"Lambada", also known as "Chorando Se Foi (Lambada)" or "Llorando Se Fue (Lambada)" (both meaning 'crying [he/she] went away' in Portuguese and Spanish, respectively), is a song recorded by French-Brazilian pop group Kaoma. It featured guest vocals by Brazilian vocalist Loalwa Braz, and was released as the first single from Kaoma's debut album Worldbeat. The video, filmed on Cocos beach in the city of Trancoso, in the state of Bahia, Brazil, featured the Brazilian child duo Chico & Roberta.
The song in Portuguese was a mix cover of the 1986 hit "Chorando Se Foi" by Márcia Ferreira (with lyrics translated to Portuguese) and the Cuarteto Continental hit "Llorando Se Fue" (the first upbeat version of the song introducing the accordion), released in 1984 through the Peruvian record label INFOPESA and produced by Alberto Maravi; both songs were adapted from the 1981 Bolivian song "Llorando se fue" by Los Kjarkas.
At the time of release, "Lambada" was regarded as the most successful European single in the history of CBS Records, with sales of 1.8 million copies in France and more than 4 million across Europe. It is one of the greatest-selling singles of all time, having sold more than 5 million copies worldwide in 1989 alone. However, the Kaoma group did not credit the original song of the Kjarkas, turning their version into plagiarism and ending with a lawsuit that would be won by the original authors of the song, the Bolivian group.
LYRICS
Chorando se foi quem um dia só me fez chorar Chorando se foi quem um dia só me fez chorar Chorando estará ao lembrar de um amor Que um dia não soube cuidar Chorando estará ao lembrar de um amor Que um dia não soube cuidar A recordação vai estar com ele aonde for A recordação vai estar pra sempre aonde for Dança sol e mar, guardarei no olhar O amor faz perder e encontrar Lambando estarei ao lembrar que esse amor Por um dia, um instante foi rei A recordação vai estar com ele aonde for A recordação vai estar pra sempre aonde for Chorando estará ao lembrar de um amor Que um dia não soube cuidar Canção riso e dor, melodia de amor Um momento que fica no ar Dançando lambada