Eliane Elias (b. 1960) is a Brazilian jazz composer, pianist, and singer. Read Full Bio ↴Eliane Elias (b. 1960) is a Brazilian jazz composer, pianist, and singer.

Born on the 19th March 1960 in São Paulo, Brazil, Elias started learning to play the piano at the age of seven, and was transcribing solo portions of her parents’ jazz records by the age of twelve.

After studying for six years (and teaching by the age of fifteen) at Brazil’s prestigious Free Centre of Music Apprenticeship, she continued her classical education with Amilton Godoy and Amaral Vieria. She was also the protégé of Vinicius de Moraes, lyricist and songwriting partner of Antonio Carlos Jobim, a huge influence on Elias' work, and master of the Brazilian bossa nova movement. By the time she was seventeen years old she was touring with the best bossa nova composers and interpreters, composing her own pieces and performing at jazz clubs regularly.

Elias then moved to New York and studied privately with Olegna Fuschi at the Julliard School of Music, eventually joining jazz supergroup Steps Ahead (whose members included Eddie Gomez, Michael Brecker, Peter Erskine, and Mike Mainieri).

Her first live instrumental recording, Eliane Elias Plays Live, was recorded in Amsterdam on the 31st May 2002, and digitally released in the USA in 2010.

Elias lives in New York City with her husband, bassist Marc Johnson.

* Official site

The classical tradition meets the spontaneity of jazz through the virtuosic playing of Brazil-born and New York-based pianist Eliane Elias. A former member of jazz ensemble Steps Ahead, Elias has continued to explore two distinct musical streams through her solo recordings and her performances since the mid-'80s. In 1993, she became one of the few artists to release jazz and classical albums simultaneously. In a review of a concert in her homeland, Brazil magazine praised Elias for "her dazzling right-hand runs, executed often at frightening speeds. Her command of the keyboard was total. Her harmonic sensibility caused a sense of wonderment."

Elias may have inherited at least some of her musical talents from her mother, Lucy, a classical pianist who often played jazz records in the family home. After studying for six years at the Free Center of Music Apprenticeship in São Paulo, she continued to study classical technique with Amilton Godoy and Amaral Vieira. By her teens, Elias was composing her own pieces and performing in jazz clubs. While touring in Europe in 1981, she met jazz bassist Eddie Gomez and was encouraged to travel to New York. Arriving in the Big Apple the following year, she studied privately with Olegna Fuschi at the Juilliard School of Music. Elias' professional career received a boost when she was invited to join Steps Ahead, a jazz "supergroup" featuring Michael Brecker, Peter Erskine, Mike Manieri, and Eddie Gomez. She recorded one album with the group -- Steps Ahead -- in 1983. Shortly after leaving Steps Ahead, Elias began collaborating with trumpet player Randy Brecker, whom she subsequently married but later divorced. Their sole duo album, released in 1985, was named after their daughter Amanda. The following year, Elias launched her career as a bandleader. Since then, she's alternated tours with two different trios, one featuring drummer Jack DeJohnette and bassist Gomez and the other featuring drummer Erskine and her current husband, bassist Marc Johnson. Elias has also performed with a third trio, featuring Johnson on bass and Satoshi Takeishi on drums.

She signed with Blue Note in 1989, and released her debut for the label, So Far So Close, the same year with a slew of guests. While most of her recordings have been instrumental, Elias introduced her soft but coarse vocals on her 1990 album Eliane Elias Plays Jobim, and has employed vocals on occasion ever since. Her 1995 album Solos and Duets featured a brilliantly executed duet with Herbie Hancock. In addition to working periodically with Toots Thielemans' Brasil Project, Elias has served as musical director for Gilberto Gil's group. While she continued to record for the rest of the '90s, it was 2000's Impulsive! that proved one of the largest surprises in her career as she collaborated with conductor and arranger Bob Brookmeyer leading the Danish Radio Jazz Orchestra. In 2002 she left Blue Note for RCA's Bluebird label, where she debuted with Kissed by Nature, a primarily vocal album, and followed it up with the lovely Dreamer in 2004. Elias released Around the City in 2006, a collection of primarily vocal tracks that moved ever further into pop territory, covering music by Santana, Bob Marley, and even Beck. It was her final album for Bluebird.

She returned to Blue Note for 2007's Something for You: Elaine Elias Sings & Plays Bill Evans, fronting a trio with Johnson (who played with Evans) and drummer Joey Baron. In 2009, she issued what many have argued is her finest recording, Bossa Nova Stories, fully engaging her Brazilian heritage in bossa and samba and illustrating her singular jazz instincts as a pianist. In 2010, Savoy Records issued Timeless Eliane Elias, a compilation of tracks culled from her mid-'80s recordings Illusions and Cross Currents. In late 2010, Elias signed with Concord; in the late spring of 2011 she released Light My Fire, her debut set on the label. A year later, Elias paired with bassist Marc Johnson for the instrumental ECM date, Swept Away. In 2013, Elias paid homage to trumpeter/vocalist Chet Baker with I Thought About You: A Tribute to Chet Baker. ~ Craig Harris & Thom Jurek, Rovi

