Novos Baianos – É Ferro na Boneca (1970)

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OS NOVOS BAIANOS
“É Ferro na Boneca”
RGE (XRLP-5.340)

1. “Ferro na boneca” – 2:02
2. “Eu de Adjetivos” – 3:01
3. “Outro mambo, outro mundo” – 2:45
4. “Colégio de Aplicação” – 4:11
5. “A Casca de banana que eu Pisei” – 2:20
6. “Dona Nita e Dona Helena” – 2:30
7. “Se eu quiser eu compro Flores” – 3:17
8. “E o samba me traiu” – 2:05
9. “Baby Consuelo” – 2:02
10. “Tangolete” – 2;21
11. “Curto de véu e Grinalda” – 2:28
12. “Juventude Sexta e Sábado” – 2:54
13. “De Vera” – 2:50

Novos Baianos

* Pepeu Gomes – guitarra
* Paulinho Boca de Cantor – vocal, percussão
* Baby Consuelo – vocal, percussão
* Moraes Moreira – violão, vocal, letras

with supporting band “* A Cor do Som” (Jorginho Gomes, Dadi)
* Luiz Galvão – letras
———————————-

This is a very heavily Tropicália-laden album from Novos Baianos (at this point in time called Os Novos Bahianos), and pretty extremely different from what they would become known for in their masterpiece follow-up, ‘Acabou Chorare’. In fact when I compare it to their next few albums I find I don’t think this is really that good.. The song “Tangolete” is almost the only thing here that sounds like it would have fit on their next couple records, and this is only a *maybe* and definitely not with the arrangement used here. But if it was from anyone else I would say its a pretty good Brazilian psych-rock album with some good arrangements and interesting instrumentation. Collectors of obscure ‘world’ psychedelia should love this. Fans more familiar with their transformation after their “encounters” with João Gilberto will doubtless like it but maybe more as a footnote to their other work. In other words, this is a historically important album but mileage may vary depending on how groovy you are or whether or not you need regrooving.

The title track leading off this album is pure Tropicália and would fit comfortably in between any of the tracks on Caetano’s first or Gal Costa’s first two albums. The track is, just as the title would imply, a lusophile mambo with some overwrought singing. The horn arrangments by H.L. Fietta really jump out and call your attention on this track. Both because they are some first-rate horn arrangements, and also because you might have noticed at this point that you will never again hear a Novos Baianos album with orchestration that is so prominent, with hippy-jazz flutes and real-jazz saxophones peppering the mix like day-glo axeita de dendê. Same with the following cut, Colégia de Aplicação. “A Casca de Banana que eu Pisei” is a fairly straight forward baião about slipping on banana peels, not much to say here. The tune “Baby Consuelo” is just plain annoying, but of course you may feel differently. Once again, the track “Tangolete” has something of the cadence of later compositions by Morais Morreira, but you might notice there is no *band* here as far as the Baianos are concerned — the arrangement is entirely made up of the orchestra and a lone bandoneón played by… somebody. The fact that this is the most memorable song on this album highlights the main problem I have with it — Most of these songs just kind of drift in one ear and out the other. Even if you find yourself digging it, you will be hard pressed to remember any of the melodies afterwards, which is a strong contrast to all of their later work. In spite of the hyperbolic liner notes from Augusto de Campos which assert that these songs are “100% in the rhythm of our musical revolution,” this is the sound of a band finding its footing on its first full-length recording, and there were a lot more memorable releases coming out of Brazil in 1970 to overshadow this one. Still, it is well worth giving it a listen and having around. The closing song, “De Vera” is a good ‘un that rocks the groove with some nice echoplexed, distorted, wah-wah guitar that works well to distract from the trite lyrics from Gavão. It’s a good closing to the short chapter of this phase of the Baianos story.

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