Veloso is the fifth of the seven children born to José Telles Veloso ("Seu Zezinho") and Claudionor Vianna Telles Veloso ("Dona Canô"). His younger sister Maria Bethânia, another popular and renowned artist in Brazil, preceded him to fame as a singer in the mid-1960s. He began his career around 1965 singing bossa nova and he has cited his greatest musical influences from his early period as João Gilberto and Dorival Caymmi. (João Gilberto would say later about Caetano's contribution that it added an intellectual dimension to brazilian popular music.) But with such musical collaborators Gilberto Gil, Gal Costa, Tom Zé, Chico Buarque, and Os Mutantes, and greatly influenced by the later work of The Beatles, developed tropicalismo, which fused Brazilian pop with rock and roll and avant garde art music resulting in a more international, psychedelic, and socially aware sound. Veloso's politically active stance, unapologetically leftist, earned him the enmity of Brazil's military dictatorship which ruled until 1985; his songs were frequently censored, and some were banned. Veloso was also alienated from the socialist left in Brazil becasue of his acceptance and integration of non-nationalist influences (like rock and roll) in his music. Veloso and Gilberto Gil spent several months in jail for "anti-government activity" in 1968 and eventually exiled themselves to London. Caetano Veloso's work upon his return in 1972 was often characterized by frequent appropriations not only of international styles, but of half-forgotten Brazilian folkloric styles and rhythms as well. In particular, his celebration of the Afro-Brazilian culture of Bahia can be seen as the precursor of such Afro-centric groups as Timbalada.
In the 1980s, Veloso's popularity outside Brazil grew, especially in Israel, Portugal, France and Africa. By 2004, he was one of the most respected and prolific international pop stars, with more than fifty recordings available, including songs in soundtracks of movies such as Pedro Almodovar's Hable con Ella (Talk to Her), and Frida. In 2002 Veloso published an account of his early years and the Tropicalia movement, Tropical Truth: A Story of Music and Revolution in Brazil.
His first all-English CD was A Foreign Sound (2004), which covers Nirvana's "Come as You Are" and compositions from the Great American Songbook. Five of the six songs on his third eponymous album, released in 1971, were also in English.
De Conversa / Cravo E Canela
Caetano Veloso Lyrics
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Cravo e Canela:
Ê morena quem temperou
Cigana quem temperou
O cheiro do cravo
Ê Cigana quem temperou
Morena quem temperou
Ê morena quem temperou
Cigana quem temperou
O cheiro do cravo
Ê Cigana quem temperou
Morena quem temperou
A cor da canela
Ê morena quem temperou
Cigana quem temperou
O cheiro do cravo
Ê Cigana quem temperou
Morena quem temperou
A cor da canela
Ê morena quem temperou
Cigana quem temperou
O cheiro do cravo
Ê Cigana quem temperou
Morena quem temperou
A cor da canela
Ê morena quem temperou
Cigana quem temperou
O cheiro do cravo
Ê Cigana quem temperou
Morena quem temperou
A cor da canela
Ê morena quem temperou
Cigana quem temperou
O cheiro do cravo
Ê Cigana quem temperou
Morena quem temperou
A cor da canela . . .
The lyrics to Caetano Veloso's song De Conversa / Cravo E Canela speak to the origins of both the scent of clove and the color of cinnamon, attributing them to the respective influences of a mocha-skinned woman and a gypsy. The repetition of the lyrics throughout the song emphasizes the importance of these two women and their contribution to the formation of these elements. The use of the word "temperou," meaning "tempered" or "seasoned," suggests a deliberate and intentional act on the part of these women in the creation of these sensory experiences.
The references to mocha skin and gypsies are significant in their associations with exoticism and sensuality. These ideas are further emphasized by the use of the words "cheiro" or "scent" and "cor" or "color," both of which are linked to sensory experiences that are often associated with desire and pleasure. The overall effect of the lyrics is to give agency and power to these women, positioning them as active creators of sensory experiences that are both pleasurable and significant.
Line by Line Meaning
Ê morena quem temperou
The dark-skinned woman spiced up
Cigana quem temperou
The gypsy spiced up
O cheiro do cravo
With the scent of the clove
Ê Cigana quem temperou
The gypsy spiced up
Morena quem temperou
The dark-skinned woman spiced up
A cor da canela
With the color of the cinnamon
Contributed by Aaliyah I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.