RCA and their promoters have always drawn a veil of mystery around Los Indios Tabajaras, so it's tough to trace their early years accurately. Their literature claimed they discovered a guitar in the jungle near Ceara, Brazil, and, after making sure it wasn't going to explode like other firearms their tribesmen had found, began to examine it. Eventually, they both mastered the instrument and came to the attention of townspeople, one of whom took them to Rio de Janeiro to play.
Dressing up in ceremonial Indian costumes, the brothers perfected a nightclub act in which they sang and played Brazilian and Latin folk songs. They changed their names to Natalicio and Antenor Lima and began touring throughout South America. In 1943, RCA's Latin American arm signed them to a contract.
In the early 1950s, they took a break from touring and returned to study, each with a different teacher. Natalicio focused on melody and Antenor worked on harmony. They also added a substantial classical repertoire to their act, including guitar pieces by Bach, Falla, and Albeniz.
Another tour followed, this time to Europe as well, and they recorded several more albums for RCA in Mexico. One of their singles, "Maria Elena," released in 1958, became a steady seller, and by early 1962, its success caught the eye of RCA's U.S. division. They issued the tune, and this lovely, gentle melody quickly carved a solid niche in the U.S. pop charts. It ended up spending 14 weeks in the U.S. Top 10 and 17 weeks in the U.K. charts, and the subsequent album placed in the Top 10 album chart as well. Within a year, the brothers followed with another single, "Always in My Heart," but the novelty had worn off and it barely dented the Top 100.
Chet Atkins was particularly impressed by the brothers' guitar work, and he invited them to Nashville, where they recorded an instrumental album with Atkins and pianist Floyd Cramer, and--in one of the oddest releases of the countrypolitan era--one with singer Don Gibson ("Oh, Lonesome Me").
RCA--both the U.S. and Latin American divisions--continued to record them well into the 1980s, and the brother's mellow guitar style proved a big influence on a new generation of guitarists such as Rick Vito
Stardust
Los indios tabajaras Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Steals across the meadows of my heart
High up in the sky the little stars climb
Always reminding me that we're apart
You wander down the lane and far away
Leaving me a song that will not die
Love is now the stardust of yesterday
The music of the years gone by.
Sometimes I wonder, how I spend
The lonely nights
Dreaming of a song
The melody
Haunts my reverie
And I am once again with you
When our love was new
And each kiss an inspiration
But that was long ago
And now my consolation is in the stardust of a song
Besides the garden wall, when stars are bright
You are in my arms
The nightingale
Tells his fairytale
Of paradise, where roses grew
Though I dream in vain
In my heart it will remain
My stardust melody
The memory of love's refrain.
The opening verse of "Stardust" by Los Indios Tabajaras is an ode to the beauty and melancholy of twilight. The singer invites us to picture the sky at dusk, with the purple glow of twilight spreading across the meadows of their heart. The imagery is both romantic and tinged with sadness, as the singer watches the stars rise above them and finds themselves reminded of their beloved's absence. The second verse is even more poignant, as the singer admits that they spend their lonely nights lost in revery, dreaming of a time when their love was new and every kiss was an inspiration. The song's refrain returns to the stardust imagery, reminding us that love may fade away, but the memory of it will last forever.
Line by Line Meaning
And now the purple dusk of twilight time
The evening is falling and the sky is slowly getting darker.
Steals across the meadows of my heart
The twilight reminds me of my lonely heart and feelings.
High up in the sky the little stars climb
The stars are shining brightly in the sky.
Always reminding me that we're apart
The stars remind me of the distance between us.
You wander down the lane and far away
You have gone far away and are walking down a distant path.
Leaving me a song that will not die
You have left me a beautiful memory that cannot be forgotten.
Love is now the stardust of yesterday
Our love is a beautiful memory of the past.
The music of the years gone by.
Our love was like a beautiful music that we enjoyed in the past.
Sometimes I wonder, how I spend
I sometimes wonder how I pass my time.
The lonely nights
The lonely nights make me feel more alone.
Dreaming of a song
I often dream of a beautiful song.
The melody
The tune of the song that I keep dreaming of.
Haunts my reverie
The song is always on my mind and in my thoughts.
And I am once again with you
In my dreams, I am with you again.
When our love was new
When we had just found love.
And each kiss an inspiration
Each kiss we exchanged was full of love and inspiration.
But that was long ago
Those beautiful moments have passed a long time ago.
And now my consolation is in the stardust of a song
Now, the only thing that soothes me is thinking about the beautiful times that we had together and the memory of them.
Besides the garden wall, when stars are bright
I sometimes go by the garden wall where the stars are shining brightly.
You are in my arms
In my thoughts, you are right by my side.
The nightingale
The bird that is singing.
Tells his fairytale
The nightingale's beautiful song feels like a fairytale.
Of paradise, where roses grew
The nightingale's song takes me to a beautiful paradise where roses grew.
Though I dream in vain
Even though my dreams of being with you again might be in vain.
In my heart it will remain
The memories of our love will always stay in my heart.
My stardust melody
The beautiful memory of our love is like stardust.
The memory of love's refrain.
The memory of our love's beautiful tune is still on my mind.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: CHRISTOPHER GENTRY, JOHN HUTCHINSON DEAN, MATTHEW EVERITT, SIMON IAN WHITE, STUART BLACK
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Sônia Maria Virgilina
Ola 🙋♀️excelente música 🎶imagens lindas 👍🏻⚘
John Benn
What amazing musicians they were. They will never be forgotten by their many fans. Well done.
Adrian Noé
Que buen gusto para tocar, ese vibrato que le saca a la guitarra, es maravilloso. Lo bien que se complementan porque el que acompaña lo hace con una armonía excelente.
Viviana Chavez Navarro
Está música me recuerda a mi madre mi infancia yo ya soy una mujer grande y yo la sigo escuchando en mi casa y es maravillosa
verde Perico2
EN LOS AÑOS 1982 ESCUCHÉ POR PRIMERA VEZ A ESTOS GRANDES ARTISTAS Y SI QUE DEJARON EN MI UN EXIQUISITO GUSTO PARA SU MESICA QUE ES ÚNICA Y LASTIMA QUE NUNCA LES DIERON EL APOYO NI LA DEVIDA PUBLICIDAD POR QUE SUS ÉXITOS FUERAN AÚN MUCHO MÁS GRANDES.
Georgiana Percia
Muchisimas Gracias por compartir tu informacion. Tiene mucha verdad. Ellos fueron mas conocidos en todos otros paises mas que en su
tiera propera de Brazil. Si hubieran tenido mas apollo del RCA y otros que les contrataron, les reconocerian mas.
Francesco Alcozer
Pasan los años pero el mágico sonido de las guitarras de Los Indios 💟 Tabajaras siempre es agradable de escuchar. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cArPK16kJnM WHEELS canción de guitarra al estilo de Billy 🎷Vaughn
Serg H
I remember having this album in our home..even as a child I loved hearing this album...
Jepara beach Hotel
True John, I will never ever forget these amazing fantastic musicians with romantic songs they played.
Ana Escalante
música hermosa,gracias por su gran talento...!