In the '60s, Elis was a leader and a standard-bearer in defense of Brazilian popular music, heavily contributing to the formation of the MPB label, with commercial and ideological characteristics at the same time. She was the first major artist to emerge from music festivals in the 1960s and detached herself from the Bossa Nova aesthetic through the use of her vocal range and drama. Initially, her style was influenced by radio singers, especially Ângela Maria. After four unsuccessful studio albums — Viva a Brotolândia (1961), Poema de Amor (1962), Elis Regina (1963), O Bem do Amor (1963) — Elis was the biggest revelation of the TV Excelsior festival in 1965, when he sang "Arrastão" by Vinícius de Moraes and Edu Lobo. This feat would guarantee him the invitation to act on television and, shortly afterwards, the title of first star of Brazilian popular song, when he started to command, alongside Jair Rodrigues, one of the two most important Brazilian popular music programs, O Fino da bossa. In 1967, she married Ronaldo Bôscoli, then director of O Fino da Bossa. From 1972, Elis began a relationship with César Camargo Mariano, which would last until 1981, in one of the most successful partnerships in Brazilian Popular Music.
She sang many genres: MPB, bossa nova, samba, rock and jazz. Interpreting songs like "Madalena", "Águas de Março", "Atrás da Porta", "Como Nosso Pais", "O Bêbado e a Equilibrista" and "Querellas do Brasil", he recorded moments of happiness, love, sadness and patriotism. Throughout his career, he stood out for also singing songs by artists, still little known, such as Milton Nascimento, Ivan Lins, Belchior, Renato Teixeira, Aldir Blanc, João Bosco, helping to launch them and publicize their works. , boosting them in the Brazilian music scene. Among other partnerships, the duets she had with Jair Rodrigues, Tom Jobim and Rita Lee are famous. With her second husband, pianist César Camargo Mariano, she consecrated a long work of great creativity and musical consistency and, in technical terms, was considered the best brazilian singer. His most memorable artistic presence is perhaps registered on the albums Em Pleno Verão (1970), Elis (1972), Elis (1973), Elis & Tom (1974), Elis (1974), Falso Brilhante (1976), Transversal do Tempo (1978). ), Essa Mulher (1979), Saudade do Brasil (1980) and Elis (1980). She was the first person to inscribe her own voice as if it were an instrument, in the Order of Musicians of Brazil. In 2013, she was elected the best female voice in Brazilian music by Rolling Stone Magazine. Elis was also mentioned in the list of the greatest artists in Brazilian music, ranking 14th, being the best-placed woman. In November of the same year, a musical was premiered in honor of her Elis, the musical.
Elis Regina died prematurely at the age of 36, at the height of her career, causing strong commotion in the country and leaving a vast body of work in Brazilian popular music. Although there were controversies and disputes as to the cause of death, the tests showed that the cause was the consumption of cocaine associated with alcohol, which caused a cardiac arrest.
Ladeira da Preguiça
Elis Regina Lyrics
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Que ladeira é essa?
Essa é a ladeira da preguiça
Essa ladeira
Que ladeira é essa?
Essa é a ladeira da preguiça
Preguiça que eu tive sempre
E de mandar conta pra casa
Que esse mundo é uma maravilha
E pra saber se a menina
Já conta as estrelas
E sabe a segunda cartilha
E pra saber se o menino
Já canta cantigas
E já não bota mais a mão na baguilha
E pra falar do mundo falo uma besteira
Fomenteira é uma ilha
Onde se chega de barco, mãe
Quem nem lá, na ilha do medo
Que nem lá, na ilha do frade
Quem nem lá, na ilha de maré
Que nem lá salina das margaridas
Essa ladeira
Que ladeira é essa?
Essa é a ladeira da preguiça
Ela é de hoje
Ela é desde quando
Se amarrava cachorro com linguiça
The song "Ladeira da Preguiça" by Elis Regina describes a laziness that the singer has had throughout her life. The repetitive chorus asks "What hill is this? This is the hill of laziness." The laziness she references is not physical, but rather an intellectual laziness. She admits to being lazy in writing to her family, sending bills home, and keeping up with her loved ones. She avoids these responsibilities by claiming that the world is a wonder, and that she is more interested in finding out if the children in her family know how to count stars or sing songs than in paying attention to money and practical concerns. She even exclaims, "To talk about the world, I'd rather say something stupid.”
The verses then present a series of locations, which may be physically distant or imagined, that she avoids visiting because of her own intellectual laziness. The lines, "Fomenteira is an island / Where you can only get to by boat, mom," suggests that there are places that are difficult to reach, both physically and mentally. She compares these places to the fictional "Island of Fear" and the "Island of Monks," creating a metaphor for her own reluctance to venture too far beyond her current mindset. This song reaches for a way to stay connected to her family without making the effort to communicate with them frequently.
Line by Line Meaning
Essa ladeira
What hill is this?
Que ladeira é essa?
What hill is this?
Essa é a ladeira da preguiça
This is the hill of laziness
Essa ladeira
What hill is this?
Que ladeira é essa?
What hill is this?
Essa é a ladeira da preguiça
This is the hill of laziness
Preguiça que eu tive sempre
Laziness that I've always had
De escrever para a família
To write to my family
E de mandar conta pra casa
And to send the bills home
Que esse mundo é uma maravilha
Because this world is a wonder
E pra saber se a menina
And to know if the girl
Já conta as estrelas
Already counts the stars
E sabe a segunda cartilha
And knows the second primer
E pra saber se o menino
And to know if the boy
Já canta cantigas
Already sings songs
E já não bota mais a mão na baguilha
And doesn't touch the old things anymore
E pra falar do mundo falo uma besteira
And to talk about the world, I speak nonsense
Fomenteira é uma ilha
Fomenteira is an island
Onde se chega de barco, mãe
Where you arrive by boat, mother
Quem nem lá, na ilha do medo
Like there, in the island of fear
Que nem lá, na ilha do frade
Like there, in the island of friar
Quem nem lá, na ilha de maré
Like there, in the island of tide
Que nem lá salina das margaridas
And like there, salina das margaridas
Essa ladeira
What hill is this?
Que ladeira é essa?
What hill is this?
Essa é a ladeira da preguiça
This is the hill of laziness
Ela é de hoje
It's from today
Ela é desde quando
It's been like this since when
Se amarrava cachorro com linguiça
When dogs were tied up with sausages
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Gilberto Passos Gil Moreira
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind