In a world of economic bubbles and crashes, far-off wars and close-up terrorism, illnesses and addictions, Spain's musical group Jarabe De Palo has put out an album of hope and joy. Released in 2003, "Bonito" is described by its songwriter and lead singer Paul Dones as a "samba-funk", and includes musical traditions from Brazil, Cuba, Mexico and the Afro-Caribbean.

The lyrics of the title song are so eloquent that we present them here, somewhat abridged, in a translation from the Spanish by Natalie Feldman, age 15:

Beautiful, everything appears beautiful to me

Beautiful the morning

Beautiful the place

Beautiful the bed.

How good the sea looks.

Beautiful is the day.

And the beautiful life has just begun.

Breathe, breathe, breathe.

The phone rings, my pal complains,

Things have gone bad, life weighs on him

To live like this doesn't interest him

To continue like this isn't worth it,

He's lost his love, the party is over,

The motor that powered the earth isn't running

Life is a joke with a sad ending

The future doesn't exist, but I tell him

Beautiful, everything appears beautiful to me

Beautiful is the peace, beautiful is life

Beautiful to start over each day

Beautiful is the truth when it doesn't ring with lies

Beautiful is friendship, beautiful is laughter

Beautiful are the people when there is quality

Beautiful are the people when they don't repent/regret/look back

That win and that lose, that talk and don't lie

Beautiful are the people; it's for those that I say

Beautiful, everything appears beautiful to me

How beautiful it is when it comes to you, when to you comes beauty

How beautiful it is when it comes to you.

The sea the morning the house the shadow

The earth, the peace and the life that's passing

Beautiful, everything appears beautiful to me

Your calm, your spice, the stain on your back

Your face, your desires for the weekend.

Beautiful are the people that come and that go

Beautiful are the people that don't stop themselves

Beautiful are the people that have no age

That listen, that understand, that have and that give

...Beautiful is the breeze that has no hurry

Beautiful is this day, breathe, breathe

Beautiful are the people when they're real

Beautiful are the people that are different

That tremble, that feel

That live the present

Beautiful are the people that were and no longer are

Beautiful, everything appears beautiful to me.

c.Corinne Whitaker 2005