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  • August 13, 2017

    LYRICS, POETRY AND PROSE 170814

    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