At the age of seven, Bebel made an appearance on her mother's first solo album Miúcha. At age nine, Bebel performed with her mother and jazz saxophonist Stan Getz at a jazz festival in New York's Carnegie Hall. Back in Brazil, Bebel performed and recorded for the soundtrack of the children's musical Os Saltimbancos, written by Sergio Bardotti and Chico Buarque. Later on Bebel joined an experimental theatrical group and was a member of the founding team of the performance space Circo Voador (Flying Circus) at Ipanema Beach. In this group she met singer/songwriter Cazuza, who became a close friend and soon a major rock star in Brazil during the 1980s.
Throughout the 1990s, Bebel collaborated with a variety of musical stars such as Arto Lindsay, Thievery Corporation, David Byrne, Towa Tei, Caetano Veloso and Chico Buarque. In 1996 Bebel was featured in the AIDS charity project Red Hot + Rio, produced by her close friend and collaborator Béco Dranoff. By the mid 1990s, Bebel also had successes as songwriter with the international dance hits "Technova" and "Batucada" in collaboration with producers Towa Tei and Arto Lindsay.
Bebel was featured on the soundtrack of Brad Anderson's film Next Stop Wonderland with Vinicius Cantuária and Mauro Refosco. In the late 1990s, Bebel moved to London where she began to develop the sound featured on her critically acclaimed debut album Tanto Tempo. During this period, she met Suba, the multi-talented Serbian producer living in São Paulo who ended up writing and producing several tracks on Tanto Tempo. While in London, she also worked with DJ/producer Amon Tobin, Dutch duo Arling & Cameron and singer Nina Miranda.
In 2000, Bebel's Tanto Tempo album was released on Ziriguiboom (Crammed Discs sub-label) and has sold over one million copies worldwide. The album was also nominated for two Latin Grammy Awards. Her second album, Bebel Gilberto (2004), was also released to great critical acclaim, receiving a MOBO Award in the UK and also a World Music Grammy nomination.
Also in 2006, Bebel started writing and producing the songs that would become part of her third album Momento, released in April 2007. On this album, Bebel collaborated with UK producer Guy Sigsworth, her friends Didi Gutman and Sabina Sciubba (from NY based band Brazilian Girls) and the Rio based Orquestra Imperial.
Gilberto's most recent album, All In One, was released in the US in September 2009 by jazz imprint Verve.
Aganj
Bebel Gilberto Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ví cadeira boa sentei
Espirrei na tua gripei
Por ficar ao léo resfriei
Você me agradou me acertou
Me miseravou, me aqueceu
Me rasgou a roupa e valeu
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Quem sabe a labuta quitar
Sabe o trabalho que dá
Batalhar o pão e trazer
Para a casa o sobreviver
Encontrei na rua a questão
Cem por cento a falta de chão
Vou rezar prá nunca perder
Essa estrutura que é você
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
In Bebel Gilberto's song Aganjú, the lyrics speak of waiting for someone until the moon has grown “full” and of feeling lonely and eventually catching a cold because of it. It later speaks of how the person who arrived warmed the singer's heart, helped them through difficult times, and even made them feel like celebrating. The repetition of “Aganjú” throughout the song is a reference to the African deity, and while the song does not reference this deity directly, it fits within the broader theme of spiritualism that is common in Latin America and the Caribbean. In addition, it speaks to the separation between the material world and the spiritual world.
The song speaks of the struggle for survival and the importance of a strong support system both in terms of physical and emotional support. The second stanza seems to address issues of poverty and financial instability, with the singer stating that surviving and providing for oneself and one's family can be a difficult and constant struggle. The song also references the importance of spirituality and faith as a means of coping with these struggles.
Overall, Bebel Gilberto's Aganjú is a beautiful and insightful song that speaks to the interconnectedness of spirituality, perseverance, and support in the face of adversity.
Line by Line Meaning
Te esperei na lua crescer
I waited for you until the moon grew.
Ví cadeira boa sentei
I saw a good chair and sat in it.
Espirrei na tua gripei
I sneezed on you and caught your cold.
Por ficar ao léo resfriei
I caught a cold from being outside alone.
Você me agradou me acertou
You pleased me and hit the mark.
Me miseravou, me aqueceu
You pitied me and warmed me.
Me rasgou a roupa e valeu
You tore my clothes and it was worth it.
E jurou conversas de deus
And you swore conversations with God.
Aganjú
Aganju
Aganjú
Aganju
Aganjú
Aganju
Aganjú
Aganju
Aganjú
Aganju
Aganjú
Aganju
Quem sabe a labuta quitar
Who knows how to pay off the toil
Sabe o trabalho que dá
Knows the work that it takes
Batalhar o pão e trazer
To fight for bread and bring it
Para a casa o sobreviver
For the family to survive
Encontrei na rua a questão
I found the question on the street
Cem por cento a falta de chão
One hundred percent the lack of ground
Vou rezar prá nunca perder
I'll pray to never lose
Essa estrutura que é você
This structure that is you
Aganjú
Aganju
Aganjú
Aganju
Aganjú
Aganju
Aganjú
Aganju
Aganjú
Aganju
Aganjú
Aganju
Lyrics © EMI Music Publishing
Written by: ANTONIO CARLOS SANTOS DE FREITAS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
MrTonynando
Te esperei na lua crescer
Ví cadeira boa sentei
Espirrei na tua gripei
Por ficar ao léo resfriei
Você me agradou me acertou
Me miseravou, me aqueceu
Me rasgou a roupa e valeu
E jurou conversas de deus
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Quem sabe a labuta quitar
Sabe o trabalho que dá
Batalhar o pão e trazer
Para a casa o sobreviver
Encontrei na rua a questão
Cem por cento a falta de chão
Vou rezar prá nunca perder
Essa estrutura que é você
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Marcos Estevam Mafra
I waited for you on the moon to grow
I saw good chair I sat
I sneezed in yours, I got the flu.
Staying cool
You pleased me, you hit me,
It made me miserable, it warmed me
Tore my clothes and thanks
And swore god talks
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Maybe the drudgery will pay off,
You know how hard it is,
Battle the bread and bring,
For the house to survive.
I found the question on the street,
One hundred percent lack of ground,
I will pray that I will never lose,
That structure that is you.
Some adjustment from Google.. and take a look what Aganjú is https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aganju
MrTonynando
Te esperei na lua crescer
Ví cadeira boa sentei
Espirrei na tua gripei
Por ficar ao léo resfriei
Você me agradou me acertou
Me miseravou, me aqueceu
Me rasgou a roupa e valeu
E jurou conversas de deus
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Quem sabe a labuta quitar
Sabe o trabalho que dá
Batalhar o pão e trazer
Para a casa o sobreviver
Encontrei na rua a questão
Cem por cento a falta de chão
Vou rezar prá nunca perder
Essa estrutura que é você
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Aganjú
Carol Wong
I was 16 when I first heard samba music and have been hooked ever since..love the soft rhythm and her voice..like waves on tropical waters. Thank you...from Astrud Gilberto to Bebel!
Angie Martin
Carol Wong me too 🥰👍🏽❤️🎵💯
Bertina Salcedo Ramos
Hermosa canción saludos desde Perú me encanta esta artista
Sasja Speksnijder
Bebel muito obrigado.........thank you very much dicht a great voice and melodie 😍❤🙏🏼
Angie Martin
MY FAVORITE SONG 🎵🎵❤️‼️
MrTonynando
Sonzeira demais
Junior Santiago
Graças a Deus temos músicas desse nível ainda, para melhorar o nível do lixo que tem hoje em dia !!!
N
Красота
Lounge Music
Beautiful Track. Love It.