georgeleecunningham.com

A place to share some words of beauty, inspiration, and fun. Today we visit the music of one of our favorite countries, Brazil. There’s a certain sensual energy in Brazil, a mix of love, hate, sex, and danger all set against the backdrop of a Brazilian beat.

Our first song is Aguas de Marco, which translates to the Waters of March. March marks the end of summer in Brazil and it is the rainiest month of the year. The rain washes down from the hilltops, through the streets of Rio de Janiero and into the ocean. The song is simply a collage of images – life, love, nature, and the everyday beauty and ugliness of the world around us. Carmela and I walked down the aisle to this song when we married. We offer the English language translation, written by songwriter Antonio “Tom” Jobim, in its entirety.

The second song is Brazil, an English language version offered by Pink Flamingo. The third, Rio De Janeiro Blue is also in English, sung by jazz singer Randy Crawford. Click on the name of the piece to get a video or more information.

A stick, a stone
It´s the end of the road
It´s the rest of the stump
It´s a little alone
It´s a sliver of glass
It is life, it´s the sun
It is night, it is death
It´s a trap, it´s a gun
The oak when it blooms
A fox in the brush
The knot of the wood
The song of the thrush
The wood of the wind
The cliff, a fall
A scratch, a lump
It is nothing at all
It´s the wind blowing free
It´s the end of a slope
It´s a beam, it´s a void
It´s a hunch, it´s a hope

And the riverbank talks
Of the waters of March
It´s the end of the stain
It´s the joy in your heart

The foot, the ground
The flesh and the bone
The beat of the road
A slingshot stone
A truckload of bricks
In the soft morning light
The shot of the gun
In the dead of the night
A mile, a must
A thrust, a bump
It´s a girl, it´s a rhyme
It´s a cold, it’s the mumps
The plan of the house
The body in bed
And the car that got stuck
It´s the mud, it´s the mud
A float, a drift
A flight, a wing
A cock, a quail
Oh, the promise of spring

And the riverbank talks
Of the waters of March
It´s the promise of life
It´s the joy in your heart

And the riverbank talks
Of the waters of March
It´s the promise of life
It´s the joy in your heart

A point, a grain
A bee, a bite
A blink, a buzzard
A sudden stroke of night
A pin, a needle
A sting, a pain
A snail, a riddle
A wasp, a stain
A snake, a stick
It is John, it is Joe
A fish, a flash
A silvery glow
The bed of the well
The end of the line
The dismay on the face
It´s a loss, it´s a find
A spear, a spike
A point, a nail
A drip, a drop
The end of the day

And the riverbank talks
Of the waters of March
It´s the promise of life
In your heart, in your heart

The end of the road
A little alone
A sliver of glass
A life, the sun
A night, a death

The end of the road
And the riverbank talks
Of the waters of March
It´s the promise of joy
In your heart

Of the waters of March

And the riverbank talks
Of the waters of March
It´s the promise of joy
In your heart

Of the waters of March

– Aguas de Marco Singers: Antonio Jobim and Elis Regina; Writer Antonio Jobim

Brazil, when stars were entertaining June
We stood beneath an amber moon
And softly murmured someday soon
We kissed and clung together

Then tomorrow was another day
The morning found us miles away
With still a million things to say

And now when twilight dims the skies above
Recalling thrills of our love
There’s one thing I am certain of
Return, I will, to old Brazil

– Brazil Singer: Storm Large; Group: Pink Martini; Writer: Ary Barroso

The salty air, your wind-blown hair, reflection on a dream
thoughts of you with who knows who, flowin’ through me like a stream
Brazilian serenades, linger on
help me lose my soul, in your song
and I get a feelin’, that I’ve seen that last of you, Rio De Janeiro Blue,
Rio De Janeiro Blue

Months go by, I wonder why, I’m left here on my own
could it be my destiny, is to live this life alone
these dark and rainy days have turned me cold
long and sleepless nights, gettin’ old
and I get a feelin’ that I’ve seen the last of you, Rio De Janeiro Blue,
Rio De Janeiro Blue

– Rio De Janeiro Blue Artists: Randy Crawford and Joe Sample; Songwriters: John Haeny and Richard Torrance