Singer, guitarist, composer, arranger and actor, Rio de Janeiro native Jard… Read Full Bio ↴Singer, guitarist, composer, arranger and actor, Rio de Janeiro native Jards Anet da Silva (b. March 3, 1943) has lived his whole life listening, playing and studying music. Friends with musicians from Bahia, he directed a Maria Bethânia show in 1966. He was close to the tropicalists and, in 1969, had to face the discontentment of the audience in a festival where he theatrically performed the rock song "Gotham City". In 1970, Macalé went to London to meet the exiled artists from Bahia. With songs recorded by Gal Costa ("Hotel das Estrelas", "Vapor Barato"), Maria Bethânia ("Anjo Exterminado" and "Movimento dos Barcos") and Clara Nunes ("O Mais-Que-Perfeito"), he decided to make his first solo album, "Jards Macalé", from 1972, upon his return to Brazil. In the following year, he recorded the double album "Banquete dos Mendigos" live, with various artists, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Human Rights Declaration. The LP was censored and only came out years later. In 1974, Jards put out the LP "Aprender a Nadar", introducing the romantic morbeauty (morbidity + beauty) aesthetics with his partner, poet Waly Salomão. One among many irreverent moments in his career happened when he rented ferryboats to make a party for a new LP and finished the show by diving into the sea. In 1987, he released "Quatro Batutas e Um Coringa", proceeding to enjoy a 11-year retirement, interrupted only by "O Que Faço é Música". In the meantime, his work has been rescued both by newcomers ("Gotham City" was covered by Camisa de Vênus and "Vapor Barato" by O Rappa) and veterans (Moreira da Silva, the king of the samba de breque, or break samba, passed down the crown to Macalé).

Cidade Lagoa
JARDS MACALÉ Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Essa cidade que ainda é maravilhosa
Tão cantada em verso e prosa
Desde o tempo da vovó
Tem um problema vitalício e renitente
Qualquer chuva causa enchente
Não precisa ser toró
Basta que chova mais ou menos meia hora
É batata, não demora

Enche tudo por aí
Toda cidade é uma enorme cahoeira
Que da praça da Bandeira
Vou de lancha a Catumbi

Que maravilha nossa linda Guanabara
Tudo enguiça, tudo para
Todo trânsito engarrafa
Quem tiver pressa seja velho ou seja moço
Entre n'água até o pescoço
E peça a Deus pra ser girafa
Por isso agora já comprei minha canoa
Pra remar nessa lagoa
Cada vez que a chuva cai
E se uma boa me pedir uma carona

Com prazer eu levo a dona
Na canoa do papai

Overall Meaning

The song "Cidade Lagoa" by Jards Macalé is a critique of Rio de Janeiro's chronic problem with flooding during rains. The opening line acknowledges the city's beauty and fame, but the subsequent verses discuss the problem of flooding due to the city's geography and infrastructure. The lyrics mention how even a short period of rain can result in flooding, causing all the traffic to come to a standstill. The streets become like rivers, and people have to wade in water up to their necks, and anyone in a hurry is unable to move forward. As a result, the singer has bought a boat to navigate the city during these periods, poking fun at the surrealistic scenario that people face during a typical rainy day in the city.

The refrain "Que maravilha, nossa linda Guanabara" expresses the singer's love for Rio de Janeiro and the magnificent bay that runs through it. In contrast, the verse highlights the reality of life in the city when it rains. The song is a biting and humorous political commentary on the city's inability to solve this perennial problem. The lyrics suggest that the city is paralyzed during the rainy season, and a sense of hopelessness is pervasive among the populace. The final verse holds a promise of hope, as the singer generously offers to carry a lady on his boat to her destination, suggesting that even in dark times, there are opportunities for kindness and generosity.

Line by Line Meaning

Essa cidade que ainda é maravilhosa
This city that is still marvelous

Tão cantada em verso e prosa
So sung in verse and prose

Desde o tempo da vovó
Since grandma's time

Tem um problema vitalício e renitente
It has a lifelong and persistent problem

Qualquer chuva causa enchente
Any rain causes flooding

Não precisa ser toró
It doesn't need to be a downpour

Basta que chova mais ou menos meia hora
Just half an hour or so of rain is enough

É batata, não demora
It's certain, it won't take long

Enche tudo por aí
It floods everything around

Toda cidade é uma enorme cahoeira
The whole city is an enormous waterfall

Que da praça da Bandeira
From the Bandeira Square