Sao Gonca*

Sweetheart
I’d do anything for our love
I’d do anything for our good, my sweetness
Missing you hurts so much
It’s tearing my heart apart
Never doubt that one day
I’ll give you the sky
(my love) and a ring too
So we can get married
With the judge or the church
If that’s what you want
If you don’t, that’s ok, sweetness
But you have to understand
Living in São Gonçalo you know how it is
Major traffic jams on the bridge today
I had to walk
Tried to call you
But the orelhao** on my street
was broken
My card ran out of credit
Believe it if, if that’s what you want

* "Sao Gonca" (or, the city of Sao Goncalo) is across the Bay from Rio de Janeiro (across the Guanabara Bay to be exact). The bridge that Seu Jorge refers to in the last part of song is the Rio-Niteroi Bridge, currently the longest prestressed concrete bridge in the southern hemisphere, and the sixth longest in the world.

** Interesting translation factoid: "orelhao" (aka phone booth) is a very literal translation of "very big ear". It is a particular Brazilian colloquialism with a fascinating history of design and implementation - see here for more.

Changes

Seu Jorge from Life Aquatic Soundtrack

I'm not one to feel sorry about how things have passed

Time to leave, my time is up

Lots to still discover

Really sorry but gotta go

I'm on my way cause nothing is left for me here

The show has ended

And don't feel hurt because my time has come

That's just the way I am

Changes... here comes my train

comes my train

I'm on my way and I'll be ok

Changes... here comes my train

comes my train

I know it's the right time and I'll be alright

Moving forward, never looking back

It's really no big deal, I'll go have some fun

as much as life lets me

Time to wander, meet some good people if I need, give a hand

I see freedom on the horizon

You don't really get it

Nova york, ipanema and Hong Kong

That's the wave I'm on

Changes... here comes my train

comes my train

I'm on my way and I'll be ok

Changes... here comes my train

comes my train

I know it's the right time and I'll be alright

Moving forward, never looking back

I feel free, sublime

People here and there

The blue seas and sky

Changes... here comes my train

comes my train

I'm on my way and I'll be ok

Changes... here comes my train

comes my train

I know it's the right time and I'll be alright

Moving forward, never looking back

Rebel Rebel*
Seu Jorge from Life Aquatic Soundtrack

You don't know whether you're coming or going
I don't really care if it's your money
Hey, babe, your hair's alright
Foreign craze is to say merry christmas
You made a mistake but it's ok
Now you claim to be a zen person
Hey babe, You win
Come here tomorrow and take your stuff
Your make up will be gone
Your fear will show through
Drawn game
Now I am leaving
You gave it up so now I take a shot to win
Drawn game
You got a win
Come here tomorrow and take your stuff

*Much thanks to Ivanei Ivanov for excellent suggestions on this translation...

Zé do Caroço
Seu Jorge
See Seu Jorge perform it on youtube

On the local radio
From the morro do Pau da Bandeira*
It’s Zé do Caroço who issues the warning
That tomorrow there will be a shake up
And the favela** has now been warned

Oh how I wish that it was in Mangueira***
That there was someone like Zé do Caroço
So that we could tell these people once and for all
Carnaval is not that kind of showbusiness
We’re schooled in raiz and madeira****

But it’s in the Morro do Pau da Bandeira
In the real Vila Isabel*****
That Zé do Caroço works
That Zé do Caroço struggles
And where he tries to make ends meet

And it’s at that hour when Brazilian TV
Destroys everyone with its novelas******
That’s when Zé puts his voice out to the world
He makes a profound speech
Because he wants the best for the favela

A new leader is being born
In the morro do Pau da Bandeira
A new leader is being born
In the morro do Pau da Bandeira
In the morro do Pau da Bandeira
In the morro do Pau da Bandeira


Notes
* Morro do Pau da Bandeira is a favela, or shantytown, in Rio de Janeiro, that started to be populated in the 1950’s.
** More than one million people, or 20% of Rio’s population, lives in favelas. Their population is increasing at a rate of 2.5% per year, compared with growth of less than 0.5% for the rest of Rio.
*** Mangueira is another famous favela in Rio
**** there are many different kinds of samba styles, of which samba de raiz ou Madeira is considered by many to be the purest from of Brazilian music, and also the least commercial.
***** Vila Isabel is the Rio district in which the Morro do Pau da Bandeira is found****** Novelas are the famous Brazilian epic soap operas that are now commonly translated and shown all over the world… the reference here seems to be to how TV in general, and no doubt the news, spins tales that have little connection to the life on the favela.

Seu Jorge Tour Canceled?!?!?

got my Seu Jorge/Cesaria Evora tickets in the mail last week for the June concert in Toronto... then I hear Seu Jorge bowed out. Started planning a trip to go check out his gig in Philadelphia also planned for June... it seems that's canceled too... does anybody know what's up?

