Tag: Novos Baianos

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Novos Baianos – Novos Baianos (1974) (Bomba Japanese reissue 2016)

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Novos Baianos – Novos Baianos
1974 Continental SLP-10.144 (Original release)
2016 Japanese reissue, Bomba Records Continental SLP-10.144 

Last Sunday, Brazil’s first World Cup match ended in a tie, and now they’ve won their a match against Costa Rica.  I didn’t watch.  I don’t care about the World Cup.  Even if I did, I’m not sure I would be cheering for Brazil this year.  Country has lost its damn mind, and Neymar continues to be whitening. Also FIFA continues to be an ethically dodgy facilitator of slave labor littering the world with disused stadiums built as monuments to their power.  So let’s listen to a record by some people who embody the “beautiful game” as, in my uninformed naiveté, I imagine it to exist in some parallel utopia – Os Novos Baianos, lovers of futebol and purveyors of fine music, still in the midst of their heyday.

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Novos Baianos F.C. DOCUMENTARY (Solano Ribeiro) 1973

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Novos Baianos F.C. (1973)
Directed by Solano Ribeiro
co-produced with TV Bandeirantes with German TV (?)

Another Carnaval is over and I am free to write about non-Brazilian music but I’d been thinking of posting this for months and months now, so here it goes.

This 30-minute documentary filmed at Novos Baianos’ own commune in the western part of Rio de Janeiro, a place they called the ‘Sitio de Vovô’ in Jacarepaguá, is a riveting glimpse into this once-in-a-universe band at the peak of their creative and musical powers. A musical band deciding to ‘drop out’, go “off the grid” or whatnot, and live communally is not in itself unique. I refer the reader to any of the coveted albums of Father Yod and The Source Family. However while those albums are mind-blowing in their utter unworldliness, with some of them falling squarely in the ‘outsider artist’ category and verge on sheer unlistenable excruciating aural abuse, Novos Baianos made some of the most coherent, flexible, and just damn beautiful music you’re likely to ever hear. They were all top notch musicians with a profound knowledge of and respect for their musical predecessors in Brazil, but expanded on those roots with all the splendor of a sprawling jaqueira or pé de manga tree. Perhaps one that’s been injected with 1000 µg of LSD-25.

Although this documentary made the rounds at some film festivals a few years ago, I have yet to know about an official release of this valuable relic. So instead I am presenting here the full documentary in the same quality you can find on YouTube, sadly, but at least here it is all in one place for ease of viewing. And the sound is pretty decent as well.

There are some interested interview segments but the highlights are the musical performances. Even though the segue from futebol into an ‘impromptu’ performance of ‘Preta Pretinha’ seems utterly contrived and staged to me, I still think it’s cool as hell and some great film-making. Incidentally, the film ends (after the final credits) with a full-tilt acid rock jam that as far as I know never appeared on any albums and which I suspect may not even have a name. It wouldn’t sound out of place on an Amon Duul album. It’s pretty jarring, with some bizarre still shots of the band hanging around doing nothing particular besides sitting in window frames or behind potted plants or other oddities.

Oh yes, I have to mention that I find Baby Consuelo incredibly sexy throughout the entire thing. Even though she seems to have ingested a half pound of Psilocybin before filming, and I suspect I would probably have had a hard time finishing a conversation with her, I don’t really care. She was beautiful and completely unique, just totally charismatic in the way she seemingly just didn’t give a shit about how an MPB star or rock singer was supposed to comport themselves. Also, she is from another planet, which is always a turn on for me.

Novos Baianos continued to make great music during the rest of their existence as a band, but this is a truly special document of a time before egos and business got in the way of it all.

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in AVI FORMAT

*note that some sources (including the overlay on this file itself) put the date at 1975. Perhaps that was the broadcast date but I have no doubt that was filmed around 1973.

