Café de Barracas

Café de Barracas is a Tango written by Eduardo Arolas and recorded by Ángel d’Agostino in 1952. The Tango Café de Barracas is written by Eduardo Arolas, Ángel d’Agostino has recorded Café de Barracas with the singer Tino Garcia.

“Café de Barracas,” or “Café of the Barracks,” evokes a timeless corner where stories and echoes linger in the air. This piece of music paints an image of smoky rooms and dimly lit tables where the souls of tango dancers and dreamers waltz. It captures the essence of forgotten whispers and cherished memories in a once-vibrant haunt.

Tango

Style

Ángel d'Agostino

Orchestra

Tino Garcia

Singer

Enrique Cadícamo

Author

Eduardo Arolas

Composer

1952/7/24

Date

Tino Garcia

Ángel d’Agostino

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Lyrics Translation of the Tango Café de Barracas

This is the translation of the Tango “Café de Barracas” from Spanish to English. The English lyrics of the Tango “Café de Barracas” have been done with AI.

Letra del Tango Café de Barracas

Viejo café de Barracas,
turbios recuerdos de entonces,
que allá por el año once
tenía entreveros de facas…
Hoy has cambiado tu pinta,
todo es nostalgia y neblina,
ya no es muchachos de esquina
la del Café El Pasatiempo,
cuando tocaba en sus tiempos
el Tigre del Bandoneón.

Tu luz de gas, hoy, tan distante,
no alumbra más, café cantante…
Lupe cantaba canciones bellas,
Lupe era estrella de aquel café.
Tu luz de gas ya no destella
Ni alumbra más la escena aquella,
cuando una noche, de puro guapo,
la alcé en un coche y la robé.

Sacarle punta a un recuerdo
es regresar del olvido…
¡Cuantos amigos se han ido;
de todos ellos me acuerdo!
Ya nos perdimos de vista,
viejo café de Barracas,
siento tus luces opacas
y hoy tiemblan dentro ‘e mi pecho…
¡Yo soy tu amigo derecho
que no te olvido jamás!

English lyrics of the Tango "Café de Barracas"

Old café of Barracas,
murky memories of the past,
that around the year eleven
had its share of knife fights…
Today you’ve changed your look,
everything is nostalgia and haze,
no longer corner boys
at Café El Pasatiempo,
when in its heyday
the Tiger of the Bandoneón played.

Your gas light, today, so distant,
no longer lights up, singing café…
Lupe sang beautiful songs,
Lupe was the star of that café.
Your gas light no longer sparkles
Nor lights up that scene,
when one night, just as a tough,
I lifted her in a carriage and stole her away.

To sharpen a memory
is to return from oblivion…
How many friends have gone;
I remember all of them!
We’ve lost sight,
old café of Barracas,
I feel your dim lights
and they tremble inside my chest…
I am your rightful friend
who will never forget you!

Café de Barracas by Enrique Cadícamo

Café de Barracas is a Tango written by Enrique Cadícamo and composed by Eduardo Arolas.

Story behind the Tango Café de Barracas

“Café de Barracas” is a nostalgic reflection on a neighborhood café in Barracas, a district in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The lyrics describe the transformation of this café from a vibrant hub of social activity in the early 1910s, where knife fights and youthful bravado filled the space, to its more subdued and nostalgic state in the narrator’s present. The singer recalls both the physical and emotional details of the past with poignant longing, highlighting the personal and communal ties to this locale.

Symbolism of Café de Barracas

The café itself serves as a powerful symbol of change and memory. Phrases like “turbios recuerdos de entonces” (turbid memories of then) and “todo es nostalgia y neblina” (everything is nostalgia and mist) evoke a sense of loss and fading history. Through these words, Cadícamo illustrates the impermanence of youth and the enduring impact of cherished spaces. The vivid character of Lupe, remembered for her songs, symbolizes the stirring memories that persist despite the passing of time. This central figure epitomizes the way certain moments and individuals remain luminous in memory long after they are gone.