Claridad – the story of a song I’ve never heard before

I love airports, the anticipation of what awaits me at the end of a long journey, but I hate flying. The emotional part of my brain tells me this may be the last time I am alive and whole, and by setting foot on this majestic and cold machine that can magically transport me to a place I’ve been missing for years, I run the risk of not making it there. But still, it’s a risk I must take and I always do wondering what if.
Once comfortably installed in the small space I am allowed to occupy during this journey, I try to take my mind off the macabre thoughts swirling in my head, and with the help of music or movies, forget that I am so far away from the safe feeling of having my own two feet firmly planted on the ground.

Saudade_(Thievery_Corporation_album)_cover I vaguely remember hearing about Thievery Corporation. Maybe I even listened to some of their songs before. I have no recollection of that now. What I do know is that the moment I listened to Claridad and the suave voice singing in well rounded words, dripping notes of tranquility into my soul, I fell in love. It was a love I haven’t felt in years, not since I was a teenager and lay down on my parents’ bed listening to a big old cassette player that sometimes used to choke on the flimsy brown tape, the lights off, my eyes closed, letting the music envelope me in a cocoon of safety. It’s a love made of the sweetness of the moment and the bitterness of knowing it will never have the same effect as the time goes by. And after listening to Claridad for countless times, I thought this may, after all, not be a bad way to cease being – dissolving into nothingness, listening to the divine sound of love.

Claridad is one of the thirteen songs on the album Saudade (2014), a word used to describe “a feeling of longing, melancholy, or nostalgia that is supposedly characteristic of the Portuguese or Brazilian temperament”. Thank you, Google.
Please listen to it when you have the time and tell me how it made you feel. I’d love to know.

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16 Responses to Claridad – the story of a song I’ve never heard before

  1. M-----l says:

    I almost bought Saudade a few months ago because I liked the cover art. I still see it at the record store every time I’m there. It sort of calls out to me, but I’ve somehow managed to resist. Maybe that’ll change next time.

    • Delia says:

      Hi M,
      The cover art is beautiful, I agree. I hope you get to listen to it. Your comment reminded me I forgot to add the YouTube link where you can listen to the full album. All done now.

  2. Vishy says:

    Beautiful post, Delia! I listened to the whole album a few times and loved it. It is definitely one of my favourite music discoveries of the year. Thank you 🙂 ‘Claridad’ is definitely a haunting song and it might probably be the perfect musical expression of ‘Saudade’. I loved the cover art too. I am hoping to get the CD too so that I can play it on repeat mode at home 🙂

    • Delia says:

      I’m glad you love it too, Vishy. You may be right about “Claridad” being the perfect expression of “Saudade”. “Depth of My Soul” is somehow similar. “Bateau Rouge” is also great but a bit more lively. Yes, “Claridad” is definitely the best. I love how it’s such a melange of voices and languages but the spirit of the album is reflected in each of them.
      I hope you get the CD. I know I’ve listened to this album quite a few times and will definitely listen to it some more.

  3. Brian Joseph says:

    I listened to several of the songs. She is very impressive. I agree that she conveys something sad, and she does it in a special way. I understood why you were so impressed.

    I defiantly remember that feeling from my teens of discovering a new musician. My first finds were also on cassette.

    • Delia says:

      Hi Brian,
      So glad to know you enjoyed it too. There are quite a few songs that are truly amazing. At first I thought it was the same singer but apparently it’s not. Still, it doesn’t detract from the mood or the tone of the album.
      There were no CDs when I was young. I still have some cassette tapes. Soon we’ll only see them in museums.

  4. Deb Atwood says:

    Wow! I had never heard of this artist. Claridad is such an interesting blend of nostalgic and tech. I love the haunting tones echoed with the tech background that create such an eerie mood.

    I’m glad you were able to re-discover something from your past and fall in love again! I second your dislike of the tiny flying space–except when I’m immersed in a book I never want to stop reading.

    • Delia says:

      Hi Deb,
      I’m very happy to have helped spread the news about this wonderful album. I agree with you on the interesting blend – that voice is absolutely divine…

      It was so strange, when I got to this song I felt like the years just fell away and I was a teenager again; I am always amazed by the way some things trigger emotions and memories I haven’t felt or thought about in years.
      I had high hopes of reading a lot on this trip but my Kindle remained untouched- for some weird reason (stress maybe) I could not focus on a story.

  5. Caroline says:

    I like it a great deal. I own a few CDs like this. It’s quite typically French. 🙂

  6. TB Markinson says:

    Very enjoyable. And I’m with you, I freak out when I fly. The whole hurtling through the sky in a metal tube doesn’t make sense to me. It’s one of the reason I always try to fall asleep right away. The other reason is flying makes me ill. I love to travel, but the process of getting places is difficult.

  7. Delia says:

    Hi TB,
    I’m glad you like it. It’s very soothing, isn’t it?
    I wish I could sleep but if I manage an hour or two out of ten I’m lucky.
    I love to travel as well, preferably by train. It relaxes me.
    Thanks for dropping by.

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  9. Eduardo says:

    A great, amazing track, beautiful vocals and smooth music, a modern stunning bolero…

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