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.
Prenda Minha
Caetano Veloso Lyrics
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Prenda minha
No rincão do bem-querer
Noite escura, noite escura
Prenda minha
Toda noite me atentou
Quando foi de madrugada
Prenda minha
The lyrics of Caetano Veloso's song Prenda Minha speak of a man's longing for his lost love. The singer tells us that he has to go to the rodeo, but his mind is preoccupied with thoughts of his former lover. He calls out to her, asking her to be his prisoner ("Prenda minha"), to stay with him in the place they both hold affection for ("No rincão do bem-querer"). The night is dark, and he can't shake the memory of her ("Noite escura, noite escura, Prenda minha"). He feels as though every night, his lost love has been taunting him, but when he finally worked up the courage to make a move ("Quando foi de madrugada"), she had moved on without him ("Foi-se embora e me deixou").
The lyrics of Prenda Minha evoke a sense of loneliness and longing. The singer's use of the word "Prenda," which translates to "prisoner" or "captive," is significant because it shows the level of attachment he feels towards his former lover. He feels a sense of helplessness and desperation, as he wants to hold onto her but can't. The repeated phrase, "Noite escura," adds to this sense of melancholy, and the final line, "Foi-se embora e me deixou," emphasizes the feeling of abandonment and rejection.
Line by Line Meaning
Tenho de ir para o rodeio
I must go to the rodeo
Prenda minha
Hold onto me
No rincão do bem-querer
In the corner of love
Noite escura, noite escura
Dark night, dark night
Prenda minha
Hold onto me
Toda noite me atentou
Every night it haunted me
Quando foi de madrugada
When it was early morning
Prenda minha
Hold onto me
Foi-se embora e me deixou
It went away and left me
Contributed by Claire O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.