“Negro gato” (Luiz Melodia, 1980)
Source: 26° Prêmio da Música Brasileira, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
In honor of what would have been Luiz Melodia’s 74th birthday, a translation of his song “Negro Gato.” I was first introduced to this song by Marisa Monte and I have to admit I’m still somewhat partial to her version, but the song was written by Melodia for his 1980 album “Nós” (“Us”). And he brings something to it that Marisa can’t: the way one would normally say “black cat” in Portuguese is “gato negro” but the title of this song flips those words around. This could still just mean “black cat” but with am emphasis on the “blackness” being more inherent to the cat’s nature than simply its color. (Many adjectives before nouns in Portuguese change when they’re moved to the front of the noun they modify from being purely descriptive to being more emphatic, more literary, and more intrinsic to the the thing they are describing.) But “negro gato” could also mean that the word “gato” is now describing the noun “negro” (“Black man”). In this case, “gato” wouldn’t really mean “cat” anymore, but rather is describing someone physically attractive. This opens up a nice complexity of meaning to an otherwise seemingly simple song. I’ve tried to capture a little of both meanings in my translation.
“Black Cat”
I’m a scary black cat
This life of mine is really bitter
Really just mischief from one roof to another
I’m a black cat
I’m a fine Black man
I’ll tell you my sad story
And after you’ve heard it
I know you’ll cry
It’s been a long time
Since I’ve known a good meal
I’m a black cat
I’m a fine Black man
I have seven lives to live
I have seven chances to win
But if I don’t eat I’ll end up in the ditch
I’m a black cat
I’m a fine Black man
One day up on the hill
Woe is me
They wanted my skin for a drum
Terrified I disappeared into the woods
I’m a black cat
I’m a fine Black man