Aracy De Almeida/Cyro Monteiro "Sambistas De Fato" (Revivendo)
A delightful collection of prime oldies by two great romantic samba cancao vocalists. Evenly split between the two of them, with ten tracks apiece, this disc covers the years 1935-1948, and is chock full of wonderfully melodic choro- tinged material. Monteiro's 1945 novelty hit, "Boogie Woogie Na Favela," is a nice crossover tune, although the rest of the album is packed with straight-ahead samba. Great stuff -- highly recommended!
Aracy De Almeida/Noel Rosa "Noel Rosa" (Continental, 1968/Warner, 2002)
A neat reissue of a neat reissue. This album first came out in 1968, collecting a dozen classic samba cancao tracks from the 1930s (and '40s?), and has been reissued on CD with five more songs. It's not clear to me whether Rosa actually performs on any of these recordings -- I think really this is a set of music by Aracy De Almeida, who was one of his major early interpreters. Classy, lacrymose stuff. (Also see my Noel Rosa discography.)
Aracy De Almeida "Samba E Aracy De Almeida" (Elenco, 1966)
Although her career was well past its zenith when these mid-'60s recordings were made, this is still a pretty nice album. With producer Aloysio de Olivira pulling some strings to get her in the studio, and bandleader/arranger Roberto Menescal cutting loose and having fun on these old-school samba cancao tunes, this disc has a lightness and vivacity that many of the contemporary, cool, suave, bossa-era recordings had foregone. A couple of Noel Rosa compositions bookend the album, but she also tackles more modern material by folks such as Marcos Valle and Wilson Batista, along with a couple of Ary Barroso classics. She sounds like she's having a blast, and the band follows her lead. It's a nice record; worth checking out!
Dalva De Andrade "Serie Bis - Cantores Do Radio" (EMI-Brasil, 2000)
A 2-CD retrospective of one of the more syrupy and overwrought singers in this otherwise groovy series, Dalva De Andrade had a more typically "pop" style than many of the Brazilian radio singers, closely informed by North American jazz influences. So far I haven't found this set to be that riveting, but if I modify my opinion, I'll be sure to let you know.
Djalma De Andrade - see Bola Sete
Joao De Barro/Various Artists "Nasce Um Compositor" (Revivendo)
Beautiful music! One of the early samba cancao greats, Joao De Barro (aka Carlos Braga, or Braguinha, as he was also nicknamed) formed the Banda Dos Tangaras with fellow composer Noel Rosa, and together they pioneered the new popular style. Braguinha had a gorgeous voice, best highlighted on the opening tracks of this album... Also quite striking is the shimmering guitar accompaniment, which has a haunting similarity to Portuguese fados or the mornas of Cape Verde. The style shifts quickly into rollicking music hall singalongs and more ornate sambas, all of which is quite captivating. This CD features many artists of the 1930s, including Francisco Alves and Alvinho, but also has several recordings featuring Braguinha by himself, and as part of Banda Dos Tangaras. His most famous tune, "Carinhoso," isn't on here, but you'd hardly notice with all the other great songs that are included. Great stuff -- highly recommended!
Joao De Barro/Various Artists "CARNAVAL - SUA HISTORIA, SUA GLORIA, v.19" (Revivendo)
More great music from composer Joao De Barro... This disc starts off a bit more riotously than the Nasce Um Compositor collection, but continues past the golden years of the 'Thirties up through the tropicalia and MPB years, with versions of De Barro's work by young'uns such as Maria Bethania, Gal Costa, and Caetano Veloso. Nice stuff... but does PolyGram know about this?? Well, now at least you do!
Joao De Barro "Joao De Barro" (RCA, 1972)
Early in his career, De Barro gave up performing in favor of full-time songwriting, and had stopped recording altogether for many years. He came out of "retirement" in '72 to record this somewhat glitzy album with Radames Gnattali at the helm as arranger. De Barro reprises many of his old classics, still withthe same chugging rhythms and propulsive horn arrangements, just with a smoother, more modern sound. In a way, it's kind of classy, but it also seems a little sedate. Half the fun of his old recordings is that, well, they were old recordings... Here things are just modern and safe enough that the spark and fire seem to be largely absent. This is okay, but it ain't great.
Fafa De Belem "Tamba Taja" (Polydor, 1976)
To be blunt, Fafa de Belem is one of the blandest Brazilian pop stars imaginable, and yet her 1976 debut album -- made in the wake of the psychedelic tropicalia boom -- may come as a revelation to listeners more familiar with her subsequent ultra-horrible romantic pop albums. Here, there's a wide stylistic range, and practically all of it is earthier and more engaging than almost anything she's done since. Her debts to samba queen Clara Nunes and MPB diva Maria Bethania are particularly striking, as are numerous songs bouyed by heavy Afro-Brazilian percussion. Until I discovered this album, I'd never heard a Fafa record worth hanging onto; now I just scratch my head and wonder what went wrong. Recommended!
Fafa De Belem "Atrevida" (Sigla, 1986)
I've heard several of Fafa's later album, and kept none of them. This is the only one I could remember the name of... and, lord, it's awful. Perpetually drenched in painful, retro disco-AOR overproduction, she's one of the few Brazilian pop artists that I can criticize or make fun of without any disagreement from Brazilian readers. Take my word for it: this is worse than you could possibly imagine.
