Category: Brazilian

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João Gilberto – O amor, o sorriso, e a flor (1960) (Odeon MOFB 3151)

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João Gilberto – O amor, o sorriso e a flor
1960 Odeon – MOFB 3151
This pressing, early 1970’s, mono mix

A month ago, the world mourned the loss of a gentle musical soul,  and an icon of a Brazil that ceased to exist long ago.  Like many others, discovering João Gilberto’s music beyond the Getz/Gilberto album was a major “event” in my life that made me want to understand more about a country that could produce such a messenger of raw beauty.  Twenty-odd years later and I am still coming to grips with understanding the place – as are many Brazilians these days – but this much is certain:  Brazil will never produce another João Gilberto. Continue reading

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Helio Matheus – Matheus Segundo Matheus (1975) (AOTNLP017)

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Helio Matheus – Matheus Segundo Matheus (1975)
Original release, RCA-Victor, Brazil
2018 Reissue, Athens Of The North, AOTNLP017

A short-and-sweet Friday post for you to get your weekend started on point.  Scottish label Athens Of The North (or AOTN) serves up a reissue of this cult classic that, thanks to a collector’s market gone mad, I will never be able to afford as an original pressing. No idea what they used for their source but it sounds pretty decent, so I feel like this label has done music fans a huge favor by making it available.   As you can see below, the list of contributing musicians here is huge and includes members of Azymuth, Sá, Rodrix & Guarabyra and other heavyweights. Helio himself was well established as a writer and arranger in MPB circles at this time, but recorded very little under his own name. It’s a solid offering of samba-soul, samba-rock, MPB, and even a little dreamy orchestral psychedelic pop thrown in. It may have some questionable lyrics (for example, “Briguenta”) but the grooves make up for it. Plus it has maybe the best back-cover photograph of all time..

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Airto – Fingers (1973) (CTI Records 6028)

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Airto – Fingers
Vinyl rip in 24-bit/192 kHz | FLAC |  Art scans at 300 dpi
1.4GB (24/192) | 865 MB (24/96)
CTI Records 6028| Genre: Fusion, Latin Jazz, Jazz Rock

This post was intended to go up over the weekend as a commemoration to wrap up the Festas Juninas.  “Fingers” is really is a masterpiece from Airto Moreira, one of the progenitors of jazz fusion, with lots of help from future members of the Uruguayan group Opa and, of course, his wife Flora Purim. It is less “out” than his solo records up to this point but still retains enough traces of his wild urges toward surprise and experimentation to keep things interesting. The compositions, about half of which are contributed by Opa members, are accessible enough to instantly grab your attention but are always offering new nuances on repeated listens. How many edgy Latin-Jazz-Fusion albums actually contain EARWORMS in their grooves? This album has tunes you will be whistling to yourself for weeks afterward, in particular the track “Parana.” (more below) Continue reading

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Som Três – Som Três Show (1968) (BOM24183)

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Som Tres – Som Tres Show (1968)
Original: 1968 Odeon MOFB 3541
Reissue: 2010 Bomba Records, Japan – BOM24183
Originally Odeon MOFB 3541

1. Leonardo
2. Falsa Baiana
3. Amazonas (Keep Talking)
4. The World Goes On
5. The Look Of Love
6. Frevo Rasgado
7. Jungle
8. Sá Marina
9. Watch What Happens
10. Emília
11. Balanço Zona Sul Continue reading

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Dora Lopes – Enciclopédia da Gíria (1957 Mocambo)

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Dora Lopes – Enciclopédia da Gíria
Mocambo / Rozenblit 1957

Is this a Pride Month post?  Sort of, because Dora Lopes was possibly the first “out” singer in Brazilian popular music.   But this record was  before anyone outside Rio scenesters knew or cared about her sexuality, and even before she was the proprietor of O Caixotinho, one of Rio’s first lesbian nightclubs that served the Copacabana area beginning in the second half of the 60s.  This 1957 album is notable for other reasons, like being released on the small Recife imprint Mocambo, and for the fact that Dora gets composer credits on all but a couple songs here in a era when women songwriters were not the norm.  The songs and arrangements fit more in the jazz-samba world than the nascent bossa nova scene. Continue reading