Elizabeth Santos Leal de Carvalho (May 5, 1946, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil — Ap… Read Full Bio ↴Elizabeth Santos Leal de Carvalho (May 5, 1946, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil — April 30, 2019, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil), best known as Beth Carvalho, was a Brazilian singer, musician and songwriter, being regarded as one of the biggest interpreters of samba and pagode music, receiving the title of "Madrinha do Samba" (Godmother of Samba).

Carvalho was raised in a middle-class family in Rio de Janeiro's South Zone. Her father, João Francisco Leal de Carvalho, was a lawyer. She grew up influenced by different types of music. Her father used to take her to samba school rehearsals, and her mother was a lover of classical music who encouraged her to become a ballerina. She started playing the guitar as a teenager, and got involved with the emerging Bossa Nova movement, winning a nationwide song contest on TV at the age of 19. Her first record was 1968's "Andança", carrying the song of the same name to victory in a larger festival, which brought her to prominence. Although she started her career with Bossa Nova, that was an ephemeral phase which lasted less than one year. Beth started dedicating herself entirely to samba just as her fame began, working with legendary composers such as Nelson Sargento.

Carvalho is a very important artist in the history of samba, as she has celebrated and brought the spotlight to the work of legendary composers such as Cartola, Nelson Cavaquinho & Guilherme de Brito when they weren't receiving the attention they deserved. Almost all of her records have songs by these composers, among other legendary sambistas such as Nelson Sargento and the Old Guard of Portela. Her samba school is Mangueira, but that didn't stop her from recording dozens of songs from composers of Portela, the other great traditional samba school in Rio.

Later, in the late 1970s and early 80's, Beth helped bring to the public the work of other rising pagode artists from Cacique de Ramos, such as Almir Guineto, Jorge Aragão and the Fundo de Quintal group. Then, in 1983, she introduced Zeca Pagodinho who would become the major samba name of the 90's. Carvalho always tried to bring underrated composers the recognition they deserve, and she is regarded as madrinha do samba (the godmother of samba). She was a driving force in the modernization of samba in the 80s, and at the same time rejected commercial pop trends in samba arrangements, preserving tradition.

In the 1990s, Beth's popularity wasn't the strongest, but she was always popular. She recorded an album dedicated to the samba from São Paulo, rejecting the famous axiom that São Paulo is the grave of samba. In 1998 she recorded an album dedicated entirely to the pagode classics, Pérolas do Pagode (Pagode Pearls).

In the new millennium, Beth working more than ever, released CDs and DVDs. With a career that spans 40 years, she is a historical figure in Brazilian culture, and recognized as the female sambista with the most substantial opus in Brazil, without diminishing other, younger stars such as Clara Nunes and Daniela Mercury.

Trivia
Beth is a known supporter of both the Botafogo and Clube Atlético Mineiro football teams
Beth is one of the main personalities of the samba school Mangueira
Beth had a variety of hits in the 1970s, with her 1979 song Coisinha Do Pai being one of her biggest hits. The song was inserted into the Mars Pathfinder.
Her social music often concerns the poor and the Indigenous peoples in Brazil.

Samba de Arerê
Beth Carvalho Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Meu samba tem muito axé
Quer ver, vem dizer no pé
Escute o som do tantã
Tem samba até de manhã

Pra curar o desamor
E a tristeza afastar
Você que nunca sambou

Se liga tem que sambar

Meu samba é de arerê
Quem samba não quer parar
Na hora do vamo vê
Meu samba é ruim de aturar

Tem o dom de resolver
Deixar tudo no lugar
Você que nunca sambou
Se liga, tem que sambar

Vem ver, o meu povo cantar
Vem ver, o meu samba é assim
Amor, você pode provar
Mas deixe um pouquinho pra mim (Vem ver)

Vem ver, o meu povo cantar
Vem ver, o meu samba é assim
Amor, você pode provar
Mas deixe um pouquinho pra mim

Meu samba tem muito axé
Quer ver, vem dizer no pé
Escute o som do tantã
Tem samba até de manhã

Pra curar o desamor
E a tristeza afastar
Você que nunca sambou
Se liga tem que sambar

Meu samba é de arerê
Quem samba não quer parar
Na hora do vamo vê
Meu samba é ruim de aturar

Tem o dom de resolver
Deixar tudo no lugar
Você que nunca sambou
Se liga, tem que sambar

Vem ver, meu povo cantar
Vem ver, o meu samba é assim
Amor, você pode provar
Mas deixe um pouquinho pra mim

Vem ver, o meu povo cantar
Vem ver, o meu samba é assim
Amor, você pode provar
Mas deixe um pouquinho pra mim

Meu samba tem muito axé
Quer ver, vem dizer no pé
Escute o som do tantã
Tem samba até de manhã

Pra curar o desamor
E a tristeza afastar
Você que nunca sambou
Se liga tem que sambar

Meu samba é de arerê
Quem samba não quer parar
Na hora do vamo vê
Meu samba é ruim de aturar

Tem o dom de resolver
Deixar tudo no lugar
Você que nunca sambou
Se liga, tem que sambar

Vem ver, o meu povo cantar
Vem ver, o meu samba é assim
Amor, você pode provar
Mas deixe um pouquinho pra mim

Vem ver, meu povo cantar
Vem ver, o meu samba é assim

Amor, você pode provar
Mas deixe um pouquinho pra mim

Overall Meaning

In Beth Carvalho's song "Samba de Arerê," the lyrics express the joy and power of samba music. The opening lines, "Meu samba tem muito axé / Quer ver, vem dizer no pé," suggest that the samba has an abundance of energy and vitality that can't be fully understood until experienced through movement ("dizer no pé" translates to "say with your feet"). The lyrics go on to describe the different elements of the music, including the sound of the tantã (a Brazilian percussion instrument) and the fact that the samba can last all night.

The song also emphasizes the healing power of samba. The lyrics suggest that the music can cure heartbreak ("Pra curar o desamor") and chase away sadness ("E a tristeza afastar"). The refrain, "Você que nunca sambou / Se liga, tem que sambar" reinforces the idea that samba is for everyone and can bring joy and healing to all who experience it.

Overall, "Samba de Arerê" is an upbeat and energetic celebration of samba music and its power to uplift and heal.

Line by Line Meaning

Meu samba tem muito axé
My samba is full of positive energy

Quer ver, vem dizer no pé
If you want to see, come dance with me

Escute o som do tantã
Listen to the rhythm of the drum

Tem samba até de manhã
There's samba all night long

Pra curar o desamor
To heal from heartbreak

E a tristeza afastar
And to drive away sadness

Você que nunca sambou
If you've never danced samba

Se liga tem que sambar
Pay attention, you need to dance samba

Meu samba é de arerê
My samba is lively

Quem samba não quer parar
Those who dance samba don't want to stop

Na hora do vamo vê
When the time comes to show what you can do

Meu samba é ruim de aturar
My samba is hard to resist

Tem o dom de resolver
It has the power to solve

Deixar tudo no lugar
To put everything in its place

Vem ver, o meu povo cantar
Come and see my people singing

Vem ver, o meu samba é assim
Come and see that my samba is like this

Amor, você pode provar
Love, you can try it

Mas deixe um pouquinho pra mim
But leave a little bit for me

Writer(s): Assis Alexandre Silva De, Costa Junior Mauro Macedo, Domingos Da Cruz Filho Arlindo

Contributed by Henry P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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