Elba Maria Nunes Ramalho (born August 17, 1951 in Conceição, Paraíba, Brazi… Read Full Bio ↴Elba Maria Nunes Ramalho (born August 17, 1951 in Conceição, Paraíba, Brazil), best known as Elba Ramalho, is a Brazilian MPB singer, songwriter, performer, multi-instrumentalist and actress. Her musical style is characteristic for the traditional sounds of the Northeastern region of Brazil, such as baião, xote, xaxado, frevo, forró, and others.

Elba Ramalho was born in the rural area of Conceição, in Vale do Piancó. In 1962, the family moved to the city of Campina Grande, also in Paraíba. Her father became the owner of the local theater. Daughter of a musician, she became interested in music still as a teenager.

In 1966, she participated, for the first time, in a performance on stage, in the Choir of the Fundação Artística e Cultural Manuel Bandeira, of which she was a member, with "Evocação do Recife". The Manuel Bandeira and Cecília Meireles Talking Choirs gained fame and started to be seen all over the Northeast, and Elba, who made her first presentation on stage together with them, soon became the highlight in the presentations. She starred in the poetic montages of Castro Alves, Thiago de Mello, Lindolfo Bell, Carlos Pena Filho and Figueiredo Agra. He participated in the montages of the plays "Ministro do Supremo" and "Diálogo das Carmelitas."

In 1968, while attending college of Economics and Sociology at the Federal University of Paraíba, she formed the ensemble As Brasas, in which she acted as drummer, which later became a theater group. However, Elba never stopped singing, and performed in several festivals throughout the Northeast.

In 1979, she released her first album, "Ave de Prata", and since then she has consolidated her position as one of the main Brazilian singers in activity. On her father's side, she is a cousin of fellow singer Zé Ramalho.

She has two Latin Grammys for her albums: Qual o Assunto Que Mais Lhe importa?, released in 2008, and Balaio de Amor, 2009, in the category Best Brazilian Roots Album: Regional and Tropical. In over 35 years of career, Elba Ramalho has sold more than 10 million albums. She received from the Art Critics Association of São Paulo the award "Best Show of the Year" on two occasions: in 1989 for the show Popular Brasileira and in 1996 for the show Leão do Norte.

Onde Tu Tá Neném
Elba Ramalho Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Ontem eu sonhei que tava em Moscou
Dançando um pagode russo
Na boate cossacou

Ontem eu sonhei que tava em Moscou
Dançando um pagode russo
Na boate cossacou

Parecia até um frevo
Naquele vai ou não vai
Parecia até um frevo
Naquele cai ou não cai

Parecia até um frevo
Naquele vai ou não vai
Parecia até um frevo
Naquele cai ou não cai

Vem cá cossaco
Cossaco, dança agora
Na dança do cossaco
Não fica cossaco fora

Ontem eu sonhei que tava em Moscou
Dançando um pagode russo
Na boate cossacou

Parecia até um frevo
Naquele cai ou não cai

Parecia até um frevo
Naquele vai ou não vai

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Elba Ramalho's song Pagode Russo/Onde Tu Tá Neném describe a dream where the singer is transported to Moscow and finds themselves dancing a "pagode" (a type of Brazilian samba) with a Russian twist, in a nightclub called "cossacou." The song uses metaphorical language to describe the dance, with the movements being compared to a "frevo," which is a type of carnival dance from Brazil characterized by fast and acrobatic footwork.

The dream-like nature of the lyrics may reflect the theme of escapism, as the singer finds themselves transported to a completely different world, dancing a new kind of dance. The use of the word "cossaco" also highlights the blending of cultures, as it is a reference to the Cossacks, a group of predominantly eastern Slavic people known for their military might, who are often associated with Russia and Ukraine.

Overall, the lyrics of Pagode Russo/Onde Tu Tá Neném are a celebration of the joy of dance and the power of music to transport us to new and exciting places, both physically and metaphorically.

Line by Line Meaning

Ontem eu sonhei que tava em Moscou
Yesterday I dreamed that I was in Moscow

Dançando um pagode russo
Dancing a Russian pagode

Na boate cossacou
In the Cossack nightclub

Parecia até um frevo
It seemed like a frevo

Naquele vai ou não vai
In that back and forth

Parecia até um frevo
It seemed like a frevo

Naquele cai ou não cai
In that fall or not fall

Vem cá cossaco
Come here, Cossack

Cossaco, dança agora
Cossack, dance now

Na dança do cossaco
In the Cossack's dance

Não fica cossaco fora
Don't stay Cossack outside

Ontem eu sonhei que tava em Moscou
Yesterday I dreamed that I was in Moscow

Dançando um pagode russo
Dancing a Russian pagode

Na boate cossacou
In the Cossack nightclub

Parecia até um frevo
It seemed like a frevo

Naquele cai ou não cai
In that fall or not fall

Parecia até um frevo
It seemed like a frevo

Naquele vai ou não vai
In that back and forth

Lyrics © UNIVERSAL MUSIC PUBLISHING,
Written by: JOAO LEOCADIO DA SILVA, LUIZ GONZAGA DO NASCIMENTO, Luiz Bandeira

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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