The band is considered one of the main groups in Brazilian rock. Like most groups from the 1960s, Os Mutantes were heavily influenced by The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix and Sly & the Family Stone. However, Brazilian musicians were also immersed in their local culture, exercising their own creativity in the use of feedback, distortion and studio tricks of all kinds, just as was done by the Liverpool quartet and the group The Beach Boys. In this sense, Mutantes were pioneers in mixing rock and roll with Brazilian musical and thematic elements. Another characteristic of the group was irreverence. Like Os Mutantes, there began to be a kind of mixture of foreign and Brazilian music and the addition of new ideas, with doses of experimentalism, thus opening the way for musical hybridism.
Os Mutantes began their activities in 1966, as a trio, when they performed on the program O Pequeno Mundo de Ronnie Von on TV Record. On the eve of the program's premiere, the trio had the name "Os Bruxos", but neither Rita Lee nor the Dias Baptista brothers (Arnaldo and Sérgio) were satisfied with that name and wanted to change it. According to Carlos Calado,[2] the idea for the name "Os Mutantes" came from an ironic joke between Alberto Helena Júnior, the program's producer, and Ronnie Von, who, at the time, was reading O Império dos Mutantes, by Stefan Wul, and did not talk about any other subject. "Are you guys still looking for a name for the boys ensemble? Why not The Mutants?" Ronnie Von liked Alberto Helena's idea and took it to the group, who approved it immediately.
The group soon became one of the main exponents of the new MPB, influenced by Tropicália, until it dissolved in 1978. Over these twelve years, nine albums were recorded, two of which - O A e o Z and Tecnicolor - were only released on 1990s, when the group began to be recognized, on the national and international rock scene, as one of the most creative, dynamic, radical and talented of the psychedelic era and the history of world rock. In 2006, the band reunited, without Rita Lee or Liminha, but with the presence of Arnaldo Baptista and Zélia Duncan on vocals. The following year, Arnaldo and Zélia left the band, which was recomposed with other musicians and continues to perform under the leadership of Sérgio Dias, the only remaining member of the original lineup.
Domingo no Parque
Os Mutantes Lyrics
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O rei da confusão (ê, João)
Um trabalhava na feira (ê, José)
Outro na construção (ê, João)
A semana passada, no fim da semana
João resolveu não brigar
No domingo de tarde saiu apressado
Não foi pra lá, pra Ribeira, foi namorar
O José como sempre no fim da semana
Guardou a barraca e sumiu
Foi fazer no domingo um passeio no parque
Lá perto da Boca do Rio
Foi no parque que ele avistou Juliana
Foi que ele viu
Foi que ele viu Juliana na roda com João
Uma rosa e um sorvete na mão
Juliana seu sonho, uma ilusão
Juliana e o amigo João
O espinho da rosa feriu Zé
E o sorvete gelou seu coração
O sorvete e a rosa (ô, José)
A rosa e o sorvete (ô, José)
Foi dançando no peito (ô, José)
Do José brincalhão (ô, José)
O sorvete e a rosa (ô, José)
A rosa e o sorvete (ô, José)
Oi, girando na mente (ô, José)
Do José brincalhão (ô, José)
Juliana girando (oi, girando)
Oi, na roda gigante (oi, girando)
Oi, na roda gigante (oi, girando)
O amigo João (João)
O sorvete é morango (é vermelho)
Oi girando e a rosa (é vermelha)
Oi, girando, girando (é vermelha)
Oi, girando, girando, olha a faca! (Olha a faca!)
Olha o sangue na mão (ê, José)
Juliana no chão (ê, José)
Outro corpo caído (ê, José)
Seu amigo João (ê, José)
Amanhã não tem feira (ê, José)
Não tem mais construção (ê, João)
Não tem mais brincadeira (ê, José)
Não tem mais confusão (ê, João)
The song "Domingo no Parque" by Os Mutantes tells a story about two friends, José and João. José, known as the "king of playfulness," works at a fair, while João works in construction. One weekend, João decides not to fight, and instead rushes off on Sunday afternoon, not to play capoeira at Ribeira, but to meet someone special.
