D major · Camelot 10B · 80 BPM
So danço samba
by Stan Getz
- 80
- BPM
- D major
- Key
- 10B
- Camelot
- 60
- Danceability
- 71
- Acousticness
"Só danço samba" was composed in 1962 by Antônio Carlos Jobim, with lyrics by Vinicius de Moraes. According to author Ruy Castro, the song came out of a failed attempt to invent a bossa nova dance, and Jobim wrote it without much conviction. João Gilberto reportedly shared the doubt, asking Jobim on first hearing it whether the number was a boogie-woogie. English lyrics were later added by Norman Gimbel, and the song has also circulated under the titles "Jazz 'n' Samba" and "I Only Dance Samba".
The song was first performed in August 1962 by João Gilberto and Os Cariocas at the Au Bon Gourmet restaurant in Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro. Castro described the bill as the bossa nova show to end all bossa nova shows, since it put Jobim, Gilberto, de Moraes and Os Cariocas on stage together for the first and only time. A few months later Gilberto and Os Cariocas sang it again in the Italian film Copacabana Palace (1962), appearing briefly on screen together.
Elza Laranjeira made the first recording, released as a single in October 1962. Stan Getz recorded the song twice, first with Luiz Bonfá for Jazz Samba Encore! (1963) under the title "Só Danço Samba (I Only Dance Samba)", and again with João Gilberto for Getz/Gilberto in 1964.
So danço samba runs at 80 BPM, the tempo of boom-bap hip-hop, reggae and slow R&B. In classical terms it sits in andante territory. A bar of 4/4 lasts 3 seconds, and a quarter-note delay is 750 ms. It is in D major, Camelot 10B, which shares its notes with B minor and mixes cleanly with G major and A major.
We use multiple sources as part of our online research for the song story including Wikipedia.