Song Details
- Album Release Date: 2012
- Genre: salsa
Song Meaning of “El Chivo” by La Sonora Matancera
‘El Chivo’ by La Sonora Matancera is a haunting song about a jilted lover, desperately searching for solace in the streets of his hometown. The lyrics suggest that his beloved has gone away and won’t be coming back. He takes on the persona of a desperate goat (el chivo) that no longer has purpose and wanders around aimlessly at night.
The song speaks to the hopelessness and longing felt in heartbreak. He conveys his pain and desperation in the sorrowful, melancholy melody and expresses his anguish in the line, “el que amo no regresa y como un chivo me siento yo.” (“The one I love doesn’t return And I feel like a goat.”)
The song is a metaphor for his emotional turmoil and speaks to how he’s losing control of his life as he roams the dark streets without a clear purpose. In the few moments of solace the narrator finds, he remembers the good times they had before things fell apart.
The narrator conveys a deep sense of loneliness and regret, perhaps ultimately accepting that his beloved will never return. Through ‘El Chivo,’ La Sonora Matancera speaks to the intense emotions of love lost, and in doing so captures a universal experience.