Born on the 27th August 1941 in the port town of Mindelo, Cape Verde, on the island of São Vicente. Long known as the queen of the morna, a soulful genre (related to the Portuguese fado) sung in Creole-Portuguese, she mixed her sentimental folk tunes filled with longing and sadness with the acoustic sounds of guitar, cavaquinho, violin, accordion, and clarinet. Évora's Cape Verdean blues often spoke of the country's history of isolation and slave trade, as well as emigration; almost two-thirds of the million Cape Verdeans alive live abroad.
Évora's voice, a finely-tuned, melancholy instrument with a touch of hoarseness, highlighted her emotional phrasing by accenting a word or phrase. Even audiences who do not understand her language could be held spell-bound by the emotions evident in her performances.
In 2004 she won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary World Music Album.
A heavy smoker for decades, Évora was diagnosed with heart problems in 2005. She suffered strokes in 2008 and in September 2011, when she announced she was retiring. She died at the age of seventy in São Vicente, Cape Verde on the 17th December 2011 from respiratory failure and hypertension. A Spanish newspaper reported that forty-eight hours before her death she was still receiving people in her home in Mindelo, popular for always having its doors open.
Recordai
Cesária Évora Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
O gente no bem festejal
See'nos morabeza
No bem goza dess dia
Sonte di fin d'one
Ja p'di ké pa no honral
Na força di nos tradiçon
Recordai recordai
Senhor son silvestre
No bem da boas festas pa tud gente
No bem da boas festas pa cabo verde
O k'sinfonia la na baia
Oh irmon see'ma m'ta feliz
O k'sintonia num melodia
Cantode na som di mil voz e o q'note
Tão doce e colorida
The lyrics to Cesaria Evora's song Recordai are a celebration of the end of the year and the traditions of Cape Verde. It begins with a call to everyone to not only celebrate, but to enjoy the day with morabeza, which is a term that refers to the hospitality and welcoming nature of the Cape Verdean people. The song continues by reminding listeners to honor their traditions and perpetuate the joy that comes with them. There is a reference to Senhor Son Silvestre, who is likely a local figure associated with the holiday season. The song acknowledges the beauty of the symphony that can be heard in the bay as well as the happiness felt by the singer and their fellow islanders.
Line by Line Meaning
Hoje é fin d'one
Today is the end of the week
O gente no bem festejal
People are not celebrating happily
See'nos morabeza
In the midst of our hospitality
No bem goza dess dia
We enjoy this day
Sonte di fin d'one
Saturday night
Ja p'di ké pa no honral
We already know what to honor
Na força di nos tradiçon
In the strength of our tradition
No ta perpetua ess alegria
We perpetuate this joy
Recordai recordai
Remember, remember
Senhor son silvestre
Lord Wild's song
No bem da boas festas pa tud gente
For the good celebration of all people
No bem da boas festas pa cabo verde
For the good celebration of Cape Verde
O k'sinfonia la na baia
The symphony here in the bay
Oh irmon see'ma m'ta feliz
Oh brother, I am happy
O k'sintonia num melodia
The harmony in a melody
Cantode na som di mil voz e o q'note
Singing in the sound of a thousand voices and the note
Tão doce e colorida
So sweet and colorful
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: CHANTRE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@martinezeler5564
Une voix merveilleuse et une orchestration impeccable. Jamais je n'oublierai Cesaria dont je possède toute la discographie!!!
@reginakato7374
Moi aussi!
@elwinachmedow8105
Hoje é fin d'one
O gente no bem festejal
O nos morabeza
No bem goza dess dia
Sonte di fin d'one
Ja p'di ké pa no honral
Na força di tradiçon
No ta parpetua ess alegria
Recordai recordai
Senhor son silvestre
No bem da boas festas pa tud gente
No bem da boas festas pa cabo verde
O k'sinfonia la na baia
Oh irmon k’ma m'ta feliz
O k'sintonia num melodia
Cantode na som di mil voz e o k'note
Tan doce e colorida
@oscarrocabert6268
Hoje é fin d'an
@IsabelleBl
Arno Ostende bonsoi