Cuban born Silvio Rodriguez is a musician known the world around for both his music and poetry. He is mainly a figure among the leftist Spanish speaking world, but I think he is pretty cool too, even if I have no clue what he is saying half the time. I fist heard him when I was a sophomore in high-school, but I must admit I forgot about Silvio Rodriguez until a few weeks ago. But coming back to his recordings with fresh ears I am in awe of the both the simplicity and breadth of his music, occurring simultaneously. Silvio Rodriguez, for the most part, is one of those artists where the process of listening can easily become something of a meditative experience, that is to say something to get lost in. The soothing sound of nylon string guitars, long ruminating progressions combined with the constant sound of urgency in Rodriguez's voice only add to this effect (I also think the fact that the music is in spanish has something to do with it as well, but that is a personal thing). Though I have little idea what most of the songs are about, supposedly his poetry is very good. Some of this comes through to the english speaking listener, in that his lyrics have an undeniable musicality and artful execution. His lines and harmonies can, I guess, be considered a little atypical of most popular music, even for cuban/spanish influenced music, but that makes it all the more interesting. But in short this guy sounds like something you've heard before, but never like this, and that is why he is renowned the world around.
Silvio Rodriguez:
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