Bochincho

Ruckus

Bochincho

To a gossip, onceA um bochincho, certa feita
I arrived out of curiosityEu fui chegando de curioso
That addiction is like scabiesQue o vício é que nem sarnoso
Never stops, nor settles downNunca para, nem se ajeita
Ball for the right peopleBaile de gente direita

I saw right away that it wasn'tEu vi de pronto que não era
In the spring nightNa noite de primavera
The voice of a tango stutteredGaguejava a voz dum tango
And I'm crazy about fandangoE eu sou louco por fandango
I don't even paint for cornmeal!Que nem pinto por quirera!

I tied my long bayAtei meu baio longito
On a branch of a guamirim treeNum galho de guamirim
I've been like this since I was a kidDesde guri eu fui assim
I don't play or make it easyNão brinco nem facilito
I don't believe in witchesEm bruxas não acredito

But there are, there are!¡Pero que las hay, las hay!
I'm from the coast of UruguayEu sou da costa do Uruguai
My dear old payMeu velho pago querido
And, for being unpreparedE, por andar desprevenido
There are so many kids without fathersHá tanto guri sem pai

At the Santa Fe ranchNo rancho de santa-fé
Made of wattle and daub, clayDe pau-a-pique, barreado
In a guest's jerkNum trancão de convidado
I will find myself in the messEu me entreverei no banzé
The chinaredo with a ballO chinaredo a bolapé

In the smoky environmentNo ambiente fumacento
A lamp, right in the centerUm candeeiro, bem no centro
In a twilight of dawnNum lusco-fusco de aurora
For those who arrived from outsidePra quem chegava de fora
I could barely see insidePouco enxergava ali dentro

I got my hands on a tiangaçaDei de mão numa tiangaça
That crossed my sideQue me cruzou no costado
And it already comes out mixed upE já sai entreverado
Between dust and smokeEntre a poeira e a fumaça
Oh, beautiful China!¡Óigale!, China lindaça!

Brunette of all climesMorena de toda a clina
Those from the Brazilian marketDessas da venta brasina
With the smell of lyeCom cheiro de lixiguana
That when you lift an eyelashQue quando ergue uma pestana
Even the night is illuminatedAté a noite se ilumina

A mix of devil and saintMisto de diaba e de santa
And with the air of someone who owns itE com ares de quem é dona
And a taste of timeE um gosto de temporona
That brings water to the throatQue traz água na garganta
And I stuck to the percantaE eu me grudei na percanta

Same as a tick!O mesmo que um carrapato!
And the bagpiper was a mulattoE o gaiteiro era um mulato
That even played while sleepingQue até dormindo tocava
And the harmonica whinedE a gaita choramingava
How to date a catComo namoro de gato

The old harmonica groanedA gaita velha gemia
Sometimes I almost stoppedÀs vezes quase parava
Suddenly he woke upDe repente se acordava
And in a vanerão he got lost!E num vanerão se perdia!
And I against the soft skinE eu contra a pele macia

Of that dark bodyDaquele corpo moreno
I felt the world was smallSentia o mundo pequeno
Pumping, full of raptureBombeando, cheio de enlevo
Two eyes, clover flowersDois olhos, flores de trevo
With splashes of dewCom respingos de sereno

But all good things must come to an endMas o que é bom se termina
An old saying has come trueCumpriu-se um velho ditado
I, who danced alongEu, que dançava embalado
In the sweet arms of ChinaNos braços doces da China
I heard it fleetinglyEscutei de relancina

A kind of neighUma espécie de relincho
He was the owner of the gossipEra o dono do bochincho
Half octave in a cornerMeio oitavado num canto
Who looked at me with astonishmentQue me olhava com espanto
More serious than a capinchMais sério do que um capincho

It was he who cameFoi ele que se veio
Well, if the pinguancha was hisPois, se era dele a pinguancha
Huffing and puffingBufando e abrindo cancha
As owner of the rodeoComo dono do rodeio
I wanted to break myself in halfQuis me partir pelo meio

With a dagger heelCo'um talonaço de adaga
If he catches me, he'll ruin me!Que se me pega, me estraga!
It even raised a speck!Chegou a levantar um cisco!
But it's not for nothing, chomiscoMas não é à toa, chomisco
That I'm from São Luiz Gonzaga!Que sou de São Luiz Gonzaga!

