"Faroeste Caboclo" | ||||
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Single by Legião Urbana | ||||
from the album Que País É Este | ||||
Released | 1987 | |||
Genre |
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Length | 9:03 | |||
Label | EMI-Odeon | |||
Songwriter(s) | Renato Russo | |||
Producer(s) | Mayrton Bahia | |||
Legião Urbana singles chronology | ||||
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"Faroeste Caboclo" (English: Caboclo Western) is a song composed by Renato Russo and recorded by Brazilian rock band Legião Urbana. Written in 1979, the song was released in 1987 in the album Que País É Este.[1]
The song is a lengthy ballad, in the vein of Bob Dylan, that tells the story of João de Santo Cristo, a poor man from the Brazilian Northeast who moves to Brasília in search of a better life, gets involved in drug trafficking, briefly abandons the life of crime for the love of a woman and is finally murdered by a rival.[1]
Despite its unusual characteristics for a folk song (168 different lines, no chorus and 9 minutes of playing time), "Faroeste Caboclo" was a smash hit.
It is widely regarded as a Brazilian rock classic. A film adaptation was released in 2013.[2][3]