The son of a peasant and accordion player, he was attracted to the 8-bass accordion at an early age, although he started out by accompanying his father by playing the zabumba (a type of bass drum) and singing at parties and religious celebrations. He left home in 1930 to join the army, and toured Brazil with an army band until 1939. Gonzaga decided to remain in Rio de Janeiro with a recently purchased accordion. He performed in the streets and in bars, playing boleros, waltzes and tangos.
After noticing that the Northeastern immigrants missed the music from their hometowns, he started to give listeners the sort of music they craved to hear: xaxados, baiões, chamegos and cocos. At Ary Barroso’s talent show, Luiz Gonzaga played his chamego "Vira e Mexe" and was acclaimed by the audience and by the dreaded host, who gave him the highest score.
In 1943, he dressed up in typical Northeastern costumes for the first time to perform live, and got hyped. Later on, as well as playing popular tunes on the accordion, he began to sing his own material, and his skills as a songwriter were revealed.
Gonzaga's son, Luiz Gonzaga do Nascimento Júnior, known as Gonzaguinha, born 1945, was also a noted Brazilian singer and composer.
His greatest hit ever, "Asa Branca" (written with Humberto Teixeira), was recorded in 1947 and was covered countless times by many different artists. He worked on the radio until 1954, enjoying huge popularity. He is widely recognized for singlehandedly taking the baião style and the accordion to a wide audience. For a time RCA (now BMG), his recording label, was almost exclusively dedicated to printing his singles and albums. During the 60's, as the public taste shifted to bossa nova and iê-iê-iê, he found himself increasingly stranded from big city stages, so he toured the countryside, where his popularity never abated.
In the 70s and 80s, he slowly re-emerged, partly due to covers of his songs by famous artists like Geraldo Vandré, Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, his son Gonzaguinha and Milton Nascimento. Some of his greatest hits are "Vozes da Seca" ("Voices From Drought"), "Algodão" ("Cotton"), "A Dança da Moda" ("The Dance In Fashion"), "ABC do Sertão" ("The ABC of Sertão"), "Derramaro o Gai" ("They Spilt the Gas"), "A Letra I" ("The 'i' letter"), "Imbalança" ("Shake It"), "A Volta da Asa-Branca" ("The Return Of The Picazuro Pigeon"), "Cintura Fina" ("Slender Waist"), "O Xote das Meninas" ("The Girls' Schottische", written with Zé Dantas, and "Juazeiro", "Paraíba", "Mangaratiba", "Baião-de-Dois", "No Meu Pé de Serra" ("There In My Homeland"), "Assum Preto" ("Blue-back Grassquit"), "Légua Tirana" ("Tyrannical league"), "Qui Nem Jiló" ("Like Solanum gilo", written with Humberto Teixeira. Other successful collaborations resulted in "Tá Bom Demais" ("It's Very Good") (with Onildo de Almeida), "Danado de Bom" ("Very Good") (with João Silva), "Dezessete e Setecentos" ("Seventeen And Seven hundred") and "Cortando o Pano" ("Cutting Cloth") (both with Miguel Lima).
Gonzaga died of natural causes at the age of 76.
Calango Da Lacraia
Luiz Gonzaga Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A muié do Zé Maria foi dançar, caiu a saia
Calangotango do calango da lacraia
Meu cabrito tá na corda, meu cavalo tá na baia
Calangotango do calango da lacraia
Meu cabrito tá na corda, meu cavalo tá na baia (mete lá)
Trabaiadô quando é bão, segunda-feira não faia
Calangotango do calango da lacraia
Meu cabrito tá na corda, meu cavalo tá na baia
Calangotango do calango da lacraia
Meu cabrito tá na corda, meu cavalo tá na baia
No lugar que eu jogo bola, não quero jogo de maia
Também quero ser direito, você mesmo me atrapaia
Calangotango do calango da lacraia
Meu cabrito tá na corda, meu cavalo tá na baia
Calangotango do calango da lacraia
Meu cabrito tá na corda, meu cavalo tá na baia
Desaforo de mineiro é chamar nortista de traia
O nortista puxa faca, mineiro puxa navaia
Calangotango do calango da lacraia
Meu cabrito tá na corda, meu cavalo tá na baia
Calangotango do calango da lacraia
Meu cabrito tá na corda, meu cavalo tá na baia
Se não fosse a carnaúba, não tinha chapéu de paia
O que eu não atolero é desaforo de canaia
Calangotango do calango da lacraia
Meu cabrito tá na corda, meu cavalo tá na baia
Calangotango do calango da lacraia
Meu cabrito tá na corda, meu cavalo tá na baia (sanfoneiro)
The lyrics of Luiz Gonzaga's song "Calango Da Lacraia" paint a picture of life and culture in the Northeastern region of Brazil. The song is essentially a series of observations and comments on aspects of daily life, with a humorous and lighthearted tone. The verses are structured in a call-and-response style, with the singer making a statement or observation, followed by the repeated refrain "Calangotango do calango da lacraia / Meu cabrito tá na corda, meu cavalo tá na baia" ("Calango tango of the lacraia calango / My goat is tied up, my horse is in the stable").
Some of the observations made in the lyrics include the comical incident of a woman's skirt falling off while dancing, the importance of hard work and productivity, the desire to be treated fairly and justly, the regional rivalry between Northerners and Southerners, and the significance of the carnauba palm tree in providing material for hats. Through these observations, the song captures the everyday struggles and joys experienced by the people of the Northeastern region of Brazil.
Luiz Gonzaga's "Calango Da Lacraia" is a classic example of forró music, a popular genre that originated in Northeastern Brazil in the early 20th century. The song has remained a popular staple in Brazilian music since its release in the 1950s, and it continues to be covered and played by musicians to this day. Additionally, the song has been featured in several films and TV shows, including the Brazilian soap opera "O Rei do Gado" and the Italian film "La pazza gioia".
Line by Line Meaning
Eu vou te contar um caso, você ri que se escangaia
I'm going to tell you a story, and it's so funny that you'll laugh out loud.
A muié do Zé Maria foi dançar, caiu a saia
Zé Maria's wife went dancing, but her skirt fell off
Calangotango do calango da lacraia
This is a playful refrain with no specific meaning
Meu cabrito tá na corda, meu cavalo tá na baia
My goat is tied up, and my horse is in the stable
Minha fia não se casa com home que não trabaia
My daughter won't marry someone who doesn't work
Trabaiadô quando é bão, segunda-feira não faia
A good worker doesn't take Monday off
No lugar que eu jogo bola, não quero jogo de maia
I don't want to play a game with cheating in the place where I play soccer
Também quero ser direito, você mesmo me atrapaia
I want to be honest, but you are preventing me from doing so
Desaforo de mineiro é chamar nortista de traia
It's insulting for a person from Minas Gerais to call someone from the North a traitor
O nortista puxa faca, mineiro puxa navaia
The person from the North pulls out a knife, but the person from Minas Gerais pulls out a razor blade
Se não fosse a carnaúba, não tinha chapéu de paia
If it weren't for the carnauba palm, there would be no straw hats
O que eu não atolero é desaforo de canaia
I can't stand being insulted by a person from a rural area
Meu cabrito tá na corda, meu cavalo tá na baia (sanfoneiro)
Same as line 4, with the addition of a reference to a accordion player
Writer(s): Luiz Gonzaga, J. Portela
Contributed by James A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@cauamartins1457
Meu avô fez a minha infância todinha cantando essa música pra eu dormir, não sei como, mas ele fez, ainda vivo e quando não estiver mais ainda vou dormir escutando essa música
@edvaldofdn
Meu pai sempre cantava quando eu era criança! Hj pela manhã lembrando de um pedacinho da letra descobri que era do Luiz Gonzaga!!
@jackneves7205
Aconteceu agorinha comigo 😢
@valdecifranca7444
Eu também meu falecido pai cantava 😔
@scalon
O meu falecido pai também cantava. Ele faleceu em 1999. Saudades eternes.
@johnkennedysilveira1323
Eita calango mineiro bao dimais.
@user-sj7rr3mn1p
Esse ai foi o cara e e continuar sendo o rei do baiao
@carloslima4451
Muito bom😅😅
@adelinofrancisco8702
Eu com 10 de idade em 73 ouvia esse calango nas rádios AMno Rio de Janeiro !!
@MariaFatima-sp7uy
Um acervo de musica incomparavel.