Tom Russell — Gallo del Cielo

May 18, 2007

This song is about a Mexican man named Carlos Zaragosa whose families land has been taken by Pancho Villa. In an attempt to buy the land back, Carlos steals a prized fighting rooster named Gallo del Cielo (Rooster of Heaven). The story follows the two through Texas and California where Zaragosa builds up a large bankroll winning cockfights with his Gallo. Gallo del Cielo is finally killed and Zaragosa loses all of his money and his family’s chances of getting their land back.

Unless you can’t accept the fact that cockfighting was commonplace during the time the song is set, the story is great by itself. But this song is really set off by its upbeat tempo and Mexican mandolin. It’s a great sing along song once you’ve heard it a few times.

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