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Novos Baianos F.C. (1973)

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novos baianos

Novos Baianos F.C.
or
Novos Baianos Futebol Clube
Released 1973 on Continental
Reissue, Warner Archives

1. “Sorrir e cantar como Bahia” (Luiz Galvão / Moraes Moreira) – 3:37
2. “Só se não for Brasileiro Nessa Hora” (Galvão / Moreira) – 3:28
3. “Cosmos e Damião” (Galvão / Moreira) – 4:07
4. “O Samba da minha Terra” (Dorival Caymmi) – 3:29
5. “Vagabundo não é Fácil” (Galvão / Moreira) – 5:06
6. “Com qualquer Dois Mil Réis” (Galvão – Pepeu Gomes – Moraes Moreira) – 3:26
7. “Os Pingo da Chuva” (Galvão / Pepeu Gomes / Moreira) – 4:10
8. “Quando você Chegar” (Galvão / Moreira) – 3:19
9. “Alimente” (Jorginho Gomes / P. Gomes) – 4:44
10. “Dagmar” (Moreira) – 2:31

* Moraes Moreira – vocal, violão base, percussão, arranjos, compositor
* Paulinho Boca de Cantor – vocal, percussão
* Baby Consuelo – vocal, pandeiro
* Pepeu Gomes – guitarra, violão solo
* Jorginho Gomes – bateria
* Dadi – baixo
* Baixinho – percussão
* Bolacha – percussão
* Luiz Galvão – letras

I may have given a somewhat overly-harsh review of “É Ferro na Boneca” in the previous post, and it may have been due to the fact that I had been listening to it back to back with THIS album. So I feel it is only fair to post about this album next, and I hope people out there can appreciate just how far along Novos Baianos had come in a couple years. The songwriting is first-rate (and, unlike “Ferro” has actual ‘hooks’ that stick in your head after listening..), the musicianship is impeccable and faultless, and the overall vision delivers on the “100% in the rhythm of our musical revolution” commentary that was promised in the liner notes to their first album. Of course, between that one and this one lay the band’s encounters and collaborations with João Gilberto and their legendary album “Acabou Chorare”, deservedly hailed as huge landmark in Brazilian music. “Acabou Chorare” tops the list of the ‘top 500’ Brazilian albums by R.S. Brasil… As much as I abhor list-making like that, it still says something about how powerful that record is. Given the accomplishments of that record, it would be almost natural for their next record to disappoint the listener. This album, known as “Novos Baianos Futebol Clube”, does not disappoint.

“If it isn’t broke…” may have been an overriding philosophy while Novos Baianos were working on this, their third album. They were obviously riding high on a wave of creative energy, but smart enough not to mess too much with the chemistry of what they had going on. They were also living in a communal arrangement on a rural property and devoted their time to music, football, and other leisurely activities, so they may have been ‘riding high’ on other things as well. Like the previous landmark album this one is a mix of old-school choro and samba styles with an early 1970s sensibility, occasionally electrified. The album starts out quietly and doesn’t even approach `rock` until the end of the third cut in, `Cosmos e Damião’. The band continues the winning formula by doing something that worked fabulously the last time — covering an old, classic samba and reinventing it. On the previous album this was Assis Valente’s “Brasil Pandeiro” (written for Carmen Miranda but never recorded by her). This time, it’s fellow son of Bahia Dorival Cayymi’s “O Samba Da Minha Terra”. Gal Costa would include her own version of this song on her album ‘Gal Canta Caymmi’ the following year, and her version is very good — but this one is revolutionary. Novos Baianos ability to switch gears in a split-second is simply flabbergasting – the change from a rock groove to a full-fledged samba is done in a single beat on this tune, and sounds as if none of them even broke a sweat. Words like “exultant”, “effortless,” and “joyful” come easily to your lips while playing this disc. Aside from the Caymmi tune everything else here is an original composition. It is hard to pick favorites because they are truly equally stunning, but ‘Cosmos e Damião’, ‘Vagabundo Não é Facil’, ‘Com Qualquer Dois Mil Réis’ and ‘Os Pingo da Chuva’ all stand out — but there it is, I just named half the tracks on the album… The last tune in that little sequence features Baby Consuelo on lead vocals and really makes me wonder why she didn’t record a solo record much sooner — She didn’t get nearly enough ‘air time’ with the Baianos in my opinion. Aside from that the only other minor gripe I have is the decision to end the album with two instrumentals, one after another. They are good enough, but they make me want to hear those vocal numbers over again… Perhaps that was their intention, to make us flip the vinyl over and play it again (or, alternately, set your digital device to “repeat”.) The band would rely on instrumentals even more heavily on their next album, “Vamos Pro Mundo”. after the departure of Morreira from the band.

The texture of the acoustic instruments on this album is fantastic, and are perfectly blended in the mix with the electric instrumentation. Warner Archives has done a better job on this remaster than any of the treatments I’ve heard for Acabou Chorare or any of the Som Livre titles. (Perhaps because Charles “Mr.Tinnitus” Gavin was not involved at any step?) This album is a treat that ranks among the top that this group produced in their career.

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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
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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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Novos Baianos – Vamos Pro Mundo (1974)

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baianos

1 Vamos pro mundo (Galvão – Pepeu Gomes)

2 Guria (Galvão – Moraes Moreira)

3 Na cadência do samba (Paulo Gesta – Ataulfo Alves)

4 Tangolete (Galvão – Moraes Moreira)

5 América tropical (Pepeu Gomes – Moraes Moreira)

6 Chuvisco (Pepeu Gomes – Moraes Moreira)

7 Escorrega sebosa (Paulinho Boca de Cantor – Galvão – Moraes Moreira)

8 Ô menina (Galvão – Pepeu Gomes – Moraes Moreira)

9 Um dentro do outro (Jorginho – Pepeu Gomes)

10 Um bilhete pra Didi (Jorginho)

11 Preta pretinha no carnaval (Galvão – Moraes Moreira)

One look at the album cover, and you know that all is not well here…..

As somebody who was previously only familiar with their first few albums, one of them being the “most important Brazilian album” according to Brazilian Rolling Stone, I have to say that this album leaves me frustrated, if not quite cold.

It is sad to admit this but it took almost a whole listen to realize what is sorely missing from this record — Moraes Moreira! Although he has writing credit on it, he is not playing or singing on the album.

To give you the succinct low-down: This feels like HALF a great album to me, which is what makes the non-great half so frustrating. Literally half the record is instrumental, and while they are undoubtedly all talented players, this material seems largely inspired to me, as if they had run out of songs and just needed to fill up the other half o the record. But if you like jamming-for-the-sake-of-it type stuff, this album could make your day, who know?

The first four songs are all excellent, particularly the second track Guria which is simply gorgeous. Baby Consuelo is in fine form on these and her energy only increases my desire to make out with her in 1974. The fourth track Tangolete sees the Baianos taking up their rockier side, with Paulo Boca de Cantor singing. From this point on, things get more and more uneven. The instrumental ‘America Tropical’ sounds the band doing their best Santana impression, followed IMMEDIATELY by another instrumental (whose sequencing idea was *that*?), the acoustic choro-flavored “Chuvisco.” The next two tracks are delicious — the jazzy post-bossa acoustic laid backness of Escorrega Sebosa winds up with a little coda of samba de roda (hey i made a rhyme!), and thes stylized samba canção of ‘Ô Menina’ once again makes me pine for nutty Baby Consuelo. Then, if you are like me, you will find yourself turning the album off after this track as the last 12 or 13 minutes takes a serious nosedive into mediocrity. Two more BACK TO BACK instrumentals (really now, what were they thinking?), complete with dueling guitars and a gratuitous drum solo …. Zzzzzzzz. Um Dentro do Outro is the more interesting of the two, slightly funky, slighly progged-out ensemble playing; but the second, Um Bilhete para Didi, is just irritating to me, although it does have what appears to be a bowed bass solo in the middle of it. I remember hearing this track as an Mp3 years ago and thinking it was pretty cool, but at this point I… just don’t. And then the clincher — an abominable version of Preta Pretinha played in hyperdrive trio electrico style, here called “Preta Pretinha no Carnaval”.

I wish I knew the story about why Moraes Moreira has writing credits on half the songs (even the lackluster instrumentals) but then left the band for a while. In any event, it does confirm his place at the center of what made the magic happen. For even when this album is good — and I do think the highlights I’ve mentioned here ARE quite good – they still lack a certain energy, cohesiveness, and inspiration that they had going earlier. Of course by 1974 the hippie lifestyle was wearing down a lot of bands, so the Baianos aren’t exactly an exception.

This album, on the whole, confirms my belief that when (non-jazz) bands start putting drum solos on their studio albums, they are basically running out of ideas…

Still this is a worthy addition to any Brazilian music collection and especially anyone who likes Novos Baianos.

Novos Baianos – Vamos Pro Mundo (1974) in FLAC LOSSLESS

Novos Baianos – Vamos Pro Mundo (1974) in 320kbs mp3

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