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.
A Gente Esquece
Paulinho da Viola Lyrics
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E faz um outro samba
A gente perde um grande amor
E acha um outro amor
Você morreu no meu peito
E no meu peito nasceu
Não um outro amor
Mas essa indiferença sem saudade
A gente tem uma esperança
E vai vivendo
A gente canta até na hora de sofrer
Já fiz um samba que perdi
Onde eu dizia veja bem
Que não havia mais ninguém
Senão você
The song "A Gente Esquece" by Paulinho da Viola is a hauntingly beautiful ballad that speaks to the cycle of love and heartbreak in life. The opening lines reflect the samba tradition of continuously reinventing oneself through the creation of new music. Here, forgetting one samba leads to the creation of another. The theme of letting go and moving on is further explored in the second line, as the singer loses a great love but finds the courage to seek out another. The third and fourth lines take a turn towards melancholy as the singer admits to the death of a previous love, only to replace it with apathy and detachment.
There is a sense of resigned acceptance by the middle of the verse as the singer admits to living with hope, despite the inevitability of suffering. Music serves as a coping mechanism, allowing for emotional release even at times of great turmoil. The final lines echo the opening lines of the verse in their circularity, as the singer admits to previously writing a song about a love that is now absent, leaving only the memories behind. The name of the song itself, "A Gente Esquece" or "We Forget", feels more like a call to action than a lament, as if the singer is urging the listener to not dwell on their losses, but to embrace the beauty of life and continue moving forward.
Line by Line Meaning
A gente esquece um samba
Sometimes we forget a certain style of samba music we used to play or sing
E faz um outro samba
Then we create a new samba, or develop a new interpretation of the genre
A gente perde um grande amor
We can lose someone we loved deeply
E acha um outro amor
But eventually we may find someone else to care for
Você morreu no meu peito
You died, metaphorically, in my heart
E no meu peito nasceu
But something else took root there
Não um outro amor
Not a new love
Mas essa indiferença sem saudade
Instead, a feeling of indifference without longing
Sem tristeza e sem rancor
Free from sadness or resentment
A gente tem uma esperança
We hold onto the hope that things will get better
E vai vivendo
And try to carry on with life
A gente canta até na hora de sofrer
Sometimes we sing to alleviate our pain
Já fiz um samba que perdi
I once wrote a song that I lost
Onde eu dizia veja bem
Where I proclaimed, listen carefully
Que não havia mais ninguém
That there was no one else like you
Senão você
But you are gone now
Contributed by Alexis B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Diego Soares Candido
Que obra prima. Paulinho da Viola é magistral