Portugal 2011: Homens Da Luta
Posted 26 March, 2011 - 22:15 by Virginia López
Artist name:
Homens Da Luta (Men of the Struggle)Song title:
Luta É Alegria (The Struggle is Joy)Song writer(s):
Vasco Duarte / JelYear:
2011Language:
PortugueseCountry:
PortugalStarting position semi-final 1:
16Rank in semi-final 1:
18Points in semi-final 1:
22About the song:
Luta É Alegria was a controversial choice for some this year. It is a folk song with a marching rhythm which was so fashionable in the late 70s. The song is inspired by the tradition of collective singing and it refers to the struggle that the people must endure to have their voices heard, by shouting and celebrating on the street. It calls for the union of the people, and to sing against reaction. It is such a street chant.
About the participant:
Homens da Luta is a Portuguese improvisational comedy and musical street show, composed of brothers Vasco Duarte and Nuno Duarte "Jel" who are the composer and the lyricist of the song respectively. Their songs are inspired by songs sung during and after the 1974 democratic revolution, and the characters played are caricatures of the revolutionary singers of that time. They often use the term "struggle" to invoke the slogans that became famous during the revolutionary era. They appeared for the first time on television five years ago in a comedy show and they have been travelling through the cities and villages of Portugal spreading their music and their sense of humour. Also, they edited an mp3 album called A Canção é Uma Arma consisting of 14 themes and one of their most popular songs is E o povo, pá? In 2010, Homens da Luta took part in the RTP Song Festival, integrating the list for the online voting, with the song Luta assim não dá. Nonetheless their song was disqualified for failing to follow the rules of the Festival da Cançao and the Eurovision Song Contest.
About the selection:
The 47th edition of the Festival da Canção 2011 was used to select Portugal's entry in the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest. The Portuguese broadcaster RTP selected internally 21 acts but from these 21, only 12 competed for the honour of representing their country in Düsseldorf. The Portuguese audience decided who were the 12 lucky finalists via an internet vote. The Portuguese national selection process provided much interest this year which a close online voting process followed by a tight national final. After all 20 juries from the Portuguese regions had attributed points to their favourites, Homens Da Luta were far from winning the competition (6 points from the juries), but the televote largely favoured them. In the combined result they won with a margin of just one point in front of Nuno Norte and his song São os Barcos de Lisboa. Since the group are comedians and not singers, and because their victory was also based on popular support rather than the selected jury, there were some negative reactions to their win.
Lyrics:
Por vezes dás contigo desanimado
Por vezes dás contigo a desconfiar
Por vezes dás contigo sobressaltado
Por vezes dás contigo a desesperar
De noite ou de dia
A Luta é alegria
E o povo avança
É na rua a gritar
De pouco vale o cinto sempre apertado
De pouco vale andar a lamuriar
De pouco vale um ar sempre carregado
De pouco vale a raiva p´ra te ajudar
De noite ou de dia
A Luta é alegria
E o povo avança
É na rua a gritar
Traz o pão, traz o queijo, traz o vinho
Vem o velho, vem o novo e o menino
Vem celebrar esta situação
E vamos cantar contra a reacção
Traz o pão, traz o queijo, traz o vinho
Vem o velho, vem o novo e o menino
Não falta quem te avise: vai com cuidado
Não falta quem te queira mandar calar
Não falta quem te deixe ressabiado
Não falta quem te venda o próprio ar
De noite ou de dia
A Luta é alegria
E o povo avança
É na rua a gritar
Traz o pão, traz o queijo, traz o vinho
Vem o velho, vem o novo e o menino
Vem celebrar esta situação
E vamos cantar contra a reacção
Traz o pão, traz o queijo, traz o vinho
Vem o velho, vem o novo e o menino
English translation of the lyrics:
Sometimes you find yourself feeling blue
Sometimes you find yourself feeling wary
Sometimes you find yourself feeling alarmed
Sometimes you find yourself feeling dispair
Night or day
The struggle is joy
And people only go forward
Shouting in the streets
There’s no point in tightening the belt
There’s no point in complaining
There’s no point in frowning
And rage is pointless, it won’t help you
Night or day
The struggle is joy
And people only go forward
Shouting in the streets
Bring on the bread, bring on the cheese, bring on the wine
The old will come, the young will come, the boy will come
Come celebrate this situation
And let us sing against reaction
Bring on the bread, bring on the cheese, bring on the wine
The old will come, the young will come, the boy will come
Many people advise you to watch out
Many people wish to silence you
Many people want you to feel resentful
Many people want to sell you the air itself
Night or day
The struggle is joy
And people only go forward
Shouting in the streets
Bring on the bread, bring on the cheese, bring on the wine
The old will come, the young will come, the boy will come
Come celebrate this situation
And let us sing against reaction
Bring on the bread, bring on the cheese, bring on the wine
The old will come, the young will come, the boy will come
Video:
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