Quen quere tomar consejo

Jerusalem National Sound Archives placement: Y5671/15
Referenced and notated in: Romancero Sefardi de Oriente, pg. 119, Editorial Alpuerto, 2010 Susana Weich-Shahak.

Only the first four verses belong to the theme Casada con un viejo - Married to an Old Man. The remaining four are clearly from the romance entitled Vos labraré un pendón - I Will Make You a Banner. The melody of this romance comes from the music of a Yiddish play by Abraham Goldfaden entitled The Witch.

Lyrics:
Quien quere tomar consejo,     que venga, yo se lo daré,
quen quere gozar mancebo,    que no se case a la vejez.
Agora por mes pecados       yo casí de trenta y ses,
me dieron una galana      que no tena el dicisés.
Ella era muy galana,     yo muy grande gastador,
gasté lo mío y lo suyo,   y lo que el padre mos dio.
- A mí no me parió mi madre      para que lazdre, lazdre yo,
sino mis manicas blancas    labren seda y clavidón.

Translation:
Whoever wants to take advice, let him come, I will give it,
whoever wishes to enjoy his youth, let him not marry in old age.
Now, for my sins, I married at thirty-six,
they gave me a fine lady who was not even sixteen.
She was very elegant, and I a great spender,
I spent my own, hers, and what her father gave us.
“My mother did not give birth to me so that I should toil and toil,
but that my little white hands should work silk and embroidery.”