Poems

by Amália Rodrigues, Jamie Rising (Translator), André Carrilho (Illustrator)

Amália Rodrigues (1920-1999), the most acclaimed fado singer of all time, was also a remarkable poet, even though it was only in the final years of her life that she decided to sing her own poetry consistently and authorized its publication. Amália’s poems, written in a popular vein but at the same time reflecting her deep understanding of some of the greatest poets of the Portuguese language, whose work she had sung throughout her career, cover a wide range of topics and emotions – from witty, good-humored wordplay to the idealized evocation of time-honured rural traditions, and to the dramatic expression of a profound sense of despair in the face of an unappealable sentence of constant inner anguish dictated by destiny. Thus, they capture in many ways the very essence of fado’s lyrical worldview, allowing us to better understand this uniquely Portuguese song that for the past two centuries has so captured and enshrined much of Portugal’s cultural identity and as such was inscribed by UNESCO on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The present volume contains all of her published poems, for the first time in a fully bilingual edition, with English translations by Jamie Rising, original illustrations by André Carrilho and a new critical introduction by fado’s foremost historian, Rui Vieira Nery. Amália Rodrigues (1920-1999), the most acclaimed fado singer of all time, was also a remarkable poet, even though it was only in the final years of her life that she decided to sing her own poetry consistently and authorized its publication. Amália’s poems, written in a popular vein but at the same time reflecting her deep understanding of some of the greatest poets of the Portuguese language, whose work she had sung throughout her career, cover a wide range of topics and emotions – from witty, good-humored wordplay to the idealized evocation of time-honured rural traditions, and to the dramatic expression of a profound sense of despair in the face of an unappealable sentence of constant inner anguish dictated by destiny. Thus, they capture in many ways the very essence of fado’s lyrical worldview, allowing us to better understand this uniquely Portuguese song that for the past two centuries has so captured and enshrined much of Portugal’s cultural identity and as such was inscribed by UNESCO on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The present volume contains all of her published poems, for the first time in a fully bilingual edition, with English translations by Jamie Rising, original illustrations by André Carrilho and a new critical introduction by fado’s foremost historian, Rui Vieira Nery.

*Bilingual Edition: Portuguese and English

Genres: Poetry

320 pages, Paperback

Published November 1, 2022

About the author

Amália Rodrigues (1920-1999) foi uma fadista, cantora e actriz portuguesa. Figura incontornável da História do Fado, é comummente aclamada como a voz de Portugal e uma das mais brilhantes cantoras do século XX.

Reviews

[Aliza Diop · Rating 4 out of 5]

tbh I’m basing this review on 60% content of the book and 40% on what the book means to me. I got this book in Porto on a whim (the sales lady spoke French and it had been 4 days since I had heard or spoken a language I could understand). It was my last day of my first solo travel trip and Porto was easily my favorite city that I visited while abroad, so in hindsight being convinced to buy a Portuguese poetry book, which I had zero knowledge about, seems more worth it now. I started reading it while still in Strasbourg and started to bring it everywhere with me after and it survived many journeys, including a monsoon. I’m honestly happy that I finished it after getting home. It was always a little reminder each time I picked up the book to read it after getting back home.

Amália Rodrigues is originally a Portuguese singer (she put fado on the map!), and I’m pretty sure all these poems were found and published after she passed away (correct me if I’m wrong). I started listening to her music while reading the poems about halfway through, and I will definitely go back and listen and read the first half again because the songs and the poems really go hand in hand. 1/3 of the poems correspond to her own songs, and the translator focused on keeping the original fado meter when translating the poems to English, so they can all be read in song with the original meter when in English which is just so super cool. However, even when there wasn’t a song matched to a poem, hearing the music made the reading experience better because the fados and the poems mirror each other. Her voice holds a sense of lament, and that is kind of the overshadowing emotion of this book. The translator’s main focus was always the “singability” of the poems, and they’ve done a very good job at it.

In terms of content, her poems cover so so much, but my favorites tended to center around childhood, love and losing love, sadness, and grief. This book opened me to new poetry and fado, and I’m very grateful for that wonderful sales lady in Porto. She sold me a cool book and a nice tote bag.

[Mehul · Rating 5 out of 5]

I saw that there were only two reviews, and just incase anyone is curious this is my favorite poetry book. It’s so clever, simple, meaningful, heartfelt, and varied. Get it, read it, love it

[Clara · Rating 4 out of 5]

"When the springtime came along

When the springtime came along
With the flowers that it gave
There was someone who brought some
To lay on my empty grave

When the springtime came on through
With the fragrances it brings
Just because it followed you
I got jealous of the spring

When the springtime came along
In my veins its flow I felt
With its sap it nurtured love
Now I think of nothing else

Springtime came but all the same
To hell with what springtime does
Springtime made me who I am
And no longer who I was"


"Hours of lifetime wasted

Hours of lifetime wasted
In the pursuit of living
No matter how you chase it
Some life is always missing

And who am I to know
And who am I to say
I don't know if I am
Or if I'm not but who
Could know that anyway

Even so I can sense
To know what I don't know
I sense I am and ain't
Through what I know and don't
This life of mine I've spent
Without life making sense

If only I could find
The rhymes or rhyme away
Oh if they could be rhymed
How many things I'd say"

[Angeliki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very nice edition of Amalia's Rodrigues lyrics. It's an even better experience to try and listen to the songs while reading the poems. Overall, a good introduction to Fado to prepare for a trip to Portugal or to remind yourself of it afterwards.

[paulatinamente · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Itzi · Rating 4 out of 5]

😭😭😭que bonito 😭😭😭😭😭