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TRUE BLUE HANDCUFFED CARIOCA
Millôr Fernandes
Carlos Lyra's most recent Record, Carioca de Algema, taken from one of the 14 lyrics I wrote with him for the musical, Memoirs of a Militia Sergeant. As the famous distich at the door of the ABL affirms, "this is the glory that remains, elevates, honors and consoles". I am, of course, referring to being a partner of Carlinhos. Seeing that, with Vinícius de Moraes, he composed - and put composition in this! - one of the greatest partnerships of Brazilian popular music, only comparable to that of Tom with, again, Vinícius. And, unquestionably, Carlinhos is the cornerstone, the foundation, the structure, the facade, the summit and the fireworks of the inauguration of Bossa Nova - together with Menescal, Tom, Vinícius and João Gilberto.
In addition to them, one cannot forget, of course, Nara (*) and her knees, Ronaldo Bôscoli (the Comet), Chico Feitosa (Chico End-of-Night), Silvinha Telles, Baden Powell and Newton Mendonça (who died early but left among the icons of B.N. - Desafinado). As the deceased Ibrahim Sued would say - what a triumvation!
(*) In whose house, according to Ruy Castro, Bossa Nova began. Carlinhos and I are certain that Bossa Nova was born in the house of Bené Nunes, in Gávea, where the world of carioca music came and went without asking leave. Bené's house stayed open till dawn and on into the next day until the last client left.
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Merely as a short historical-mythological addendum, I research and remember that it was with the music of his lire that Anfion created Thebes. Also with the lire, Arion enchanted the porpoises. When they tried to drown him, the porpoises carried the boat and placed it in Tenario, safe and sound. Hercules learned to play the lire with Linus. But, irritated at being failed at the end of the course, he broke his instrument over the head of the maestro who dropped dead where he fell. Orpheus, no one ignores, was the greatest on the instrument - he bewitched even the infernal gods with the sound of his lire. The mountains walked to him and the rivers stopped to listen.
Moral of the story: no one is impunably Lyra.
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