Красно-желтые дни [Krasno-zheltye dni] [English translation]

My train's taking a while1 at the depot

I'm leaving again, it's time

Wind's been waiting for me

Autumn, my sister, is at the doorstep2

After red and yellow days3

Winter will begin and end

Oh my wit's sorrow,

Don't be sad, lift your chin up

And I'll return home

With a shield, or maybe on a shield

Covered in silver, or maybe in poverty

But as soon as I can

Tell me of those who are tired

Of merciless street drama

And of the temple made of broken hearts

And of those who are going to that temple

After red and yellow days

Winter will begin and end

Oh my wit's sorrow,

Don't be sad, lift your chin up

And I'll return home

With a shield, or maybe on a shield

Covered in silver, or maybe in poverty

But as soon as I can

And4 I dreamt that the world is ruled by love

And I dreamt that the world is ruled by dreams

And a magnificent star shines above all this

I woke up and realized - trouble.5

After red and yellow days

Winter will begin and end

Oh my wit's sorrow,

Don't be sad, lift your chin up

And I'll return home

With a shield, or maybe on a shield

Covered in silver, or maybe in poverty

But as soon as I can

1. The words "застоялся" and "заждался" mean not only "standing around for a while" and "waiting for a while" respectively, but also imply that it's taking longer than expected; they convey a more informal tone as opposed to something like "delay" or "late". Think of the phrase "can't wait to", but after already having waited for a while.2. There are two instances of "на пороге", which literally means "on (a) doorstep" but can also mean "about to happen" when referring to events. Tsoy personifies wind by using the word "заждался" and autumn by describing it as a sister, giving "на пороге" a double meaning. Including the phrase twice doesn't sound awkward or weird at all in the original text, as opposed to doing so in English.3. The most widespread interpretation of this song is that it refers to the future of Russia's society, with red referring to communism and yellow referring to democracy, and the leaving and returning referring to Tsoy's travels; this can really only be understood within the context of his life and career.4. The "а" in these two lines is a particle that has no English equivalent; in this context, it means something like "by the way", but much less wordy or casual-sounding.5. Including "trouble" as a single word sounds weird in English, but adding more words ruins the point; the word is a sudden and final conclusion to the thought. If it's not clear, it means that the world is in trouble, or that trouble somehow exists or persists. The original lyrics don't imply exactly what the trouble applies to, leaving the listener to make that simple deduction by themselves.