and a translation please Gil.
Hi Guy and Scott. Since no one has answered, I'll do my best.
The words are "Yenyere gumá, buenas noches por Dios." Yenyere gumá (sometimes pronounced "chenchere cumá") is a phrase drawn from the Congolese branch of Afro-Cuban culture, the same branch associated with the Palo Congo religion. The meaning of this phrase may only be known to practitioners of Palo or those with deep knowledge of the ancestral language and traditions of the Kongo descendants in Cuba. Many prominent Afro-Cuban artists of yore such as Arsenio Rodriguez, Justi Barreto and Cachao Lopez incorporated these words into their songs, as have several Salsa artists. Beyond that, the rest of the chant is in Spanish and very easy: "Buenas noches, por Dios." Good night, By God. :-) Armando Peraza, Raul Rekow, and Orestes Vilato would have all been familiar with this chant, thus the creative impulse to include it on "Havana Moon."
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