Manhã de Carnaval became one of the first compositions identified with Bossa Nova to gain popularity outside Brazil. Particularly in the United States, the song is considered to be one of the most important Brazilian Jazz/Bossa songs that helped establish the Bossa Nova movement in the late 1950s. Manhã de Carnaval has become a jazz standard in the USA, while it is still performed regularly by a wide variety of musicians around the world in its vocalized version or just as an instrumental one. In the United States, the song is also known as "A Day in the Life of a Fool", "Carnival", "Theme from Black Orpheus", or simply "Black Orpheus". In France, the song is also known as "La Chanson d'Orphée". The song is also known by the Spanish title "Mañana de Carnaval". All versions of foreign texts were written by lyricists other than Antônio Maria, using Bonfá's original music.

 

A day in the life of a fool,

a sad and a long lonely day

I walk the avenue,

and hope I'll run into

The welcome sight of you,

coming my way

 

I stop just across from your door,

but you're never home any more

So back to my room,

and there in the gloom

I cry tears of good bye

That's the way it will be every day in the life of fool