Кони привередливые [Koni priveredlivye] [English translation]

Along the cliff, above the abyss, on the very edge

I whip my horses- I rush them

Somehow I don't have enough air- I drink the wind, swallow the fog,

I feel with a disastrous enthusiasm: I am dying! I am dying!

A little slower, horses, a little slower!

Don't listen to the tight lash!

But the horses I have are fastidious

And I didn't have time to live, I won't have time to finish my song.

I will give my horses to drink,

I will finish singing my verse-

At least for a little more

I'll stand on the edge

I will rot, like fluff a hurricane will sweep me off a palm,

And they will drag me, galloping, in a sleigh through the snow in the morning.

Switch to an unhurried trot, my horses!

At least by a little, but prolong the way to the last shelter!

A little slower, horses, a little slower!

Don't take orders from the whip and lash!

But the horses I have are fastidious,-

And I didn't have time to live, I won't have time to finish my song.

I will give my horses to drink,

I will finish singing my verse-

At least for a little more

I'll stand on the edge

We made it on time- nobody is a latecomer when visiting God;

But why do the angels sings with such evil voices?

Or did the bell wither away from sobs?

Or do I yell at the horses, to not carry the sleigh so fast?

A little slower, horses, a little slower!

I beg you not to rush so!

But the horses I have are fastidious...

Since I didn't have time to live, at least I could finish my song!

I will give my horses to drink,

I will finish singing my verse-

At least for a little more

I'll stand on the edge!

• Artist:Vladimir Vysotsky