"Grândola, Vila Morena" (English: Grândola, Swarthy Town) is a Portuguese song by singer-songwriter José Afonso, recorded in 1971. It was originally released in Afonso's 1971 album Cantigas do Maio and later released in an EP of the same name in 1973, and as a single in 1977.
"Grândola, Vila Morena" became an iconic song in Portugal after being used as a radio-broadcast signal by the Portuguese Armed Forces Movement during their military coup operation on the morning of 25 April 1974, which led to the Carnation Revolution and the transition to democracy in Portugal. It has since been considered a symbol of the revolution and anti-fascism.
Composition and structure
José Afonso was inspired to write a song about the town of Grândola after performing at the Sociedade Musical Fraternidade Operária Grandolense, a working-class musical fraternity in Grândola, on 17 May 1964. Afonso created the lyrics and melody while driving back home from Grândola. In the car with him were guitarists Carlos Paredes and Fernando Alvim.
"Grândola, Vila Morena" is an a cappella song, sung in the style of cante alentejano, which tells about the fraternity among the people of Grândola, a town in the Alentejo region of Portugal. Each quatrain of the song is first sung solo, and is followed by a quatrain that repeats the same lines in reverse order, this time sung by a choir.
Recording
The recording of the album Cantigas do Maio, in which "Grândola, Vila Morena" was included, took place at the Strawberry Studio in Château d'Hérouville, in Hérouville, France, in October 1971. It was arranged and produced by José Mário Branco, another famous Portuguese singer-songwriter of canções de intervenção (Portuguese protest songs), whom Afonso had met and befriended in 1969, in France. The state censorship still operated in the event, and Afonso was forbidden from performing some of his songs with more political messages, such as "Venham Mais Cinco" and "A Morte Saiu à Rua". "Grândola, Vila Morena", however, was not seen as a subversive song and was allowed to be performed.
Two signals were then decided: the first would be Paulo de Carvalho's "E Depois do Adeus" (which was the Portuguese entry in the Eurovision Song Contest of 1974) and the second would be Afonso's "Grândola, Vila Morena". The plan was to transmit the first signal at 22:55 on 24 April, and the second signal between 00:00 and 01:00 on 25 April.
After the broadcasts, strategic points in Portugal were occupied by the MFA troops. The military coup operation was successful and resulted in the Carnation Revolution, which overthrew the dictatorship of the Estado Novo regime and marked the beginning of the transition to democracy in Portugal.
Legacy
left|thumb|Monument in [[Grândola in celebration of "Grândola, Vila Morena". The full score and lyrics are painted on the wall. ]]
Political legacy
"Grândola, Vila Morena" continues to be sung in celebrations of the Carnation Revolution every year in Portugal, on 25 April.
On 15 February 2013, Portuguese prime minister Pedro Passos Coelho was interrupted by a rendition of the song in the Assembly of the Republic (Portuguese Parliament). Protesters in the Assembly's public galleries, unhappy with the contemporary social and economic policies, expressed their discontent through the song.
In September 2020, protests against the Portuguese far-right party Chega in Évora were marked by crowds singing "Grândola, Vila Morena". Dulce Pontes, Roberto Leal, and UHF.
- A1: "Grândola, Vila Morena"
- A2: "Moda do Entrudo"
- B1: "Traz Outro Amigo Também"
- B2: "Carta a Miguel Djéje"
Grândola, Vila Morena (1977 single)
- A1: "Grândola, Vila Morena"
- B1: "Traz Outro Amigo Também"
See also
- Carnation Revolution
- Armed Forces Movement