'Grândola, Vila Morena': 50 years after Carnation Revolution song

Lisbon, Apr 23 (EFE) - 'Grândola, Vila Morena' is the undisputed anthem of the Portuguese Carnation Revolution, but an anecdote from its history has gone unnoticed: the idea of using a song on the radio as a signal for the uprising that ended the dictatorship 50 years ago was inspired by Chile.

At 00:20 on 25 April 1974, Rádio Renascença broadcast the song composed and performed by Zeca Afonso, after its announcer recited the first verse ("Grândola, Vila Morena. Land of fraternity. The people are the ones who command the most. Within you, city").

CAMERA: CARLOTA CIUDAD

FOOTAGE OF THE 25 DE ABRIL ASSOCIATION IN LISBON, PORTUGAL. SOUNDBITES OF NAVAL OFFICER CARLOS DE ALMADA CONTREIRAS:

"I had been in Madrid a few days before, at Easter 1974, and a young man, a former friar who came from Chile, who had been exiled from Chile, gave me a book already published by the dictatorship of (Augusto) Pinochet. Pinochet's coup had taken place in September 1973 and the book had already come out. He managed to leave Chile, he went to Spain. And at that Easter, among friends, I met him, and he gave me that book, because he had brought the whole question of a military coup from Chile".


2. "There was something about the Chilean democratic forces before the 73 coup, that they had a plan to warn if there was an exit of forces because they had already heard things against democracy. And how did they do that? They broadcast a sequence of songs by well-known singer-songwriters and that sequence, which was defined in that plan, meant that there was a military movement. And that's when the spark went off a bit."

3."
There was no debate, it was decided under the Santa Justa elevator at half past one in the afternoon, something like that. Standing up, without ceremony. It was really decided like that. Because I knew Zeca Afonso, I knew the song very well. The song actually has quite a strong, progressive message, it still does. It was a song that very much reflected the Alentejo, where I'm from. But anyway, anyway, fundamentally the great message was Grândola, Vila Morena, land of brotherhood, etc. That weighed, obviously it did. But I repeat, it was a song that I knew quite well and that accompanied me a lot in our meetings, which were already many, and had been going on for quite some time".


4. "It means that it really was an excellent choice. In fact, a choice for the future, and that was really important. It's a song that continues to make a mark all over the world, even more than the movement, which is known. And it's not by chance that we are here in this interview and rather than talking about the movement we are practically talking only about 'Grândola'."