Mangueira*

It’s a beautiful dawn on the hill
No one cries, there’s no sadness
No one feels depressed
Come here s we can meet up
It’s a nice view
That you have to get to know
And there’s nothing to worry about
The shadiness is connected to you
I have beer in the fridge
The bean stew is on the stove
I’m only waiting for you to get here
I want to see if you have the courage
Of climbing the famous Mangueira
Samba on the street
The best samba in town
Mangueira
I embrace you
I don’t live there
But I consider Mangueira
The best spot in town is Mangueira
Mangueira

*Mangueira is one of Rio’s “shanty” neighbourhoods, famous for its Samba music. It’s samba parties are legendary, and a hot spot for both Cariocas and tourists alike...

Chega no suinge

I see so many different kinds of people
Waiting for the party to begin
You from here, you from there
Fill my eye from the stage
We’ve been complaining for a long time about where the country’s headed
But we can’t stand it anymore
Now we can only shake in peace
Now we can only live th best we can
And what matters to me
Is that you can be here
Save the life
Save the love
And come dig this groove with me
Let life explode
Come do that swing
Let’s give them something to talk about
Here there’s gafieira [a samba dance style]
So you can set it freeCome over here

Carolina by Seu Jorge
by request...

Carolina is a girl who is difficult to forget
Sways nicely and a bright look in her eye
She has a fresh thing about her that drives me crazy
And I won’t even joke about her moves
A feminine wonder, a special sweetness
Intelligent, she is very sensual
I will confess that I am in love you

Oh Carolina that is very natural
Oh Carolina I need you
Oh Carolina I can’t stand not seeing you
Oh Carolina I need to talk to you
Oh Carolina I’m going to love you

From Monday to Monday I go crazy to see you
When I call you’re almost never there
That was the other thing that I wanted to tell you
We don’t have time so I better not
On Sunday tell me what you want to do
Make me a request and I’ll make it come true
Look friend, she only gives me pleasure
That Carolina rocks my world

Oh Carolina I need you
Oh Carolina I can’t stand not seeing you
Oh Carolina I need to talk to you
Oh Carolina I’m going to love you
Carolina, Carolina
Carolina, I need to meet you
Carolina, I feel lonely
Carolina, I need to tell you
Oh Carolina I just want to love youCarol, Carol, Carol, ...

Rock’n’Roll Suicide
Seu Jorge adaptation from Bowie

You pick up a cigarette
Put it in my mouth
And you venture to smoke another
You don’t eat you’re not hungry
That’s the truth

You’re a rock’n’roll suicide
You’re old but you’re alive
Plenty of time to die
And how much time
Is passing in the city
your flame is burning with solitude

You’re a rock’n’roll suicide
You are afraid
But you advance at the light
And you don’t understand that the sun has risen
As long as you can hide in your house
You won’t see it
That what really matters is that you’re not alone
Oh no you’re not alone
I won’t leave you even if you want me to
Come see me
The sun will rise
And I will be with you again
Oh my love you’re not alone
I am here to protect you
Let’s live for our own good
Only the two of us is all we need
Oh my love the train is leaving
From my heart
The train is leaving
From my heart

Wonderful
Give me your hands
Give me your hands
Wonderful
Give me your hands

Mania De Peitão
(Obsession with a large chest)
Seu Jorge, from Cru

She has curves
That are way too sensual
Our eyes are captivated
With her sculpted body
On the beach she’s a delicacy, with her brown skin
She leaves many women annoyed
And all the men drooling

At night she’s a star
Covers up the moon’s brightness
There’s no other beauty on earth
That can compare with yours
But what people don’t know
Is that this tremendous cyclone
The muse from the millennium generation
Comes packed with silicone

Obsession with a large chest
Obsession with a large chest
Obsession with a large chest
Comes packed with silicone

[chorus]

I’ve never seen such demands
To do what you do to me
You have never known a conscience
Can’t you see that I’m just a poor boy

You only think in luxuries and riches
Everything you see, you want
Oh my god how much do I miss Amelia
Now that was a real woman!

[repeat from the top]

Five Years
Seu Jorge adaptation from Bowie

For a long time I’ve been
living upon the seas
Diving deep
into reefs and corals
My mission in the world:
to study animals
Diving into the darkness
with real dangers before me

So that is why now
that I’m here
nothing will cause me to quit
I can’t sleep
with you in my dreams
I already know your figure
your gaze, so scary

And so I am breathless
I have stayed away so long
And I never get rich
That’s why I scream
Today I will fix you

Over the sea and the horizon
I sit admiring the dock
When the wind sits still
everything is peace
This is the path I’m on
And I don’t know how long it’s been

I can no longer make sense
of the things I believe in
But now I have made a higher deal
to sing to you
my sadness and pain
Don’t desert me
Without sweetness but alone

Come live with me
Come be my love

Because I haven’t lived in
Five years
I haven’t seen anything in
Five years
To be in the blue sea is my life for
Five years
To travel from North to South is my luck for
Five years

[repeat last verse]

São Gonça
Seu Jorge, from Cru

Pretinha*,
I’ll do anything for your love
I’ll do anything for our own good, my sweet thing
Missing you is my pain
It’s devastating my heart

Don’t you ever doubt that one day I’ll give you the sky
My love together with a ring
So we can get married
At city hall or at the church
If you want
But if not, it’s ok my love

But try to understand
Living in Sao Goncalo, you know how it is
This afternoon there was a traffic jam on the bridge
And I had to walk

I tried to call you
But the phone booth on my street
was broken
My card was empty
But you believe me only if you want

[repeat from the top]

*slang meaning, affectionately, "sweet black girl"...

