Contrabando De La Frontera

By Chalino Sánchez (Musart Premier – MPI-900), 1993

Born in Sinaloa, Chalino Sánchez rose to musical fame in the late 1980s with his trademark narcocorridos, or ballads about the exploits of drug traffickers. After starting his career as a hired composer, Sánchez eventually began singing his compositions to the delight of audiences in and around California. Using Los Angeles as his home recording base, he sold his music directly to fans at flea markets and concerts to build a loyal base of support. Sánchez’s unpolished voice and humble delivery resonated with his working-class audience. His legend has only grown in the years since his murder. “Contrabando De La Frontera” is a classic Sánchez composition about a failed attempt to smuggle marijuana into the United States in a casket.

Everyone wanted to see the dead man
The customs policemen
But since it was not true 
They only found marijuana

Spanish

Cruzaron por el desierto
Para llegar a Tijuana
En una caja de muerto
Llevaban la marihuana

Es una hazaña asombrosa
pero así eran de arriesgados
Llevaban en la carroza
Con papeles arreglados

Era Rosaura Santana, el otro Juan Escalante
La primera era tejana
El segundo traficante

Al llegar a la garita
Cansados y polvorientos
La policía de Sonoyta
Acepto los documentos

Y llegaron a Tijuana
Todo estaba preparado
Cien kilos de marihuana
Pasarían al otro lado

Todos querían ver el muerto
Los policías de la aduana
Pero como no era cierto
Solo hallaron marihuana

Señores creo que este asunto
A todos los tiene hundidos
No vemos ningún muertito
Y quedarán detenidos

Y sacaron las pistolas
Y el mister calló primero
La gente corrió hecha bola
Al ver muerto al aduanero

Hubo una gran balacera
Heridos por todos lados
Quedaron en San Isidro
Catorce muertos tirados

Cayo Rosaura Santana
Lo mismo que el mexicano
Les quitó la marihuana
El condado americano

English

Crossing the desert
To get to Tijuana
In a coffin
They had the marijuana

It was an amazing feat
But they knew the risk
They had in the car
Forged documents

It was Rosaura Santana and Juan Escalante
First was from Texas
The second was a trafficker

Arriving at the sentry box
Tired and dusty
The Police of Sornita
Accepted their documents

They arrived in Tijuana
Everything was set in place
One hundred kilos of Marijuana
Would cross the border

Everybody wanted to see the dead
The customs officers
But there wasn’t one
They only found Marijuana

Gentlemen, this matter I believe
We all are unanimous
We don’t see any dead body
And they were arrested

They took out their guns
The Mr. fell first
The people ran away
Seeing the customs officer shot dead

A big gunfight ensued
The injured were everywhere
On the San Isidro side
There lay fourteen dead

Rosaura Santa fell
The fate happened to the Mexican
The marihuana was confiscated
by the American County

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