Post #144541 by Geeky Tiki on Thu, Mar 3, 2005 9:41 PM

Elogio da Raça ( Eulogy of the Race )
( Song is a marching samba written by Assis Valente and an accompanied by the Devil's of C, recorded in May 18 1933)

Autoridade tem que dar ( se tem)
Authority must be given ( if you have)

Carta branca para o nego vadiar
Wild card to the nigger to idle (in Brazil the word nigger is not derogatory it means very black)

Pois ele um cavalheiro
(Since he,a gentleman )

e basta ser brasileiro
( and being Brazillian is enough )

P'r saber se comportar
(to know how to behave )

Um navegante puxou a coberta
(A navigator pulled the blanket)

e descobriu a nossa raca tao falada
(and discovered our famous race)

O sol queimava tanto e roupa n&#65533 ; o havia
( The sun was burning a lot and cloth number 65533, he had )

Por isso que o nego tem a pele tao queimada
( That's why the nigger has the skin so tanned)

Eu hei de ver o nego vencendo
( I shall see the nigger win)

Nego bamba nos ataques do fuzil
(Nigger very good in the attacks of the rifle )

Nego bronzeado, bronze que tem alma
( Tanned nigger, bronze color that has soul)

A alma de guerreiro pta defesa do Brasil
( the soul of a worrior to defend Brazil)

Note: the song is about the black Brazillian man who is decendent from Africans that have a very strong influennce in Brazilan culture, including the music, the song is an elogy to the black race in Brazil. I hope I did not kill the poem it is kind of hard to translate romance poems to English, but it gives you a good idea of what it is about. I would love to listen to the music, since I don't recognize the music by the words.

This is translated by my sister-in-law, who is a native of Sao Paulo. It's been neat to see this question come to fruition!

Cheers!