Tom Zé, the “Grande liquidação” and the perspective of the migrant in the narrative tradition of the paulistan song

Abstract

Here we should propose a lecture brightened by literature’s science about the lyrics from the disc “Grande Liquidação”, the debut album by the singer and composer Tom Zé. Taking as an almost conceptual album, will be consider in the purpose to make the songs as narratives around the city of São Paulo. From this context, Tom Zé stands between sites. His representations of the urban life communicate as someone born in the Brazilian state of Bahia who migrates to the metropolis, but acquires to himself the narrative tradition from the songs of São Paulo. This tradition shows as a trace back to old formations of the city early modern past which have as a legacy the chant narrative. So, we should proceed as listening the tracks with this context in mind, making the analysis by using the theories formulate by Walter Benjamin about the tradition and the narrative.