Meanwhile, José, as usual, packs up his booth at the end of the week and heads to the park near Boca do Rio on Sunday for a leisurely stroll. It is in the park that he sees Juliana, the girl of his dreams, dancing in a circle with João, his friend. José's heart is wounded, symbolized by the thorn of a rose, and his happiness is chilled, represented by the coldness of the ice cream.
The lyrics emphasize the revolving thoughts in José's mind, as the repetition of "the ice cream and the rose" highlights his internal turmoil. The mention of the ferris wheel adds to the sense of spinning emotions. The song takes an unexpected turn when the line "Look at the knife!" is abruptly introduced, indicating a sudden and violent event.
The last lines reveal a tragic outcome, with blood on José's hands and Juliana lying on the ground. Another body has fallen, and it is his friend João. The final verses express the aftermath, with the absence of work, play, and confusion. The lyrics convey a poignant tale of love, jealousy, and the consequences of actions.
Line by Line Meaning
O rei da brincadeira (ê, José)
José, known as the king of fun and games
O rei da confusão (ê, João)
João, known as the king of chaos
Um trabalhava na feira (ê, José)
José worked at the fair
Outro na construção (ê, João)
João worked in construction
A semana passada, no fim da semana
Last week, towards the end of the week
João resolveu não brigar
João decided not to fight
No domingo de tarde saiu apressado
On Sunday afternoon, he hurried out
E não foi pra Ribeira jogar capoeira
He didn't go to Ribeira to play capoeira
Não foi pra lá, pra Ribeira, foi namorar
He didn't go there, to Ribeira, he went to date
O José como sempre no fim da semana
José, as always, at the end of the week
Guardou a barraca e sumiu
He packed up the tent and disappeared
Foi fazer no domingo um passeio no parque
He went for a walk in the park on Sunday
Lá perto da Boca do Rio
There, near the mouth of the river
Foi no parque que ele avistou Juliana
It was in the park that he spotted Juliana
Foi que ele viu
That's when he saw her
Foi que ele viu Juliana na roda com João
He saw Juliana in the circle with João
Uma rosa e um sorvete na mão
With a rose and an ice cream in her hand
Juliana seu sonho, uma ilusão
Juliana, his dream, an illusion
Juliana e o amigo João
Juliana and her friend João
O espinho da rosa feriu Zé
The thorn of the rose hurt Zé
E o sorvete gelou seu coração
And the ice cream chilled his heart
O sorvete e a rosa (ô, José)
The ice cream and the rose (oh, Zé)
A rosa e o sorvete (ô, José)
The rose and the ice cream (oh, Zé)
Foi dançando no peito (ô, José)
They danced in his chest (oh, Zé)
Do José brincalhão (ô, José)
Of the playful Zé (oh, Zé)
Juliana girando (oi, girando)
Juliana spinning around (hey, spinning)
Oi, na roda gigante (oi, girando)
Hey, on the Ferris wheel (hey, spinning)
Oi, na roda gigante (oi, girando)
Hey, on the Ferris wheel (hey, spinning)
O amigo João (João)
Her friend João (João)
O sorvete é morango (é vermelho)
The ice cream is strawberry (it's red)
Oi girando e a rosa (é vermelha)
Hey, spinning and the rose (it's red)
Oi, girando, girando (é vermelha)
Hey, spinning, spinning (it's red)
Oi, girando, girando, olha a faca! (Olha a faca!)
Hey, spinning, spinning, watch out for the knife! (Watch out for the knife!)
Olha o sangue na mão (ê, José)
Look at the blood in his hand (ê, Zé)
Juliana no chão (ê, José)
Juliana on the ground (ê, Zé)
Outro corpo caído (ê, José)
Another body fallen (ê, Zé)
Seu amigo João (ê, José)
His friend João (ê, Zé)
Amanhã não tem feira (ê, José)
Tomorrow there won't be a fair (ê, Zé)
Não tem mais construção (ê, João)
No more construction anymore (ê, João)
Não tem mais brincadeira (ê, José)
No more playing around anymore (ê, Zé)
Não tem mais confusão (ê, João)
No more chaos anymore (ê, João)
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Gilberto Passos Gil Moreira
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind