Portuguese singer and songwriter Jorge Palma dies at 76

Portuguese singer-songwriter Jorge Palma died this Monday at the age of 76, his family announced in a message on social media.

"It is with deep sorrow and consternation that Jorge Palma's family and agency announce his death, which occurred on Monday night, at the age of 76, following a cardiorespiratory arrest," the musician's family said.

In what they describe as a moment of "immeasurable pain", his wife, Rita Tomé, his sons, Vicente and Francisco Palma, and his agents, André Sebastião and Tiago Branco, asked that Jorge Palma be remembered through what best defined him: his songs and his words. The family also thanked all the expressions of friendship they have received over the years.

The family also recalled that Jorge Palma, whose career spanned 54 years, "leaves behind a remarkable body of work that forms part of the history" of Portuguese music, as well as "many friends around the world, people he won over with his generosity and brilliance".

Born in Lisbon in 1950, Jorge Palma entered the world of music at an early age, becoming one of the most influential singers and songwriters in contemporary Portuguese music. He began taking classes at the age of six and, four years later, enrolled at the Lisbon Music Conservatory.

At 14 he decided to abandon classical music to devote himself to pop-rock, embarking on a path that would cut across several generations.

Before performing under his own name, he played in the band Sindicato, which took part in the first edition of the Vilar de Mouros Festival in 1971, and in Black Boys. At the same time, he began working in areas such as composition, orchestration and recording.

In 1972, when he was just 22, he released his first solo single, "The Nine Billion Names of God". Shortly afterwards he was called up for military service, but chose to leave Portugal and settle in Denmark.

It was only in 1974, after the 25 April revolution, that he returned to Portugal, began working as an orchestrator and, the following year, released his first album, "Como uma viagem na palma da mão".

Over the course of his career, he released a further 13 albums of original material. For Jorge Palma, each record worked as a snapshot of a particular phase of his life. In an interview with Lusa in 2022, he explained that the people he related to, the places he lived, his daily life, and what he listened to and read ended up leaving different marks on each album.

In the 1980s, he resumed his piano studies at the conservatory, which he completed in 1990. The following year came "Só", a project in which he revisited, on solo piano, songs from his albums of the previous two decades, becoming the first compilation of his career.

The 1990s opened up new horizons. Jorge Palma formed Palma's Gang alongside Zé Pedro and Kalu of Xutos & Pontapés, and Flak and Alex Cortez of Rádio Macau. He composed for theatre and for other artists and joined the project Rio Grande. After a decade of multiple experiences, he returned to original studio albums with "É proibido fumar" in 2001.

"Norte" (2004), "Voo nocturno" (2007) and "Com todo o respeito" (2011) followed. His most recent – and final – album, "Vida", was released in 2023.

Over the years, his work received several awards. In 2002, he was awarded the José Afonso Prize for the album "Jorge Palma". Ten years later, he won the first edition of the Pedro Osório Prize, awarded by the Portuguese Society of Authors, with "Com todo o respeito".

In 2020, at the end of a concert marking his 70th birthday, he was honoured by Lisbon City Council with the cultural merit medal. That same year, he was decorated by the then President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, as a Commander of the Order of Infante D. Henrique.

In April this year, Jorge Palma received the Career Award at the 8th PLAY – Portuguese Music Awards, granted by decision of the board of Audiogest, the body that represents and manages the rights of multinational, national and independent record labels.