O Leilão da Casa da Mariquinhas

I saw this in the same compilation as yesterday’s. The style is a bit lighter. The singers are Fernando Maurício (left) and Francisco Martinho (right). For me, the best thing is the staring match between the guy on the portuguese guitar and the guy on the vanilla guitar. Neither of those lads is backing down.

The song seems to date from the thirties or forties, when a song with a similar name – A Casa da Mariquinhas – was written by João Silva Tavares and sung by Alfredo Marceneiro. It tells the story of a house with shutters on the windows, which we are meant to understand is a brothel, and it was so popular it inspired a whole lot of similar songs about whorehouses. This is one, and it talks about the auction held after the closure of the house. Oh no! So I’ve listened to the sequel without hearing the original!

There’s a lot more background on this page if you want to know more.

Portuguese	English
Ninguém sabe dizer nada Da formosa Mariquinhas* A casa foi leiloada Venderam-lhe as tabuinhas	Nobody knew how to say anything About the beautiful Mariquinhas The house was auctioned They even sold the shutters
Ainda fresca e com gajé Encontrei na Mouraria A antiga Rosa Maria E o Chico do Cachené Fui-lhes falar, já se vê E perguntei-lhes de entrada Pela Mariquinhas, coitada	Still cool and with swagger I met in the Mouraria Old lady Rosa Maria And Chico do Cachené I went to speak to them, as you see And asked them right away About poor Mariquinhas
Respondeu-me o Chico: E vê-la? Tenho querido saber dela Ninguém sabe dizer nada As outras suas amigas A Clotilde, a Júlia, a Alda A Inês, a Berta, a Mafalda E as outras mais raparigas Aprendiam-lhe as cantigas As mais ternas, coitadinhas Formosas como andorinhas Olhos e peitos em brasa Que pena tenho da casa Da formosa Mariquinhas!	And Chico replied: And to see her? I was wanting to know about her Nobody knew how to say anything Her other friends Clotilde, Júlia, Alda Inês, Berta, Mafalda And some other girls They learned her songs The most tender ones, poor things Beautiful as swallows Eyes like black coals I feel such pity for the house Of beautiful Mariquinhas
Então o Chico apertado Com perguntas, explicou-se A vizinhança zangou-se Fez um abaixo-assinado Diziam que havia fado Ali, até madrugada E a pobre foi intimada A sair; foi posta fora E por mor duma penhora A casa foi leiloada	Then Chico, eager To ask questions, explained The neighbourhood got angry And started a petition They said there was fado There until the small hours And the poor woman was summoned To leave; she was put out And for the sake of a foreclosure The house was auctioned
O Chico fora ao leilão Arrematou a guitarra O espelho, a colcha com barra O cofre-forte e o fogão	Chico, outside the auction Bid for the guitar The mirror, the striped duvet The safe and the stove
Como não houve cambão Porque eram coisas mesquinhas Trouxe um par de chinelinhas O alvará e as bambinelas E até das próprias janelas Venderam-lhe as tabuinhas	Since there was no change because they’re trivial things He took a pair of slippers The license and the awning And from the windows themselves They sold him the shutters

Mariquinhas seems to be a woman’s name here, but generally speaking mariquinhas is a diminutive of maricas, meaning sissy or effeminate, so probably to be used with care.