Coisa Feita
Eliane Elias Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Sou bem mulher de pegar macho pelo pé
Reencarnação da princesa do dao mé
Eu sou marfim, lá das minas do Salomão
Me esparramo em mim, lua cheia sobre o carvão
Um mulherão, balangadãs, cerâmica e sisal
Língua assim, a conta certa entre a baunilha e o sal
Fogão de lenha, garrafa de areia colorida
Pedra-sabão, peneira e água boa de moringa

Pra não ficar bobo,
Melhor fugir logo
Sou de pegar, sou de pegar pelo pé
Sou avatar vodu,
Sou de botar fogo
Princesa do Daomé

Sou bem mulher de pegar macho pelo pé
Reencarnação da princesa do dao mé
Eu sou marfim, lá das minas do Salomão
Me esparramo em mim, lua cheia sobre o carvão
Um mulherão, balangadãs, cerâmica e sisal
Língua assim, a conta certa entre a baunilha e o sal
Fogão de lenha, garrafa de areia colorida
Pedra-sabão, peneira e água boa de moringa

Sou de arrancar couro de farejar ouro
Princesa do Daomé
Sou de arrancar couro de farejar ouro
Princesa do Daomé

Sou de arrancar couro de farejar ouro
Princesa do Daomé

Neguinho assim, já escreveu atrás do caminhão

"A mulher que não se esquece é lá do Daomé"
Faço mandinga, fecho os caminhos com as cinzas
Deixo biruta, lelé da cuca, zuretão ranzinza

Pra não ficar bobo,
Melhor fugir logo
Sou de pegar, pelo pé
Sou avatar vodu,

Sou de botar fogo
Princesa do Daomé

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Eliane Elias's song "Coisa Feita" paint a powerful and assertive portrait of a woman who exudes confidence and strength in her femininity. The song's protagonist proudly proclaims herself as a woman who knows how to attract men effortlessly and confidently, using her charm and allure to captivate them at her feet. She likens herself to the reincarnation of the princess of Daomé, a figure associated with regal power and seductive prowess.

The imagery in the lyrics draws on rich cultural references, such as being as precious as ivory from the mines of Salomão and as radiant as a full moon shining over coal. This woman is depicted as a symbol of beauty and resilience, embodying qualities of sensuality and grace. The mention of "balangadãs, cerâmica e sisal" and "fogão de lenha, garrafa de areia colorida" evokes a sense of rootedness in tradition and heritage, blending elements of earthiness and sophistication.

Furthermore, the lyrics emphasize the woman's ability to navigate between softness and strength, symbolized by the balance between vanilla and salt. She is portrayed as a force of nature, capable of both nurturing and fierce actions, akin to a primal elemental energy. The references to "pedra-sabão, peneira e água boa de moringa" evoke a sense of groundedness and resourcefulness, highlighting the woman's connection to the natural world and her practical wisdom.

The final verses of the song suggest a sense of mystery and power surrounding the woman, with references to sorcery and primal forces. She is described as someone who can charm and bewitch, using her powers to protect herself and those around her. The repeated refrain of being the "Princesa do Daomé" reinforces her royal stature and enigmatic presence, hinting at a legacy of strength and resilience that transcends time and place. The overall message of the song conveys a celebration of womanhood, independence, and inner strength, encapsulating a sense of empowerment and allure.

Line by Line Meaning

Sou bem mulher de pegar macho pelo pé
I am very skilled at captivating men's attention

Reencarnação da princesa do dao mé
Reincarnation of the princess from Daomé

Eu sou marfim, lá das minas do Salomão
I am ivory, from the mines of Solomon

Me esparramo em mim, lua cheia sobre o carvão
I spread myself out, a full moon over coal

Um mulherão, balangadãs, cerâmica e sisal
A buxom woman, colorful and strong, ceramic and sisal

Língua assim, a conta certa entre a baunilha e o sal
A tongue like that, the perfect balance between vanilla and salt

Fogão de lenha, garrafa de areia colorida
Wood-burning stove, bottle of colored sand

Pedra-sabão, peneira e água boa de moringa
Soapstone, sieve, and good moringa water

Pra não ficar bobo, Melhor fugir logo
To not be foolish, better run away quickly

Sou de pegar, sou de pegar pelo pé
I am one to catch, one to catch by the foot

Sou avatar vodu, Sou de botar fogo
I am a voodoo avatar, I am one to ignite

Princesa do Daomé
Princess of Daomé

Sou de arrancar couro de farejar ouro
I am one to skin and sniff out gold

Neguinho assim, já escreveu atrás do caminhão
Folks like that have already written behind the truck

Faço mandinga, fecho os caminhos com as cinzas
I cast spells, I close paths with ashes

Deixo biruta, lelé da cuca, zuretão ranzinza
I leave crazy, scatterbrained, grumpy

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Tratore, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Joao Bosco De Freitas Mucci, Gabriela Marques Da Costa Leite, Aldir Blanc Mendes

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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