Middle in the crook of the armMeio na curva do braço
I managed to get the butcher outEu consegui tirar o talho
But I almost got in troubleMas quase que me atrapalho
Because there was little spacePorque havia pouco espaço
But I felt the heat of the steelMas senti o calor do aço

And the heat of the steel burns!E o calor do aço arde!
I got up without fanfareMe levantei sem alarde
Because of the insultPor causa do desaforo
And I released my bull brandE soltei meu marca-touro
In a dreadfulNum medonho
Good afternoonBuenas tardes

I have seen ugly thingsEu tenho visto cosa feia
I have seen JewishnessTenho visto judiaria
But today it still gives me goosebumpsMas hoje ainda me arrepia
Remembering that fightLembrando aquela peleia
Maybe whoever hears it won't believe itTalvez quem ouça não creia

But I saw it being born, in the neckMas vi nascer, no pescoço
From the Indian with the loud roarDo índio do berro grosso
Like a red ribbonComo uma cinta vermelha
And from the lip to the earE desde o beiço até a orelha
The bone was flashing!Ficou relampeando o osso!

The Indian was a bull IndianO índio era um índio touro
But even a bull kneels!Mas até touro se ajoelha!
Cut from lip to earCortado do beiço à orelha
It piled up like a leatherAmontoou-se como um couro
And, friends, it was a blastE, amigos, foi um estouro

One of those that was scary!Daqueles que dava medo!
The chinaredo was shockedEspantou-se o chinaredo
And that was a joke!E aquilo foi uma zoada!
It even looked like a mareParecia até uma eguada
Shooting in a meadowDisparando num varzedo

There is no one to paint the portraitNão há quem pinte o retrato
A roar when it burstsDum bochincho quando estoura
Dagger and spur clangsTinidos de adaga, espora
And shouts of contemptE gritos de desacato
Forty-four screamsBerros de quarenta-e-quatro

From every corner of the roomDe cada canto da sala
And the old baguala harmonicaE a velha gaita baguala
In a slow vanNum vanerão pacholento
Doing follow-upFazendo acompanhamento
From the bullet turumbamba!Do turumbamba de bala!

It's China that's getting messed upÉ China que se escabela
Swirling at the doorRedemoinhando na porta
And crooked guampa xiruE xiru-da-guampa-torta
That comes straight to the windowQue vem, direito, à janela
In a scream from the top of your lungsNum grito de toda goela

In a maddening screamNum berreiro alucinante
The Indian who does not guarantee himselfO índio que não se garante
Seeing blood, he is terrifiedVendo sangue, se apavora
And if you send it out of the fieldE se manda campo fora
Taking it all forward!Levando tudo por diante!

I am a believer in divinityEu sou crente na divindade
I will die when God wantsMorro quando o Deus quiser
But, friends, if I sayMas, amigos, se eu disser
It's even dangerously trueAté periga verdade
In that barbarityNaquela barbaridade

Fleeing from ChinaredoDe chinaredo fugindo
Of screams and bullets whizzing byDe grito e bala zunindo
The bagpiper oblivious to everythingO gaiteiro alheio a tudo
He played a clinudo xotesTocava um xotes clinudo
Almost half asleep already!Já quase meio dormindo!

And things went like thisE a coisa ia indo assim
I balanced the situationBalanceei a situação
Now almost out of ammoJá quase sem munição
And everybody shooting at meE todos atirando em mim
What would be my end?Qual ia ser o meu fim?

I suddenly realizedEu me dei conta de repente
I will not stay for seedEu não vou ficar pra semente
But I like to travel the world!Mas gosto de andar no mundo!
They were waiting for me at the backMe esperavam lá nos fundo
I walked out the front doorEu saí na porta da frente

And from there, I took to the bushE, dali, eu ganhei o mato
Below shootingAbaixo de tiroteio
I could still hear the flourishAinda escutava o floreio
From the mulatto's accordionDa cordeona do mulato
And, to make a long story shortE, pra encurtar o relato

I went over to the other sideEu me bandeei pra o outro lado
I swam across UruguayCruzei o Uruguai a nado
That my zaino was a capinchoQue o meu zaino era um capincho
And the story of this ruckusE a história deste bochincho
It's part of my pastFaz parte do meu passado

What about China?E a China?

This question is asked to meEssa pergunta me é feita
Every time I reciteEm cada vez que eu declamo
It's something I complain aboutÉ uma cosa que eu reclamo
And I think it's even an insultE acho que é até uma desfeita
I don't think it's rightAcho que não é direita

And I can't even understand itE até entender nem consigo
I, in fearful dangerEu, no medonho perigo
From a Brazilian situationDuma situação brasina
Everyone asks about ChinaTodos perguntam da China
And nobody cares about me!E ninguém se importa comigo!

And China, I never saw it againE a China, eu nunca mais vi
In my gauderia I walkNo meu gauderiar andejo
I only see her in my dreamsSomente em sonhos a vejo
In a barbaric frenzyNum bárbaro frenesi
Maybe it's out thereTalvez ande por aí

In the rodeo of the heightsNo rodeio das alçadas
Or maybe, in the early hours of the morningOu talvez, nas madrugadas
Be a xirua starSeja uma estrela xirua
Those who bathe nakedDessas que se banha nua
In the mirror of watersNo espelho das aguadas