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.
Desde Que O Samba É Samba
Caetano Veloso Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Desde que o samba é samba é assim
A lágrima clara sobre a pele escura
A noite a chuva que cai lá fora
Solidão apavora
Tudo demorando em ser tão ruim
Mas alguma coisa acontece
Cantando eu mando a tristeza embora
O samba ainda vai nascer
O samba ainda não chegou
O samba não vai morrer
Veja, o dia ainda não raiou
O samba é pai do prazer
O samba é filho da dor
O grande poder transformador
of samba is captured beautifully in Caetano Veloso's song Desde que o samba e samba. The opening lines, "A tristeza é senhora / Desde que o samba é samba é assim", set the tone for the song, with the melancholic tone of the music and the lyrics highlighting the enduring sadness that is a part of life. Veloso refers to tears on dark skin and rain falling outside, underscoring the idea that sorrow is always present, even in moments of joy.
In the face of this pervasive sadness, the singer turns to music as a means of coping with his emotions. "Cantando eu mando a tristeza embora" (Singing, I send sadness away) suggests that music has the power to transcend sorrow and uplift the listener. This idea of music as a transformative force is a recurring theme in Veloso's work and a fundamental aspect of samba culture more broadly.
The final lines of the song celebrate the longevity and impact of samba music. "O samba ainda vai nascer / O samba ainda não chegou / O samba não vai morrer" (Samba is yet to be born / Samba has not yet arrived / Samba will not die) suggest that samba is both timeless and constantly evolving. The lines "O samba é pai do prazer / O samba é filho da dor" (Samba is the father of pleasure / Samba is the son of pain) capture the complex emotions that samba music expresses, encompassing both joy and sorrow.
In summary, Desde que o samba e samba is a powerful ode to the enduring influence of samba music, as well as a meditation on the role of music in the face of adversity. The song's emotive lyrics, combined with its lilting rhythm, make it a masterpiece of Brazilian popular music.
Line by Line Meaning
A tristeza é senhora
Sadness rules over me
Desde que o samba é samba é assim
Ever since samba exists, it's like this
A lágrima clara sobre a pele escura
Bright tears on dark skin
A noite a chuva que cai lá fora
Rainy night outside
Solidão apavora
The fear of loneliness
Tudo demorando em ser tão ruim
Everything is slowly turning bad
Mas alguma coisa acontece
But something happens
No sempre agora em mim
Right here and now inside me
Cantando eu mando a tristeza embora
When I sing, sadness goes away
O samba ainda vai nascer
Samba is still going to be born
O samba ainda não chegou
Samba has not yet arrived
O samba não vai morrer
Samba is not going to die
Veja, o dia ainda não raiou
Look, the day has not yet dawned
O samba é pai do prazer
Samba is the father of joy
O samba é filho da dor
Samba is the son of pain
O grande poder transformador
The great transformative power
Contributed by Thomas I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Rosangela Calegari
A tristeza é senhora
Desde que o samba é samba é assim
A lágrima clara sobre a pele escura
A noite, a chuva que cai lá fora
Solidão apavora
Tudo demorando em ser tão ruim
Mas alguma coisa acontece
No quando agora em mim
Cantando eu mando a tristeza embora
A tristeza é senhora
Desde que o samba é samba é assim
A lágrima clara sobre a pele escura
A noite e a chuva que cai lá fora
Solidão apavora
Tudo demorando em ser tão ruim
Mas alguma coisa acontece
No quando agora em mim
Cantando eu mando a tristeza embora
O samba ainda vai nascer
O samba ainda não chegou
O samba não vai morrer
Veja o dia ainda não raiou
O samba é o pai do prazer
O samba é o filho da dor
O grande poder transformador
A tristeza é senhora
Desde que o samba é samba é assim
A lágrima clara sobre a pele escura
A noite e a chuva que cai lá fora
Solidão apavora
Tudo demorando em ser tão ruim
Mas alguma coisa acontece
No quando agora em mim
Cantando eu mando a tristeza embora
Cantando eu mando a tristeza embora
Cantando eu mando a tristeza embora..
Ana Rezende
Sadness is the ruler
Since samba is samba it's like that
The clear tear on the dark skin
At night the rain pouring outside
Loneliness terrifies us
Everything lingering in being so bad
But something happens
In the present time inside of me
Singing I turn sadness away
Samba will still be born
Samba hasn't arrived yet
Samba won't die
See, the day still hasn't rose
Samba is the father of pleasure
Samba is the son of pain
The great transforming power
Sadness is the ruler
Since samba is samba it's like that
But something happens
In the present time inside of me
Singing I turn sadness away
Singing I turn sadness away
Maria Fernanda Moço
Grande Caetano Veloso! Maravilhoso!
Arthumain
Sou da República Dominicana, mas amo o Brasil Bossa Nova de todo o coração! Acho que nasci no condado errado. Muito amor ao Brasil!
Raimunda Silvia
Bahia terra mãe do Brasil
Jhone Rocha
Interessante que nos anos 60 teve uma situação na República Dominicana que soldados do Brasil a serviço da ONU foi enviado para reestabelecer a ordem no país naquele país.
GabeVero
Acho no geral uma bossa! Mas Caetano é mestre!
Pedro Rubem Medeiros Silva Corrêa
Você nasceu no lugar certo! Não existe erro no nosso destino! Um dia me aventurarei em suas terras e tenho certeza que vou encontrar algo que não existe em nenhum lugar só mundo! Bahia é a o pequeno Haiti de nosso país! Abraços!
Valdilei
Pedro Rubem Medeiros Silva Corrêa, que lindo o seu comentário
Dairon Danilo
nunca fui para o Brasil, hj aqui na Colômbia colocaram essa música num restaurante, foi a primeira vez que escutei, amei demais, achei ela procurando "solidão apavora" kkk, abraços aos meus irmãos brasileiros desde a Colômbia, a música que fazem é maravilhosa !!!
Victor Oliveira
Abraço irmão colombiano
Beanca Atticus
Alguns artistas da MPB (Música Popular brasileira)
Djavan
Chico Buarque
Gal Costa
Milton nascimento
Gilberto Gil.
Existem vários outros artistas.