Officially, Goyeneche recorded several pieces inspired by Neruda. The most famous is his rendition of “La Canción Desesperada” (The Desperate Song). Unlike a pop song, Goyeneche’s version is a monotone recitation that builds into a dramatic, orchestral sob. He doesn’t “sing” it; he suffers it.
However, the genius of the "patch" lies in the emotional synchronization. Goyeneche discovers a shared DNA between the canción desesperada (the desperate song) and the tango. Both are genres of obsessive, unrequited love. When Goyeneche delivers the famous lines from Poem 20, "Puedo escribir los versos más tristes esta noche" ("Tonight I can write the saddest lines"), he does not read them as a poet at a desk. He sings them as a man alone at a bar at 3:00 AM. The musical arrangement, often dramatic and sweeping, lifts the text from the page and drags it into the physical realm of the Rio de la Plata. He doesn’t “sing” it; he suffers it
The finale of the collection. The "patched" versions often enhance the background instrumentation, allowing the swell of the music to match the rising tide of Neruda’s desperation. The Legacy of the Recording Both are genres of obsessive, unrequited love