João Bosco – João Bosco
Original release 1973
2003 reissue RCA / BMG France 74321 965032
In 1972, João Bosco only had a split 7-inch single under his name as a recording artist, but the fact that the other side of that 7″ was from Tom Jobim should tell you the high regard he was held in even at this stage. That same year, Elis Regina would record her first Bosco/Blanc-authored song, Bala Por Pala, and songs from the prolific writing duo would feature prominently on her records for the rest of the decade. That song also appears here, on João Bosco’s debut album, in a version that is more exciting and, well, smoothly frenetic in a way that is distinctly Bosco’s.
João Bosco’s partnership with lyricist Aldir Blanc, who passed away just this year, from COVID-19*, yielding his most productive and enduring work. After they parted ways, Bosco’s songwriting on his own rarely reached the caliber that the two of them churned out with seemingly effortless regularity. This debut is a very engaging listen, with arrangements from Luiz Eça (Tamba Trio and other credits) and Rogério Duprat, who worked most famously with all the Tropicalístas. So it is not unexpected to find that this record features some surprisingly avant garde flourishes that make it stand out from Bosco & Blanc’s records that would follow this one. In truth, it is on the next album, Caça à Raposa, that the duo really hit their stride in terms of composition. The most famous track on this one is “Bala com bala” which got covered by Elis Regina, but many of the rest of these tracks will largely be new to all but the most devoted Bosco/Blanc aficionados. It’s a strong and auspicious start of a productive partnership but kind of an obscure debut, in that the handful of albums to follow it would contain the bulk of the output that is most cherished in MPB.
*In August, Brazil passed the Aldir Blanc Law which is intended to support people struggling in music and the arts. He also received an obituary in the New York Times, albeit four months after he had passed on…
1 Tristeza De Uma Embolada 3:05
2 Nada A Desculpar 3:07
3 Boi 1:30
4 Angra 2:58
5 Quilombo 3:03
6 Bala Com Bala 2:23
7 Bernardo, O Eremita 3:25
8 Quem Será? 2:29
9 Fatalidade (Balconista Teve Morte Instantânea) 3:27
10 Alferes 4:12
11 Amon Rá E O Cavalo De Tróia 2:34
Acoustic Guitar – João Bosco
Arranged By – Rogério Duprat
Drum, Percussion – Chico Batera
Organ, Arranged By, Piano – Luiz Eça
Producer – Rildo Hora
First LP issue, RCA 103.0062, 1973
Reissue produced by Carlos Savalla
Project coordinator – Adriana Ramos
Production coordinator – Hugo Pereira Nunes
Liner notes – Mauro Ferreira
Remastered from the original master tapes by Carlos Freitas and Jade Perreira at Classic Master, São Paulo
Technical supervision – José Robert Cruz
Art adapted for CD by André Teixeira and Claudia Bandeira
Special thanks to Charles Gavin for loaning the original LP cover
Portuguese to French translations – Rémy Kolpa Kopoul
16-bit 44.1 khz
password: vibes
You’re right, this one is often overlooked because of what came after, but there really is a lot to enjoy here. Let us hope this is not an overcompressed re-issue, as has become the norm. Massive thanks for it, flabber (and rest in peace Dr. Blanc– and Moraes Moreira as well),
Thank you so much!