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.
Orgulho
Paulinho da Viola Lyrics
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Na fumaça de seu orgulho
E os dias móveis carregam
O móvel laqueado
Não se usam mais os pés dourados
Nem as promessas de um amor
Atormentado e vazio
Um velho caminhão de mudanças some na fumaça
Para onde você passa? Para onde as coisas passam?
Quando o orgulho esmaga as asas
O tempo é um pássaro de natureza vaga
In Paulinho Da Viola's song "Orgulho" (Pride), the lyrics speak to the destructive nature of pride and the way it can consume a person. The song paints a picture of a person who is so consumed by their own pride that they are lost in their own fog. They are represented by a piece of furniture, a mobile lacquered piece, that is being moved from place to place, never finding a home. The idea of this mobile piece of furniture represents the way pride can make a person feel unsettled and disconnected from the world around them. The imagery is powerful and evokes a sense of being lost in one's own self.
The lyrics also speak to the futility of holding onto things that are no longer relevant. The idea of a love that is tormented and empty represents the way that people can become attached to things that don't serve them anymore. The old truck that disappears into the smoke symbolizes the way that things can disappear when we hold onto them too tightly. The chorus of the song asks where the person is going and where things go when pride takes over. The final line of the song, "When pride crushes the wings, time is a bird of vague nature", sums up the idea that pride can cause a person to lose their sense of direction and purpose.
Line by Line Meaning
Você passa dissipada
You pass by in a dissipating manner
Na fumaça de seu orgulho
In the smoke of your pride
E os dias móveis carregam
And the mobile days carry
O móvel laqueado
The lacquered furniture
Não se usam mais os pés dourados
The golden feet are no longer used
Nem as promessas de um amor
Nor the promises of a love
Atormentado e vazio
Tormented and empty
Um velho caminhão de mudanças some na fumaça
An old moving truck disappears into smoke
Para onde você passa? Para onde as coisas passam?
Where are you heading? Where do things go?
Quando o orgulho esmaga as asas
When pride crushes wings
O tempo é um pássaro de natureza vaga
Time is a bird of vague nature
Contributed by Nora D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Shan Punkósmico
Linda música e melodia...
Santos Pessoa
Isso é lindo demais como todo o disco simplesmente impecável
Marcelo Henkin
que doidera essa harmonia, muito foda
Leandro Vicente
Você passa dissipada
Na fumaça de seu orgulho
E os dias móveis carregam
O móvel laqueado
Não se usam mais os pés dourados
Nem as promessas de um amor
Ornamentado e vazio
Charles Elton Fernandes Nogueira
O maior sambista de toda eternidade ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Victor Antônio de Oliveira
♥︎