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.
Olha O Menino
Caetano Veloso Lyrics
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Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Olha o menino, ui
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Eu só quero que Deus me ajude
E o menino muito mais também
Pois a rosa é uma flor
E o menino não é ninguém
Olha o menino, ui
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Olha o menino, ui
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Há seis mil anos o homem vive feliz
Fazendo guerras e asneiras
Há seis mil anos Deus perde tempo
Fazendo flores e estrelas
Olha o menino, ui
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Olha o menino, ui
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Eu sou um homem sincero
Porque nasci cresci e vivo livre
Eu sou um homem sincero
Que quero morrer nascer e viver livre
Olha o menino, ui
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Olha o menino, ui
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Eu só quero que Deus me ajude
E o menino muito mais também
Pois a rosa é uma flor
A flor é uma rosa
E o menino não é ninguém
Olha o menino, ui
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Olha o menino, ui
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Há seis mil anos o homem vive feliz
Fazendo guerras e asneiras
Há seis mil anos Deus perde tempo
Fazendo flores e estrelas
Olha o menino, ui
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Olha o menino, ui
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Eu sou um homem sincero
Porque nasci cresci e vivo livre
Eu sou um homem sincero
Que quero morrer nascer e viver livre
Olha o menino, ui
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Olha o menino, ui
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Olha o menino, ui
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Olha o menino, ui
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Olha o menino, ui
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
The song "Olha O Menino" by Caetano Veloso is an insightful commentary on the state of the world and the human condition. The repeated phrase "Olha o menino" (Look at the boy) throughout the song serves as a call to attention to the innocence and purity of childhood in contrast to the complexities and failures of society. The lyrics express a desire for God's help not just for the self, but also for the child. The metaphor of the rose and the flower highlights the fact that beauty and goodness exist in the world even though it seems the child is not valued or recognized.
The second verse is particularly telling, as Veloso contrasts the long history of human folly and war with God's persistent creation of beauty and wonder in the form of flowers and stars. The final verse expresses a desire to live a life of honesty and freedom, but also acknowledges the inevitability of death and rebirth. The song ends with a repetition of "Olha o menino" as a reminder to focus on the pure and innocent aspects of life, even amidst the chaos and pain of the world.
Line by Line Meaning
Olha o menino, ui
Look at the boy, oh
Olha o menino, ui-ui-ui
Look at the boy, oh-oh-oh
Eu só quero que Deus me ajude
I just want God to help me
E o menino muito mais também
And the boy, even more so
Pois a rosa é uma flor
Because the rose is a flower
A flor é uma rosa
The flower is a rose
E o menino não é ninguém
And the boy is no one
Há seis mil anos o homem vive feliz
For six thousand years, man has lived happily
Fazendo guerras e asneiras
Making wars and foolishness
Há seis mil anos Deus perde tempo
For six thousand years, God has wasted time
Fazendo flores e estrelas
Making flowers and stars
Eu sou um homem sincero
I am a sincere man
Porque nasci cresci e vivo livre
Because I was born, grew up, and live free
Que quero morrer nascer e viver livre
Who wants to die, be born, and live free
Contributed by Ava B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.