There are triumphant Mexican trumpets and then a galloping rhythm whipped by adrenaline-charged guitars,… you see open spaces, you are miles away, and ready to flee, to run away, … then you can already feel the oppressing heat but can’t slow down for long as the song restarts like an untamable beast, wilder than ever.
I actually have two versions of the song, the ‘widescreen version’ with its spaghetti western visions and an acoustic version, subtle and painfully beautiful, like a murmured cry over a delicate acoustic guitar, and I love them both.
I once saw Calexico performed it with Mariachi bands, and the Rio Grande, ‘the river of tears’ had never sounded so exhilarating and victorious, as the song evokes the struggle of Mexican immigrants trying to cross the river at the price of their life:
‘Blood spills out on the streets
And bodies are missing for weeks
Both sides keeping a close eye
Watching the bullets fly here… On the Crystal Frontier,
Crystal Frontier’
Why am I talking about this song? Because it was chosen by Gabrielle Giffords to wake up her husband, Mark Kelly, Space Shuttle Discovery commander, when he was on his way to the International Space Station, in 2008.
The congresswoman, who took a bullet in her head this weekend and has remained in critical condition since, was actually friend with Calexico’s Joey Burns. The band had effectively performed at a number of campaign events for Giffords, as she was a big fan of them. Burns was talking about her yesterday on NPR, and he described her as a very down-to-earth person, very active in the community, always going to shows, very passionate, and able to focused on each individual.
It is really eerie that the song is talking about blood, bodies and bullets… let’s really hope she will fully recover.