compartiremos el trigo / seremos buenos hermanos.

Bailaremos marinera / resbalosa, huayno y son
Si somos americanos / seremos una canción.

Si somos americanos / no miraremos fronteras
cuidaremos las semillas / tiraremos las banderas.

Si somos americanos / seremos todos iguales
el blanco, el mestizo, el indio / y el negro son como tales.

Translation: Si Somos Americanos = Yes We Are Americans

This song is about being Pan-Americans; North, South, and Central America as a political and economic unit. If we are all Americans then; we won’t limit ourselves by borders, we’ll nurture and take care of each other, and we’ll be equal in our neighbor’s eyes regardless of race or flag.

We will dance the Marinera / resbalosa, Huayno and the Son (types of dances)
if we are Americans / then we will be a song

If we are Americans / then we are Americans indeed
we have the same flowers / we have the same hands

If we are Americans / we will be good neighbors
we will share our wheat / we'll be good brothers and sisters

We will dance the Marinera / Resbalosa, Huayno and the Son
If we are Americans / then we will be a song

If we are Americans / will not see boundaries
we will take care of seeds / we will get rid of our flags

If we are Americans / we are all equal
white, mestizo, Indian / and black alike

While living in South America we spent much of our free time playing music with friends, learning local standards and sharing songs that we loved. We were fascinated by the variety and quality of music that came from there, inspiring us to weave the melodies into our own style. A few years after returning to the States and pursuing our musical career, the Argentine legend Mercedes Sosa passed away, prompting us to release this EP in honor of the talented musicians of the era who fought for social justice and created some of the most amazing music of the period. Some of the songs on this record we first heard while in South America years ago but they have been dormant, while others we have included in regular rotation at our performances. Each song independently represents the significance of Nueva Canción: altruism, solidarity and respect for humanity.

Nueva Canción was a musically driven social movement that emerged during the late 1950's. Originating in Chile and Argentina, the Nueva Canción movement combined traditional folk music with socially and politically charged lyrics. Nueva Canción arrived during a period of great upheaval in South America. Many people who had become disenfranchised throughout all of Latin America ardently adopted this new style of music as their own; and as the political situation in many of these countries worsened, the Nueva Canción movement came to define people's resistance to the increasingly despotic tendencies of their respective nations. At the height of unrest several coups were staged installing military dictatorships where there were previously democracies. With the outlawing of the Nueva Canción movement, many musicians and activists were arrested, murdered or forced into exile. In spite of the political oppression, the movement continued to grow and develop with new artists using Nueva Canción as a means of affecting social change.