Las Caras Lindas
Ismael Rivera · 1978 · written by Tite Curet Alonso, from the album Esto Sí Es Lo Mío
No villain and no twist: a whole song in praise of Black faces and Black beauty, sung by the man Puerto Rico called its greatest sonero.
The story
1.A parade
The singer watches the faces of his Black people go by, and to him they look like a parade. Just seeing them makes his heart glad.
2.Beyond the pain
Those faces have known tears and hardship, and he doesn't pretend otherwise. But what shines through is love, and laughter.
3.Rhythm and poetry
They have rhythm and melody, he sings, and poetry too, and they're wonderful company.
4.Pride
He lives proud of their color, and the song reaches out to Black communities beyond Puerto Rico, as far as Portobelo in Panama.
Key phrases
- “Las caras lindas de mi gente negra”The beautiful faces of my Black peopleMi gente again, “my people”: he isn't describing strangers, he's one of them.
- “un desfile de melaza en flor”A parade of molasses in bloomMelaza, molasses, is the dark syrup of sugar cane, the crop enslaved Africans were brought to the Caribbean to work. Here it becomes a picture of dark skin and sweetness.
- “betún amable”Friendly shoe polishBetún is black shoe polish, a word that could be used to mock dark skin. Curet Alonso turns it into something warm, and pairs it with poetry.
- “Tienen su ritmo, tienen melodía”They have their rhythm, they have melodyMusic as part of the beauty he's describing.
- “Son un vacilón”They're a blastVacilón is Caribbean slang for fun, a good time. Someone who's un vacilón is great company.
Context
Ismael Rivera (1931–1987) grew up in Santurce, San Juan, and first became famous singing with Rafael Cortijo's combo in the 1950s. Puerto Rico called him “El Sonero Mayor”, the greatest of its improvising singers.
Tite Curet Alonso wrote Las Caras Lindas to celebrate the dignity and beauty of Afro-descendant people. Rivera recorded it with his band Los Cachimbos for Esto Sí Es Lo Mío (1978).
It's a classic in Puerto Rico and, well beyond it, an anthem of Black pride.
On the dance floor
Relaxed and swinging, with the tres talking back to Rivera's voice. It's a song for smooth, musical dancing rather than speed.
Listen to how Rivera plays with time, landing his lines a little behind or ahead of the beat. Try matching that ease in your own timing.
This is our own retelling of the song, not its lyrics or a translation of them: the few short phrases quoted are there to explain what they mean. The song belongs to its writer, Tite Curet Alonso.