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.
Mano a mano
Caetano Veloso Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
En mi pobre vida paria sólo una buena mujer
Tu presencia de bacana puso calor en mi nido
Fuiste buena, consecuente, y yo sé que me has querido
Como no quisiste a nadie, como no podrás querer.
Se dio el juego de remanye cuando vos, pobre
Percanta,
Hoy sos toda una bacana, la vida te ríe y canta,
Los morlacos del otario los tirás a la marchanta
Como juega el gato maula con el misero ratón.
Hoy tenés el mate lleno de infelices ilusiones
Te engrupieron los otarios, las amigas, el gavión
La milonga entre magnates con sus locas tentaciones
Donde triunfan y claudican milongueras pretensiones
Se te ha entrado muy adentro en el pobre corazón.
Nada debo agradecerte, mano a mano hemos quedado,
No me importa lo que has hecho, lo que hacés ni lo que
Harás;
Los favores recibidos creo habértelos pagado
Y si alguna deuda chica sin querer se me ha olvidado
En la cuenta del otario que tenés se la cargás.
Mientras tanto, que tus triunfos, pobres triunfos
Pasajeros,
Sean una larga fila de riquezas y placer;
Que el bacán que te acamala tenga pesos duraderos
Que te abrás en las paradas con cafishios milongueros
Y que digan los muchachos: "Es una buena mujer".
Y mañana cuando seas descolado mueble viejo
Y no tengas esperanzas en el pobre corazón
Si precisás una ayuda, si te hace falta un consejo
Acordate de este amigo que ha de jugarse el pellejo
P'ayudarte en lo que pueda cuando llegue la ocasión.
The lyrics of Caetano Veloso's Mano A Mano are centered around the reminiscences of a man about a woman who was once a poor gambler and a dancer in the pueblos. However, she has now transformed into a rich and successful woman, who has left behind her poor past. The singer seems to still hold some affection for her, as he reminisces about the warmth she brought into his life when they were poor. He recognizes that the woman was always good to him and loved him more than anyone else. However, he also acknowledges that she is now surrounded by wealthy men who are attracted by her beauty and success, and they are trying to take advantage of her.
The singer ultimately reminds the woman that he owes her nothing and that they are even now, having given each other what they needed at the time. While she revels in her newfound wealth and success, the singer hopes that her temporary triumphs will ultimately lead to a long-lasting prosperity. He wishes that the men she surrounds herself with will be generous to her and that they will acknowledge her worth as a person. He also promises to remain a friend to her and to help her in any way he can, even though he cannot change her past.
Overall, the song touches on themes of love, gratitude, social class, and redemption. It shows how people can evolve over time and how they should never forget their humble beginnings. The singer is able to appreciate the unique qualities that the woman once possessed, even when she was poor and struggling, and expresses a hope that she can retain those qualities as she moves forward in life.
Line by Line Meaning
Rechiflao en mi tristeza, hoy te evoco y veo que has sido
Lost in my sadness, I think of you today and realize how much you've meant to me
En mi pobre vida paria sólo una buena mujer
In my poor life, only one good woman has been there for me
Tu presencia de bacana puso calor en mi nido
Your presence as a stylish, confident woman brought warmth to my home
Fuiste buena, consecuente, y yo sé que me has querido
You were kind, loyal, and I know that you loved me
Como no quisiste a nadie, como no podrás querer.
Because you didn't love anyone, you never will
Se dio el juego de remanye cuando vos, pobre Percanta,
You had to play the game of survival, poor girl,
Gambeteabas la pobreza en la casa de pensión:
You dodged poverty at the boarding house
Hoy sos toda una bacana, la vida te ríe y canta,
Now you're a stylish woman and life laughs and sings for you
Los morlacos del otario los tirás a la marchanta
You throw away the money of fools
Como juega el gato maula con el misero ratón.
Like a street cat playing with a helpless mouse.
Hoy tenés el mate lleno de infelices ilusiones
Today you have a mind full of unhappy dreams
Te engrupieron los otarios, las amigas, el gavión
You've been fooled by fools, friends, and lovers
La milonga entre magnates con sus locas tentaciones
The tango between rich men with their crazy temptations
Donde triunfan y claudican milongueras pretensiones
Where they brag and fail at tango dancing
Se te ha entrado muy adentro en el pobre corazón.
It's all gotten too deep into your poor heart
Nada debo agradecerte, mano a mano hemos quedado,
I owe you nothing, we're even
No me importa lo que has hecho, lo que hacés ni lo que Harás;
I don't care what you've done, what you're doing, or what you'll do
Los favores recibidos creo habértelos pagado
I believe I've paid back the favors I owe you
Y si alguna deuda chica sin querer se me ha olvidado
If I've forgotten any small debt by accident
En la cuenta del otario que tenés se la cargás.
I'll just charge it to one of the fools you've collected
Mientras tanto, que tus triunfos, pobres triunfos Pasajeros,
In the meantime, let your fleeting triumphs be just that
Sean una larga fila de riquezas y placer;
May they be a long list of riches and pleasure
Que el bacán que te acamala tenga pesos duraderos
May the pimp who keeps you have more stable money
Que te abrás en las paradas con cafishios milongueros
May you show off on the street with tango-loving thugs
Y que digan los muchachos: "Es una buena mujer".
And let the boys say, "she's a good woman."
Y mañana cuando seas descolado mueble viejo
And when you're an old, discarded piece of furniture
Y no tengas esperanzas en el pobre corazón
And have no hope left in your poor heart
Si precisás una ayuda, si te hace falta un consejo
If you need help or advice
Acordate de este amigo que ha de jugarse el pellejo
Remember this friend who will risk his skin
P'ayudarte en lo que pueda cuando llegue la ocasión.
To help you however he can when the time comes.
Contributed by Oliver E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@Matematica6pi
impresionante CAETANO
@pablocarabajal2065
Sorprendente, Caetano, inmejorable, actualiza un tango de más de 80 años.
@fifteendolarshoney4616
Mi cNcion favorita no puedo creer que caetano la cante y tan bien que le sale
@rodrigowerneck4971
Fino dos finos! Que produção!!
@snterp
Genial
@PedroIaco
❤️🔥🥊
@fernandoferdinand5549
hoy quiero saludar por las dudas a todas las mujeres en especial a mi vieja q me cuida del cielo-sarava.
@Ludicanti
Acabei de mostrar pra as meninas da Vogue.
@rodrigowerneck4971
Carlos Gardel...
@olgamariarodriguezperez4309
Cómo puedo agregar a mi carpeta de música?