Fina was an old lady who lived at my grandmother's place in the country (yes, that is the summerhouse referenced in 'Lonely Village').
She had survived poverty, civil war, a terrible marriage, discrimination and abuse, but managed to make a living for herself by growing vegetables, doing garden work, working as a wet-nurse, and establishing good relationships of collaboration and friendship with neighbours that would support her.
I met her when I was 6 six years and she was about 80. She used to hang out at my nana's back yard, and had a great manner with young people devoting to them her time, her attention, and her special gift and sensibility with nature: when she came round, she would sit in the garden with us to play, collect flower petals, sing songs, and tell us stories about each flower and about the wildlife on them: bettles, bees, ants, birds, and their adventures and quests and meaning. I guess you could say she was babysitting us.
Yes, she was a magical woman.
lyrics
Cada madrugada va la maga
Sola al río a hacer la colada
En el cesto ropa amontonada
Trama de la semana pasada
Pantalones del hermano, pana
Corpiños de una tía lejana
Camisas, la blusa de la mama
Y un chaqué de rallitas doradas
ENGLISH translation:
A fine magician lady
Every morning she goes down to the river
On her own, to do the laundry
On her basket clothes pile up
Telling the story of her last week
Her brother's trousers, corduroy
Bodices from a distant auntie
Shirts, and mother's blouse
And a smoking jacket with golden stripes
Carles Gutierrez-Sanfeliu was born in a small coastal village in the Mediterranean and trained in Literature and Music
before moving first to England, then to south east QLD.
With a musical vision in a perpetual state of flux and migration, Sanfeliu's songwriting shows a keen interest in melody, texture, adaptation and improvisation, all expressed with exquisite pop sensibilities....more
Beautiful compilation featuring 37 Meanjin artists in solidarity with the innocents of Gaza. Beautiful ambient, experimental and electronic sounds. Sanfeliu
Very cool compilation of Brisbane bands covering Brisbane bands. I contributed a reimagining of 'Intro' by the much missed Ipswich band Coalfalls. Sanfeliu
Oakland’s Dirtwire are in the middle of a campaign to press the dizzying electro-highlife grooves of “Electric River” to vinyl. Bandcamp New & Notable Mar 22, 2020