Xangai, also known by his real name Eugênio Avelino, is a artist from Brazi… Read Full Bio ↴Xangai, also known by his real name Eugênio Avelino, is a artist from Brazil who write and sings traditional northeastern songs, many of them related to "sertão", an interior countryside part of Brasil, known for its dryness and harsh conditions of living. He is a native from the Bahia state in Brazil.

Xangai is gifted with a great voice and often teams with Elomar in song-writing and performance as in the
Xangai Canta Cantigas, Incelenças, Puluxias e Tiranas de Elomar album.

Many Xangai records have been released by the Kuarup label (in Brazil).

Gabriela
Xangai Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

São treis sorte são treis sina
na istrada dêsse cristão
são treis irirmã granfina
e de punhal na mão
d'ua madrasta avarenta
o home nun iscapa não
cuma o cego na trumenta
lá vai o cristão

são treis sorte são treis sina
ai pobre cantadô
são treis irirmã firina
a Morte a Saudade a Dô
O Gabriela
na Lagoa Bela
lua minguante
as eguas vão sonhá
são eguas baias
brancas amarelas
são poldas pampas
lindas gabrielas
monjas cavalgadas
vindas de estrelas
muito recuadas
Lagoa da Porta
nas horas mortas

o viado branco
vem suzin bebê

Overall Meaning

The song Gabriela, by Xangai, is a haunting and sorrowful ballad about the journey of a Christian man who finds himself on a treacherous road with three sisters who are armed with daggers. They are joined by a blind musician who is also traveling with them. They are all escaping from a greedy stepmother who is determined to keep them from inheriting their father's wealth. The group encounters many obstacles on their journey, and the lyrics describe their struggles and the harsh realities of life on the road.

The song is deeply symbolic, with each of the three sisters representing a different aspect of fate or destiny. The first sister represents Death, the second represents Longing or Saudade, and the third represents Pain or Suffering. These three sisters are powerful and inescapable forces that the singer is unable to resist or overcome. Similarly, the blind musician can be seen as a metaphor for the human condition, as all people are ultimately blind when it comes to the future and what fate has in store for them.

The lyrics are poetic and full of vivid imagery, describing beautiful horses and monastic riders who seem to have come from another world. The song evokes a sense of mystery and otherworldliness, as if the events described are happening in a dream or a fable. Altogether, Gabriela is a haunting and beautifully crafted song that explores some of the deepest mysteries of human existence.

Line by Line Meaning

São treis sorte são treis sina
There are three ways, three paths, that one can take in life

na istrada dêsse cristão
On the road of a Christian

são treis irirmã granfina
In these three paths are three wealthy sisters

e de punhal na mão
Each holding a dagger

d'ua madrasta avarenta
They are the daughters of a greedy stepmother

o home nun iscapa não
No man can escape their grasp

cuma o cego na trumenta
Only the blind man on his instrument can pass them

lá vai o cristão
There goes the Christian

ai pobre cantadô
Oh, poor singer

são treis irirmã firina
In these three paths are three sisters of fate

a Morte a Saudade a Dô
Death, longing, and pain