Carrie Rodriguez
Lola Song Notes
1. Perfidia (English: perfidy, treachery, infidelity)
written by Alberto Dominguez
“Nadie…comprende lo que sufro yo…” No one understands how much I suffer…that’s how the song starts. The original Spanish version came out in 1939. It’s been covered many times, including in English by Nat King Cole, but my favorite rendition of this song is by the Mexican group Trio Los Panchos. Their three-part harmony vocals are stunning. I had it in my mind from the moment I learned this song that I HAD to have Raul Malo singing harmony on this—I’m so grateful he obliged!
2. Llano Estacado
written by Carrie Rodriguez/Luke Jacobs
A story about a Mexican immigrant family set in a part of Texas that my grandmother grew up in. The Llano Estacado (translates to The Staked Plains) is a lonesome stretch of land—high, dry, and barren. Much of it now is full of ghost towns and tumbleweeds.
3. I Dreamed I Was Lola Beltrán
written by Carrie Rodriguez/Susan Gibson
A daydream song inspired by a black-and-white photo of my great aunt, Eva Garza, singing in front of a CBS radio microphone from the late 1930’s. The song mentions two of the greatest Ranchera singers of Eva’s era, also known as La Epoca de Oro (the golden age) of Mexican music: heartthrob crooner Javier Solís and gutsy diva Lola Beltrán.
4. La Última Vez (English: The Last Time)
written by Carrie Rodriguez/Gina Chavez
The chorus “Que tonta eres, tu me dices” translates to “‘You’re so stupid,’ you say to me”—a put-down that seems harmless enough, except when it is said one too many times. This is a magical band performance! I love the spooky interweaving melodies and interplay between all of the instruments.
5. Que Manera de Perder (English: What a Way to Lose)
written by Cuco Sanchez with additional English lyrics by Luke Jacobs
The version of this song that made me fall in love with it is sung by Alejandro Rivera. The devastating break-up lyrics coupled with a beautiful melody reminded me of an old country song by Willie or Merle. Originally, Luke Jacobs and I thought we would do a duet version with half of the song translated into English. After working on the translation for some time, I decided too much of the poetry of the original was being lost, so Luke wrote additional English lyrics that are more of a response to what I’m singing in Spanish (from the other lover’s point of view) rather than a translation.
6. Frío en el Alma (English: Cold in the Soul)
written by Miguel Angel Valladares Rebolledo
My great aunt Eva has a gorgeous recording of this song, which is one of the main seeds of inspiration for my entire album. Her version begins with an intro of soaring strings, followed by woodwinds…then her voice comes in at full force and still knocks me over every time I listen!
7. Z
written by Carrie Rodriguez/Susan Gibson
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve showed up to a gig to find my last name spelled incorrectly on the marquis. I know it has a lot of letters, but…seriously…Rodriguez is as common as Smith or Jones…it’s not like it’s an unusual name! :) I’m waiting to see some more Z names pop up in country music. So far, the genre is made up of a fairly homogenous bunch, which is pretty disappointing in this day and age.
8. Noche de Ronda
written by Maria Teresa Lara
I first heard this sung by the person I thought was the songwriter, Mexico’s legendary Agustin Lara. I later found the writing credits belong to his sister, Maria. The lyrics and melody are very much like the poetry and cadence of Agustin Lara’s other work, however, and my guess is that they may have worked on it together. But that’s complete speculation on my part. Either way it’s a beautifully written song about longing and melancholia, narrated from a balcony by the light of the moon.
9. Caricias
written by Carrie Rodriguez/Luke Jacobs
“Caricias…las quiero mas que tus palabras”—The refrain means “Caresses…I want them more than your words.” Luke had started this song in English and was looking for a chorus to fit what I view as a realistic love song for the over 30-something set.
10. The West Side
written by Carrie Rodriguez
This is one of those songs that felt like it wrote itself. A childhood memory bubbled up to the surface as I was learning songs in Spanish and preparing to make this album. I grew up and attended elementary school on the west side of a very racially divided Austin in the ‘80s. My neighborhood was one of privilege and old Texas money. A group of underprivileged (and mostly Latino) kids were bused over to our school in an effort to mix things up a bit during that time. Many of the kids from my neighborhood made fun of the east-side kids for having “lunch cards,” or vouchers for a free lunch at our public school. As one of the only Rodriguez’s from the west side of the tracks, I never quite felt fully accepted by either side, and often found myself observing more than participating.
11. Si No Te Vas (instrumental)
written by Cuco Sánchez, arranged by The Sacred Heart Band
Cuco Sanchez wrote some big Ranchera hits and is one of my favorite writers. I had the idea to showcase his tune in both it’s most traditional form (which resulted in track 12) and in a very modern context as we did with this instrumental. The Sacred Heart band helped me to arrange this dreamy version—I’d like to think of it as mariachi music for intergalactic travel.
12. Si No Te Vas
written by Cuco Sánchez
I wanted to include one traditional sounding Ranchera tune on the album and this is it! It’s inspired by Chavela Vargas’ stripped down version of this song which makes me weep every time I listen to it. We called on Grammy award-winning Max Baca (founder of fantastic Tejano band The Texmaniacs) to come in and play bajo sexto along with David Pulkingham on nylon string guitar. I felt the presence of my ancestors hovering around when I was recording it…making sure I sang with all of my heart and soul.
For more information, please contact Chris Schimpf, Krista Williams or Carla Sacks at Sacks & Co., 212.741.1000 .