Fafa De Belem "Focus: O Essencial De Fafa De Belem" (BMG, 1999)
This best-of runs the length of Fafa's career, from 1977 to the 'Nineties, but there is only superficial variety between the songs. Mostly it's pretty poppy, garishly overproduced material. Some dips in nordeste material, but this seems more informed by mainstream Spanish-language pop than by anything else. I guess this collection is pretty representative of her work, and listenable in certain sense, but definitely not my bag.
Max De Castro "Samba Raro" (Trama, 2000)
The debut album by Max De Castro, son of samba-soul pioneer Wilson Simonal, and brother to Trama labelmate Simoninha... Haven't heard this one yet, but I'm definitely curious. I'll keep you posted.
Max De Castro "Orquestra Klaxon" (Trama, 2002)
A canny, soulful, impressive mix of styles... Rio hipster Max De Castro sails through hip-hop, jazz, modernized samba, soft-soul and clubby electronica, all with equal ease. The disc is paced like a fine, mellow set by a knowledgable club DJ, but it's from real performances that call on the talents of numerous luminaries in a variety of Brazilian styles. For example, on the jazz cut, "O Nego Do Cabelo Bom," he jams with old-school Braz-jazzers Wilson Das Neves and J.T. Mierelles; other guests include singers Paula Lima and Patricia Marx, as well as co-songwriters Nelson Motta and Seu Jorge. De Castro lays claim to Brazil's pop-rock past, calling his music "jovem vanguarda," and backs it up with contributions from teen-scene old-timers Erasmo Carlos and ex-Mutante Liminha. It's a pretty impressive lineup, not to mention the horde of younger, fresh-faced players that form the core of his band, notably percussionist Fred Prince... Much of this album intersects styles that I don't like -- particualrly modern R&B and club music -- but nonetheless I found it consistently fresh and engaging. Definitely worth checking out!
Max De Castro "Max De Castro" (Trama, 2005)
Max De Castro "Balanco Das Horas" (Trama, 2006)
Thalma De Freitas "Thalma De Freitas" (EP) (EMI/Cardume, 2004)
Very nice! The daughter of '70s MPB/jazz fusion keyboardist Laercio De Freitas, Ms. De Freitas has a gorgeous voice, with crystal-clear tone and very precise diction; she glides atop these light, funky tunes, an easygoing, jazzy mix crafted by her father (who plays throughout) and modern indie-popster Kassin (perhaps best known for his work with Moreno Veloso). Kassin contributes the centerpiece of this 6-song EP, a light, bouncy, irresistible rumba-flavored tune called "Tranquilo." Her father's touch is heavy on the rest of the record, which is as much a showcase for his keyboards as it is for her voice, and drifts into some jazzy flights that recall Gal Costa's funkier albums of the mid-1970s. Veteran bassist Bebeto and drummer Wilson Das Neves round out this compact ensemble -- this disc is short, but it's sweet -- one of the best new Brazilian records I've come across in quite some time! (Also see: Orquestra Imperial)
Clementina De Jesus - see artist discography
Demonios Da Garoa "Eu Vou Pro Samba" (RCA, 1965)
Good-natured, perky group vocals which stand somewhere midway between older Brazilian "radio singer" ensembles of the 1940s, like Os Anjos Do Inferno, and slicker vocal groups such as Os Cariocas, who in the 1960s took on the Americanized trappings of crewcut groups like the Four Freshmen. This is a fun record, a bit conservative given the bossa trend of the time, but full of pep and bonhomie. This Sao Paulo ensemble was first formed to sing the music of composer Adoniran Barbosa, but also recorded songs from several other composers. Their singalong chorus style prefigures the similar (but enlarged) coros of the '70s acoustic pagode groups. Not spine-tinglingly great, but certainly worth checking out.
Demonios Da Garoa "Esses Divinos" (EMI/Copacabana, 1998)
Even with the minimal, somewhat tacky artwork, this turns out to be a rather nice little record... Elegant, ebullient acoustic samba music, with strong arrangements and heartfelt performances that easily buoy the aging vocalists. Recommended.
Demonios Da Garoa "Mais Demonios Que Nunca" (Trama, 2000)
An amiable mix of old-fashioned Brazilian group vocals (ala Os Cariocas and MPB-4) and gentle, subtle, cavaquinho-led acoustic sambas. As a whole, this album is fairly static, without much variation from song to song... but the basic sound is so nice, it'll take a while before you want to move on to something else. I couldn't tell, at a casual glance, how many of the group's current members are from the original '60s band, but if I find out, I'll letcha know. In keeping with the band's historical roots, all the songs on here were written by samba composer Adoniran Barbosa.
Demonios Da Garoa "60 Anos - Ao Vivo" (Dabliu, 2004)
Another fine set of velha guarda samba music, recorded live in 2003 at a venue in Sao Paulo. These old-timers are still going strong, and if anything, this live recording surpasses recent studio recordings... It's captivating and enjoyable from start to finish. Recommended!
Vinicius De Moraes - see artist discography
Luiz De Moura Castro "Flor Amorosa: Aires y Danzas Del Brasil" (Ensayo, 1990)
Brazil's pre-samba, formalist classical tradition is explored on this pleasant, sometimes brisk set of piano solos and duets. De Moura Castro, who was a student of composer Francisco Mignone, surveys the work of Osvaldo Lacerda, Camargo Guarnieri, Ernesto Nazareth, Oscar Lorenzo Fernandez and others, 19th and early 20th Century composers who, like the renowned Heitor Villa-Lobos, took popular forms such as the tango and valse and infused them with a nativist Brazilian sensibility. Although the performances seem a little brusque at times, this is a marvellous record for anyone looking to dig deeper into Brazilian musical roots. Worth checking out!
