Chico Buarque
Morena de Angola lyrics with English translation
- Language
- Portuguese
- Level
- Intermediate
- Released
- 1980
- Genre
- Bossa Nova, Samba
- Length
- 3:06
Morena de Angola que leva o chocalho amarrado na canela
Angolan beauty with a rattle tied around her ankle
Será que ela mexe o chocalho ou o chocalho é que mexe com ela
Does she shake the rattle or does the rattle shake her?
Morena de Angola que leva o chocalho amarrado na canela
Angolan beauty with a rattle tied around her ankle
Será que ela mexe o chocalho ou o chocalho é que mexe com ela
Does she shake the rattle or does the rattle shake her?
Será que a morena cochila escutando o cochicho do chocalho
Is the beauty dozing off, listening to the rattle's whisper?
Será que desperta gingando e já sai chocalhando pro trabalho
Does she wake up swaying and head out rattling to work?
Morena de Angola que leva o chocalho amarrado na canela
Angolan beauty with a rattle tied around her ankle
Será que ela mexe o chocalho ou o chocalho é que mexe com ela
Does she shake the rattle or does the rattle shake her?
Será que ela tá na cozinha guisando a galinha à cabidela
Is she in the kitchen stewing the chicken à cabidela?
Será que esqueceu da galinha e ficou batucando na panela
Did she forget the chicken and just keep banging on the pot?
Será que no meio da mata, na moita, a morena inda chocalha
Could it be that in the middle of the woods, in the thicket, the dark-skinned girl still shakes her rattle?
Será que ela não fica afoita pra dançar na chama da batalha
Could it be she doesn't get restless to dance in the flames of battle?
Morena de Angola que leva o chocalho amarrado na canela
Dark-skinned girl from Angola who wears the rattle tied to her ankle,
Passando pelo regimento ela faz requebrar a sentinela
Passing by the regiment, she makes the sentinel sway.
Morena de Angola que leva o chocalho amarrado na canela
Dark-skinned girl from Angola who wears the rattle tied to her ankle.
Será que ela mexe o chocalho ou o chocalho é que mexe com ela
Could it be she shakes the rattle or does the rattle shake her?
Morena de Angola que leva o chocalho amarrado na canela
Dark-skinned girl from Angola who wears the rattle tied to her ankle.
Será que ela mexe o chocalho ou o chocalho é que mexe com ela
Could it be she shakes the rattle or does the rattle shake her?
Será que quando vai pra cama a morena se esquece dos chocalhos
Could it be that when she goes to bed, the dark-skinned girl forgets the rattles?
Será que namora fazendo bochincho com seus penduricalhos
Could it be she flirts, making a fuss with her trinkets?
Morena de Angola que leva o chocalho amarrado na canela
Brown girl from Angola, with a rattle tied around her ankle
Será que ela mexe o chocalho ou o chocalho é que mexe com ela
Does she shake the rattle or does the rattle shake her?
Será que ela tá caprichando no peixe que eu trouxe de Benguela
Is she putting her heart into the fish I brought from Benguela?
Será que tá no remelexo e abandonou meu peixe na tigela
Is she getting lost in the groove, leaving my fish in the bowl?
Será que quando fica choca põe de quarentena o seu chocalho
Does she put her rattle in quarantine when she gets broody?
Será que depois ela bota a canela no nicho do pirralho
Does she later place her ankle in the nook of the little one?
Morena de Angola que leva o chocalho amarrado na canela
Brown girl from Angola, with a rattle tied around her ankle
Eu acho que deixei um cacho do meu coração na Catumbela
I think I left a bunch of my heart in Catumbela.
Morena de Angola que leva o chocalho amarrado na canela
Brown girl from Angola, with a rattle tied around her ankle
Morena, bichinha danada, minha camarada do MPLA
Brown girl, mischievous one, my comrade from the MPLA.
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Key vocabulary
- morena
- brunette
- leva
- takesA2
- chocalho
- rattle
- amarrado
- tied
- canela
- cinnamonA2
- será
- will beB2
- mexe
- moves
- cochila
- doze
- escutando
- listening
- cochicho
- whisper
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About this song
Chico Buarque is a Brazilian singer, songwriter, poet, novelist, and playwright associated with samba, bossa nova, and MPB. He is known for intricate harmonic work and lyrics that often engage politics and culture, including foundational recordings such as Construção and Calabar.