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.
Rio de Janeiro
Os Mutantes Lyrics
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No mudo atual
Eu busco nas alturas
O pão e o Melhoral
Sessões de bombardeio
Eu vôo além do mar
Eu vejo na TV
Parece que o discurso
Que Jesus Cristo fez
Foi feito pra pessoas
Que sofrem de surdez
The lyrics of Os Mutantes' song Rio de Janeiro portray a sense of confusion and disorientation in the face of the chaos of modern life. The opening lines describe a state of madness or insanity that seems to permeate the world around the singer. In the midst of this madness, the singer seeks solace and nourishment in the sky, suggesting a desire to escape from the harsh realities of the world below.
The second stanza speaks to a sense of longing for something beyond one's immediate surroundings. The singer speaks of flying beyond the sea, implying a desire for travel and exploration. However, even when the singer does venture out into the world, they find themselves drawn back into the comforting familiarity of their own culture, as represented by the mention of guaraná - a popular Brazilian soft drink.
The final lines of the song suggest a frustration with the inability of people to truly hear and understand the message of spiritual figures like Jesus Christ. The use of the phrase "sofrem de surdez" - which translates to "suffer from deafness" - establishes a theme of communication and the difficulty of truly connecting with others in a meaningful way.
Line by Line Meaning
Diante da loucura
Before the madness
No mudo atual
In the current silence
Eu busco nas alturas
I search in the heights
O pão e o Melhoral
For bread and pain relief medication
Sessões de bombardeio
Bombing sessions
Eu vôo além do mar
I fly beyond the sea
Eu vejo na TV
I see on TV
Tomando guaraná
Drinking guaraná
Parece que o discurso
It seems that the speech
Que Jesus Cristo fez
That Jesus Christ made
Foi feito pra pessoas
Was made for people
Que sofrem de surdez
Who are suffering from deafness
Contributed by Owen E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.