She has sold over 10 million albums and won numerous national and international awards, including five Latin Grammy Awards, seven Video Music Brasil, nine Multishow Brazilian Music Awards, five APCA and six TIM Music Awards. Marisa is considered by the American magazine Rolling Stone as the fourth greatest Brazilian singer, behind Elis Regina, Gal Costa and Maria Bethânia. She also has two albums on the list of the 100 best albums in Brazilian music.
In October 2021, Marisa was awarded at the 44th edition of the Tenco Award, for her work as a singer and songwriter, becoming the first Brazilian female artist to receive such an honor.
Speak Low
Marisa Monte Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When you speak love
Our summer day
Withers away
Too soon, too soon
Speak low
When you speak love
Like ships adrift
Were swept apart
Too soon
Speak low
Darling speak low
Love is a spark
Lost in the dark
Too soon, too soon
I feel
Wherever I go
That tomorrow is here
Tomorrow is near
And always too soon
Time is so old
And love's so brief
Love is pure gold
And time a thief
We're late
Darling we're late
The curtain descends
Everything ends
Too soon, too soon
I wait
Darling I wait
When you speak low to me
Speak love to me and soon
"Speak Low" is a love song that speaks of the fleeting nature of love and time. The song urges the lover to speak softly and slowly so that the moment of passion does not fade away too early. The song's opening lines "Speak low, when you speak love" suggest that love is a language that should not be screamed or shouted but spoken tenderly and softly.
The song describes a brief moment of happiness that is like a summer day that withers away too soon. The imagery of ships adrift "our moment is swift like ships adrift," suggests a moment that feels like eternity but that is brief and fleeting. The lyrics then go on to describe the inevitability of the end of love and the abruptness in which it can happen. "Our summer day withers away too soon, curtain descends everything ends too soon."
Overall, "Speak Low" is a beautiful love song with lyrics that describe perfectly the transience and fragility of love. It is a reminder that we should cherish and make the most out of every moment of love that we have.
Line by Line Meaning
Speak low
Lower your voice, don't speak loudly
When you speak love
When you express your love
Our summer day
Our happy time together
Withers away
Disappears fast
Too soon, too soon
It happens too quickly
Our moment is swift
Our time together passes fast
Like ships adrift
Like ships moving in various directions, with no control
Were swept apart
We went our separate ways
Darling speak low
Honey, please speak softly
Love is a spark
Love is a fleeting feeling
Lost in the dark
Easily disappears into nothingness
I feel
I sense
Wherever I go
No matter where I am
That tomorrow is here
The future has arrived
Tomorrow is near
The future is approaching fast
And always too soon
And always seems to pass too quickly
Time is so old
Time has existed for a long time
And love's so brief
Love exists only for a short time
Love is pure gold
Love is valuable and precious
And time a thief
Time takes away what is valuable
We're late
We're running behind schedule
The curtain descends
The end approaches
Everything ends
All things come to an end
I wait
I'm waiting
When you speak low to me
When you speak softly to me
Speak love to me and soon
Express your love to me before it's too late
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Kurt Weill, Ogden Nash
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind