“Bastidores” (Cauby Peixoto, 1980)

Source: Ana Nascimento/ABr, CC BY 3.0 BR <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/br/deed.en>, via Wikimedia Commons

Today’s translation is a little bit of a deep dive: although the song is from 1980, the artist and his music are more associated with several decades earlier. Cauby Peixoto, who would have turned 95 today, was perhaps as well known for his mannerisms and hairstyles as he was for his voice. He actually had a short career in the US, performing under the names Ron Coby and Coby Dijon. “Bastidores” by Chico Buarque was one of his two big hits (the samba “Conceição” being the other).

Listen to the song
Listen to the Anvil playlist
(now, to celebrate Carnaval this month, including all 145 songs translated here back to February 2023)

“Bastidores”
Chorei, chorei, até ficar com dó de mim
E me tranquei no camarim
Tomei um calmante, um excitante e um bocado de gim

Amaldiçoei o dia em que te conheci
Com muitos brilhos me vesti
Depois me pintei, me pintei, me pintei, me pintei

Cantei, cantei, como é cruel cantar assim
E num instante de ilusão
Te vi pelo salão a caçoar de mim

Não me troquei, voltei correndo ao nosso lar
Voltei pra me certificar
Que tu nunca mais vais voltar, vais voltar, vais voltar

Cantei, cantei, nem sei como eu cantava assim
Só sei que todo cabaré
Me aplaudiu de pé quando cheguei ao fim

Mas não bisei, voltei correndo ao nosso lar
Voltei pra me certificar
Que tu nunca mais vais voltar, vais voltar, vais voltar

Cantei, cantei, jamais cantei tão lindo assim
E os homens lá pedindo bis
Bebâdos e febris à se rasgar por mim

Chorei, chorei até ficar com dó de mim

“Backstage”
I cried, I cried, until I felt sorry for me
And locked in my dressing room
I took a sedative, an upper and a slug of gin

I cursed the day I met you
Dressed myself with lots of sparkles
Then I glammed up, glammed up, glammed up, glammed up

I sang, I sang, how cruel it is to sing like this
And in a moment of illusion
I saw you across the ballroom teasing me

I didn’t change, I went running back to our home
I went back to make sure
That you never again will return, will return, will return

I sang, I sang, I don’t even know how I sang like that
I just know that every cabaret
Gave me a standing ovation when I got to the end

But I gave no encore, I went running back to our home
I went back to make sure
That you never again will return, will return, will return

I sang, I sang, I never sang as lovely as that
And the men there wanting an encore
Drunk and feverish shredding themselves for me

I cried, I cried, until I felt sorry for me