The Girl From Ipanema

"The Girl from Ipanema" ("A Garota de Ipanema") is considered the best-known bossa nova song ever written, and was a worldwide hit in the mid-1960s. It was written in 1962, with music by Antonio Carlos Jobim and Portuguese lyrics by Vinicius de Moraes; English lyrics were later written by Norman Gimbel. It is often claimed to be the second-most recorded popular song in history, topped only by The Beatles' Yesterday. The best-known version is that performed by Stan Getz and Astrud Gilberto, from the 1963 album Getz/Gilberto. The first commercial recording was in 1962, by Pery Ribeiro. Numerous recordings have been used in movies, often as an elevator music clich. In 2003 Gilberto unsuccessfully sued to block use of the song for advertising Doritos snack chips.

Background

The song was inspired by Helosa Eneida Menezes Paes Pinto (or simply, Hel Pinheiro), an 18-year-old girl who lived on Montenegro street in the fashionable Ipanema district of Rio de Janeiro. Every day, she would stroll past the popular "Veloso" bar-cafe on the way to the beach, attracting the attention of regulars Jobim and Moraes. The song was originally composed for a musical comedy entitled Dirigvel (Blimp), which was a work in progress of Vincius de Moraes. The original title was Menina que Passa (The Girl Who Passes By), and the famous first verse was completely different. In Revelao: a verdadeira Garota de Ipanema (Revealed: The Real Girl from Ipanema) Moraes wrote that she was:
"o paradigma do bruto carioca; a moa dourada, misto de flor e sereia, cheia de luz e de graa mas cuja a viso tambm triste, pois carrega consigo, a caminho do mar, o sentimento da que passa, da beleza que no s nossa - um dom da vida em seu lindo e melanclico fluir e refluir constante."
which roughly translates to:
'"the exemplar of the rude Carioca: a golden-tanned girl, a mixture of flower and mermaid, full of brightness and grace, but with a touch of sadness, in that she carries with her, on her route to the sea, the feeling of that which passes by, of the beauty that is not ours alone -- it is a gift of life in its constant, beautiful and sad ebb and flow."
Today, Montenegro Street is called Vincius de Moraes Street, and the Veloso Bar is named A Garota de Ipanema. There is also a Garota de Ipanema Park in the nearby Arpoador neighborhood.

Other interpreters

English lyrics

Tall and tan and young and lovely
The girl from Ipanema goes walking
And when she passes
Each one she passes goes "aah"

When she walks she's like a samba
That swings so cool and sways so gentle
That when she passes
Each one she passes goes "aah"

Oh, but I watch her so sadly
How can I tell her I love her?
Yes, I would give my heart gladly
But each day when she walks to the sea
She looks straight ahead not at me

Tall and tan and young and lovely
The girl from Ipanema goes walking
And when she passes I smile
But she doesn't see

Portuguese Lyrics

Vinicius de Moraes is today regarded as one of the most important Brazilian poets of his time. The original Portuguese lyrics were very different from the English lyrics.
i>Olha que coisa mais linda style="border-left:1px solid black"|Look what a pretty thing
i>Mais cheia de graa. ela menina style="border-left:1px solid black"|So full of grace. It is her, the girl
i>Que vem e que passa style="border-left:1px solid black"|That comes and that passes
i>Num doce balano a caminho do mar style="border-left:1px solid black"|In a sweet sway in her way to the sea
nbsp; style="border-left:1px solid black"| 
i>Moa do corpo dourado style="border-left:1px solid black"|Girl with a golden body
i>Do sol de Ipanema, o seu balanado style="border-left:1px solid black"|From the sun of Ipanema, her swing
i> mais que um poema style="border-left:1px solid black"|Is more than a poem
i> a coisa mais linda que eu j vi passar style="border-left:1px solid black"|It is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen pass
nbsp; style="border-left:1px solid black"| 
i>Ah, por que estou to sozinho style="border-left:1px solid black"|Ah, why I am so alone?
i>Ah, por que tudo to triste? style="border-left:1px solid black"|Ah, why everthing is so sad?
i>Ah, a beleza que existe style="border-left:1px solid black"|Ah, the beauty that is out there!
i>A beleza que no s minha style="border-left:1px solid black"|The beauty that is not only mine
i>Que tambm passa sozinha style="border-left:1px solid black"|But that also passes alone
nbsp; style="border-left:1px solid black"| 
i>Mas, se ela soubesse style="border-left:1px solid black"|But, if she knew
i>Que quando ela passa o mundo inteirinho style="border-left:1px solid black"|That when she passes, the whole word
i>Se enche de graa e fica mais lindo style="border-left:1px solid black"|Gets full of grace and becomes more beautiful
i>Por causa do amor style="border-left:1px solid black"|Because of love
Girl from Ipanema, The Girl from Ipanema, The

 

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