An uncommon artist with an uncommon sopranino voice, Ney Matogrosso fell in the Brazilian popular music scene like a bomb in the '70s aboard the Secos & Molhados. The end of the group marked the beginning of a fertile and successful solo career in which he began exploring his sensuous and charismatic persona through satiric and ironic repertories. As time passed, he substituted self-contained and deeply sensitive interpretations of classics for the popular and classical Brazilian music. Along with his representative and prolific solo discography, for which he received three platinum and three gold records, Matogrosso recorded in Itália with Astor Piazzola, performed in Argentina, Uruguay, participated in two Montreux Jazz Festivals (Switzerland), and toured Portugal several times. He also performed in Israel and the U.S., but always refused invitations to develop an international career. Matogrosso also worked as an actor in Sonho de Valsa (by Ana Carolina, the director, not the singer/composer) and Caramujo Flor (short subject by Joel Pizzini), and directed shows by RPM, Cazuza, and Simone.
Arriving in Rio de Janeiro in 1966, Matogrosso became a hippie leather artisan and divided his time between Rio, São Paulo, and Brasília, where he was a close friend of singer/composer Luli. Through her he met João Ricardo, who had a vision for a groundbreaking group and was searching for a high-pitched male voice. Invited by Ricardo, Matogrosso moved to São Paulo where he spent one year dedicating himself to exhaustive rehearsals, artisanship, and theater plays. With the explosive success of Secos e Molhados and the group's final dissolution, Matogrosso started his solo career exploring his unusual voice timbre, his mesmerizing scenic persona, and his androgynous visuals, enhanced by innovative and exotic costumes. A second solo album, Água do Céu - Pássaro, was supported by the show Homem de Neanderthal, in 1975, with which Matogrosso opened in Rio de Janeiro, drawing both raves and packed houses. "Barco Negro" and "Homem com H" appeared amongst considerable polemics aroused by the usual conservatives on duty. In that period, he worked with Astor Piazzola in Milan, Italy, where he recorded a double single with the Argentinean composer. A cleaner Matogrosso recorded Bandido in 1976, having his first national hit as a solo artist with "Bandido Corazón," written especially for him by Rita Lee.
Sim
Ney Matogrosso Lyrics
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Deve haver o perdão
Para mim
Senão nem sei qual será
O meu fim
Para ter uma companheira
Até promessas fiz
Mas eu não fui feliz
E com raiva para os céus
Os braços levantei
Blasfemei
Hoje todos são contra mim
Todos erram neste mundo
Não há exceção
Quando voltam a realidade
Conseguem perdão
Porque é que eu Senhor
Que errei pela vez primeira
Passo tantos dissabores
E luto contra a humanidade inteira
The song "Sim" by Ney Matogrosso talks about the importance of forgiveness and its consequences when one is unable to forgive. The opening two lines set the tone for the rest of the song, as Ney sings "Sim, Deve haver o perdão para mim" which translates to "Yes, there must be forgiveness for me". Ney acknowledges that without forgiveness, he does not know what his fate will be. He talks about promising to have a partner in life, but despite finding love, he was not happy. Due to this disappointment, he became angry and even blasphemed.
The chorus "Todos erram neste mundo, não há exceção" translates to "Everyone makes mistakes in this world, there is no exception". Ney reminds the listener that making mistakes is part of the human experience and that everyone deserves forgiveness. He then questions why, despite being a first-time offender, he faces many difficulties and fights against the whole of humanity. Ney reflects that, with the realization of one's mistakes and the acceptance of responsibility, comes the opportunity for forgiveness, but it is a heavy burden to bear.
Line by Line Meaning
Sim,
Yes,
Deve haver o perdão
There must be forgiveness
Para mim
For me
Senão nem sei qual será
Otherwise, I don't know what will be
O meu fim
My end
Para ter uma companheira
To have a companion
Até promessas fiz
Even promises I made
Consegui um grande amor
I got a great love
Mas eu não fui feliz
But I was not happy
E com raiva para os céus
And with anger towards the heavens
Os braços levantei
I raised my arms
Blasfemei
I blasphemed
Hoje todos são contra mim
Today everyone is against me
Todos erram neste mundo
Everyone makes mistakes in this world
Não há exceção
There is no exception
Quando voltam a realidade
When they come back to reality
Conseguem perdão
They achieve forgiveness
Porque é que eu Senhor
Why me, Lord?
Que errei pela vez primeira
Who made a mistake for the first time
Passo tantos dissabores
I go through so many hardships
E luto contra a humanidade inteira
And fight against all of humanity
Contributed by Jonathan D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.