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.
Sangue De Beirona
Cesária Évora Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Si sangue de Beirona é sim' sabe
El ba panha 'l
La na fundo di Ladera
Sangue de Beirona
Sangue de Beirona
El é sabe
Si bô c'octha'l
La na fundo di Ladera
Bo ta culpa'
E quem faze'be ess coladera
Cesária Évora, also known as the "Barefoot Diva," sings about the beauty and sweetness of the "Sangue de Beirona" in this track. The song opens with the lines, "Quem qu're sabê/Si sangue de Beirona é sim' sabe/El ba panha 'l/La na fundo di Ladera," which translates to "Whoever wants to know/If the blood of Beirona is really known/You have to pick it/From the bottom of Ladera." In this context, "Sangue de Beirona" likely refers to a type of wine or liquor that is made in the region of Beirona.
The second verse reinforces this idea, saying "Si bô c'octha'l/La na fundo di Ladera/Bo ta culpa'/E quem faze'be ess coladera," meaning "If you taste it/From the bottom of Ladera/You'll be hooked/And the one to blame/Is whoever made this coladera." This reinforces the idea that the "Sangue de Beirona" is a drink that is both enjoyable and addictive.
Overall, "Sangue de Beirona" is a celebratory song that highlights the sweetness and allure of this drink. Cesária Évora's smooth vocals and the song's upbeat rhythm make it a classic example of Cape Verdean coladera music.
Line by Line Meaning
Quem qu're sabê
Who wants to know
Si sangue de Beirona é sim' sabe
If Beirona's blood is really known
El ba panha 'l
He goes to fetch it
La na fundo di Ladera
There at the bottom of Ladera
Sangue de Beirona
Blood of Beirona
Sangue de Beirona
Blood of Beirona
El é sabe
It is tasty
El é doce
It is sweet
Si bô c'octha'l
If you find it
La na fundo di Ladera
There at the bottom of Ladera
Bo ta culpa'
You will be guilty
E quem faze'be ess coladera
And whoever made this coladera
Contributed by Caden C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@dominiquebala2475
Sangue de Beirona
El e sab, el doce
Quem kre sabe
Se sangue de Beirona e sim sabe.
El ba panhal
La na fundo di Ladera.
Sangue de Beirona
El e sab, El e doce.
Si bo k'otchal
La na fundo di latera
Bo ta culpa
E quem faze'b ess coladera.
@moussoundafaye3275
Mon enfance, abandonné de mon père, j'ai grandi avec toi, et pourtant distant par la langue mais Unis par le cœur cesaria tu étais la reine du cœur de ce petit de 8, 9 ans. Dans mes jeux avec mes camarades, je peux me souvenir quand je les fuillaient un instant pour être avec toi un instant près de cette radio à écouter Africa numéro un, c'était notre heure à nous, tes paroles parlaient à mon cœur et je pouvais saisir la puissance de la solitude que l'on partageai par tes chants. Je t'aime evora, aujourd'hui j'ai grandi et je suis papa maintenant c'est à mon tour d'être la pour eux, maman est parti te rejoindre, et c'est aussi grâce à elle que j'ai appris à écouter avec le cœur et non simplement les oreilles. Tu restes la meilleur dans mon cœur cesaria, comme il est beau ce nom evora. Merci beaucoup à l'heure où je t'écris je viens de retrouver sangui Vérone que du bonheur 😘😘😘. Repose en paix
@colthCarter
Quel talent ! L'artiste ne meurt pas, merci maman d'avoir bercé mon enfance. Depuis le Gabon 🇬🇦
@bigband98
She was an original...one of a kind.God Bless her and the music she left behind.Her gift to us all.
@lindodladla40
This is the song that motives me to take a holiday to the Cape Verde Islands and visit her museum🙏❤️😊🔥🔥the barefooted Diva
@nkulalesa9839
Oh My goodness !! My kind of Music. I may not understand the language but the rhythm is out of this world.
@SilviaMorales-yg7kv
Todavía existe gente que le gusta la bella música.
@lorrenzom
The best African Queen ever
@blackmufasa4931
Am from zimbabwe this woman made most of my childhood life watching her videos on tv what a legend .
@ceeceeobh2707
Am From Zimbabwe too, her music is like no other but very nostalgic. Like music from a time l don’t quite remember. Cheers ✨
@sidetechsidetech3086
Even though I can't understand the Language but the power of her music I can step in to another world....