Boi Lâmina Azul

I met the blue blade
On the Ipanema ranch
Son of a tough breed
Brought his fate with pride
Thick tail and sharp tip
And hooves the color of yolk

Rocky and stony ground
For him, it was a party
Well-built like a dove
He ran, never took a fall
Had a cross on his back
And seven stars on his forehead

Manuca from Ipanema
Called the cowboys from the south
From the Cariri of the backlands
Came the champion cowboy
But none dared to touch
The tail of the blue blade

Cowboys from everywhere
Gathered around there
But it didn’t yield results
The cowboy ran, scared
Died with his horse stuck
More blue blade wouldn’t fall

From famous Pernambuco
Came more than one clever cowboy
From Rio Grande do Norte
Faced death, the cowboy
Got tired but wasn’t lucky
To get close to him at all

A big black guy appeared
Looking like a foreman
Two meters tall
White boots, dark clothes
Either the devil in disguise
Or just looked too much

The black guy's horse
Was dark as well
Spent the night tied up
Near the cattle pen
And the black guy stood aside
Not talking to anyone

At four in the morning
The crew was already up
From the yard to the pens
There were too many cowboys
They went to check the animals
Saddle up and have coffee

Some ate cornmeal with milk
Others cheese and roasted meat
Some wanted hot coffee
Others drank hard liquor
A lot of people got fed
And only the black guy wanted nothing

The ranch cowboys
João Belo and José Maria
Dom Vital led the way
Walking hurriedly
Towards the east
Where the blue blade slept

When they got to the front
José Maria shouted
There goes the blue blade running
Saw the black guy blessing himself
And the horse looking
Like a hurricane pushed it

Then everyone charged
Where the black guy went
Leaving a trail
Of slums and thorny bushes
Mororó and aroeira
And angico branches on the ground

They kept dragging
Barbed wire fences that were there
Jumping over a full creek
Tearing through the woods
And the black guy screaming loud
That even the forest trembled

Ahead, half a league away
The bull was already tied up
And the black guy, dirty with mud
Mounted and entered the thicket
The blade lost its fame
And the black guy took the pasture

After the bull on the ranch
They noticed two signs
Another sign on one side
That the black guy had left
Saying: I'm in a hurry
And goodbye, see you never again