Born in Rio de Janeiro to a family deeply rooted in the samba tradition, Paulinho met and befriended much of Rio's samba elite as a child. His father was a guitar player and musicians like Pixinguinha and Jacob do Bandolim would often come to his house for rehearsals, which Paulinho watched for hours on end. After the rehearsals, Paulinho would pick up his father's guitar and strum the few chords he knew. Later, as a teenager, he was frequently seen at jams at Jacob do Bandolim's house, quietly and attentively observing the older, more experienced musicians. He began writing his own songs as a teenager, but never considered a career as a professional musician until he met poet Hermínio Bello de Carvalho in 1964. By then, Paulinho was working as a teller at a bank in Rio de Janeiro, and recognised Hermínio from the jam sessions at Jacob do Bandolim's house. The two became close friends and soon began writing music together. The first song they wrote together was Duvide-o-dó, recorded by singer Isaurinha Garcia. He then began performing his own songs at a restaurant in Rio, owned by samba legend Cartola and his wife.
He got his famous nickname in 1965, when he was a member of the samba group A Voz do Morro (the voice of the hills), alongside Zé Keti and Oscar Bigode. After their first recording session, a publicist from the record label reportedly told him "'Paulo César' is not a samba name!". Zé Keti and journalist Sérgio Cabral eventually came up with the nickname "Paulinho da Viola" (something to the lines of "Guitar Paul").
By the 1970s, Paulinho was at the most prolific stage of his career, releasing an average of one album per year. He was already a household name in samba, choro and MPB circles and broadened his audience by touring all over Brazil and also playing at festivals in Europe and the USA. His productivity and popularity had waned by the mid-80s, when he decided to focus more on his songwriting. In 1996 he regained notoriety after releasing the much-acclaimed album Bebadosamba, in which he once again joined forces with Hermínio Bello de Carvalho and Elton Medeiros, his early songwriting partners. He still lives in Rio de Janeiro and performs around Brazil.
Moema Morenou
Paulinho Da Viola Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A água do mar quem molhou
O Sol da Bahia te queimou
Teu corpo morena morenou
No samba de roda
Morena faceira
Mexeu a cadeiras
Tirou o sapato
Dançou miudinho
E quase que mata
Um pobre mulato
Moema morenou
A água do mar quem molhou
O Sol da Bahia te queimou
Teu corpo morena morenou
Eu fui à Bahia
Paguei a promessa
Estava com pressa
Queria voltar
Mais uma morena
Num samba de roda
Me deu uma volta
Que me fez ficar
Moema morenou
A água do mar quem molhou
O Sol da Bahia te queimou
Teu corpo morena morenou
The song "Moema Morenou" by Paulinho Da Viola talks about the transformation of a woman named Moema due to her experiences in Bahia. The lines "Moema morenou/A água do mar quem molhou/O Sol da Bahia te queimou/Teu corpo morena morenou" translates to "Moema became darker/The sea water soaked her/The sun of Bahia burned you/Your body became darker". This speaks to how Moema's physical appearance has changed due to being exposed to the sun and sea water in Bahia. The second verse describes how Moema is a skilled dancer and is able to rouse the attention of others with her moves. The lines "No samba de roda/Morena faceira/Mexeu a cadeiras/Foi um desacato/Tirou o sapato/Dançou miudinho/E quase que mata/Um pobre mulato" talks about her dancing skills in a samba de roda, where she was moving her hips and almost injuring a man. The song concludes with the singer talking about his own experience in Bahia where he met another beautiful woman who made him stay, hence the line "Mais uma morena/Nun samba de roda/Me deu uma volta/Que me fez ficar" or "Another beautiful woman/In a samba dance/Spun me around/And made me stay".
The song was released in 1976 on Paulinho Da Viola's album "O Talento De Paulinho Da Viola", where he experimented with different music styles such as samba, bossa nova and MPB.
Line by Line Meaning
Moema morenou
Moema's skin got darker
A água do mar quem molhou
The sea water darkened her skin
O Sol da Bahia te queimou
The sun in Bahia burned her skin
Teu corpo morena morenou
Your body got darker, Moema
No samba de roda
In the round dance samba
Morena faceira
Flirtatious dark-skinned woman
Mexeu a cadeiras
Moved her hips
Foi um desacato
It was scandalous
Tirou o sapato
Took off her shoes
Dançou miudinho
Danced small moves
E quase que mata
And almost killed
Um pobre mulato
A poor mixed-race man
Eu fui à Bahia
I went to Bahia
Paguei a promessa
I fulfilled my promise
Estava com pressa
I was in a hurry
Queria voltar
I wanted to go back
Mais uma morena
Another dark-skinned woman
Num samba de roda
In a round dance samba
Me deu uma volta
She gave me a spin
Que me fez ficar
Which made me stay
Contributed by Logan H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@ionedasilvamoreira7442
Lindoooo
@paulolessa4704
Um dos melhores shows que assisti .Viva longa ao Paulinho.
@laureanoarantesnetto8175
A pobre indiazinha Moema de tanto amar seu amado cruzou a nada o grande rio Atlântico atrás de seu amor morreu amando? Não o amor venceu lá pra outras bandas em Lisboa encontrou seu amor
@laureanoarantesnetto8175
Moema zona sul de São Paulo