Una Mujer [A Woman]
Seu Jorge, From Cru

A woman from Brazil
A tropical airplane
Lights and flavour, a star of fire
Dances on the docks of passion

A woman, a beauty from the sea
Moving the waters of love
Clear evidence to the sun that shines
Only for you

Flew away, disappeared in this world
A gypsy woman
The right colour for my days
A woman, a flower

A woman, a beauty from the sea
Moving the waters of love
Clear evidence to the sun that shines
Only for you

Flew away, disappeared in this world
A gypsy woman
The right colour for my days
A woman, a flower

Eu so favela, Seu Jorge from Cru
(I am the "shantytown”)


The favela
was never a refuge for marginals (delinquents)
The favela
was never a refuge for marginals (delinquents)

She only has humble people who are marginalized
And that’s the truth you don’t read in the papers

The favela is, a social problem
The favela is, a social problem

Yes, but I am the favela
I can speak from experience
My people are hard working
They never had public assistance
She only lives there
Because for poor people, there’s no other way
Your only right
Is for a salary of hunger and that’s normal life

The favela is, a social problem
The favela is, a social problem

The favela
was never a refuge for marginals (delinquents)
The favela
was never a refuge for marginals (delinquents)

She only has humble people who are marginalized
And that’s the truth you don’t read in the papers

The favela is, a social problem
The favela is, a social problem

Yes, but I am the favela
I can speak from experience
My people are hard working
They never had public assistance
She only lives there
Because for poor people, there’s no other way
Your only right
Is for a salary of hunger and that’s normal life

The favela is, a social problem
The favela is, a social problem

Bola de Meia*, Seu Jorge from Cru
*Bola de meia: a soccer ball made from rolled up (usually old) socks

So much time to think
But in-between all the running around
I think it didn’t work

I was trying to fix our thing
But without your help
it didn’t happen

Maybe if you’d been smarter
And had give “time” some time
It wouldn’t have been like that
It sucked all my strength
Now I no longer want you for me

Unfortunately it’s like that
The end of a story
That we had just begun
If you had been more careful with how I feel
Perhaps my heart would still belong to you

This end is not what I wanted
And our understanding
never happened

And I who fought that day to have you by my side
Now I must confess
It is I who no longer wants this

It was me who gave you
Your first kiss
Your first touch
The first song

If you really
want to be with me
Don’t make my heart into a bola de meia

It was me who gave you
Your first kiss
Your first touch
The first song

If you really
want to be with me
Don’t make my heart into a bola de meia

So much time, so much time….

[repeat from the top]

Tive razao
Seu Jorge, from Cru

I was right, I can say it
It wasn't ok, it wasn't cool

I wanted to cry, hurts
Just to think she won't be coming back, it hurts

But for me it's all cool, I'll chill
The vibe is takin' off
There's a sequence to things in life

I won't wallow in bullshit
You know how it is
I'll go, but I'll come back when you want

It took a while, it'll be better.

''''''''''''''

Legal...anybody have Tigres del Norte translations?

Life on Mars?
Seu Jorge Translation from life aquatic...

All these things that we feel inside
Who can ever understand
All those questions I won't even ask
All those feelings I won't even fight

All those dreams that have slipped away
So many things that have come and gone
If only Future will give me a chance
Then I won't live this life in vain

listen love, no we're not alone
there's a whole world out there waiting for us
in the infinitive blue sky
we might even find life on mars

So come here
Let me taste your tongue
Come on
I want to put my arms around you
Your power from above [i can't traslate this...it literally means "your power comes from the sun above"...it sounds beautiful in Portuguese...]
It'a just what I need

so c'mon let’s live our life
Come on
Or I’ll lose who I want to be
I want to change
for a Life on Mars

guitar...[nice]

All these things that we feel inside
Who can ever understand
All those questions I won't even ask
All those feelings I won't even fight

All those dreams that have slipped away
So many things that have come and gone
If only Future will give me a chance
Then I won't live this life in vain

listen love, no we're not alone
there's a whole world out there waiting for us
in the infinitive blue sky
we might even find life on mars

So come on
Let me taste your tongue
Come on
Or I'll lose who I am
Your power from above [i can't traslate this...it literally means "your power comes from the sun above"...it sounds beautiful in Portuguese...]It'a just what I need

so c'mon let’s live our life
Come on
Or I’ll lose who I want to be
I want to change
for a Life on Mars

...thanks to http://www.stlyrics.com/ for the original lyrics...thanks to Wes A for the fantastic moments...legal!!!