Singer-guitarist Ze Renato was a founding member of the pop group Boca Livre and has pusued a successful solo career, often collaborating with his ex-Boca Livre bandmate Claudio Nucci. Although Renato often works in the swankier end of the MPB spectrum, he also taps into the sweeter, lighter side of the acoustic samba and bossa nova sounds. Here's a quick look at his work.
Ze Renato "Luz E Misterio" (1984)
Ze Renato & Claudio Nucci "Pelo Sim Pelo Nao" (CBS, 1985)
Ze Renato "Pegadas" (1988)
Ze Renato "Arranha-Ceu" (Velas, 1994)
A sweet, simple, elegant album with modest, modern arrangements and flowery vocals that bring to mind Caetano Veloso's more lyrical moments. This is a tribute to the great pre-bossa romantic singer Silvio Caldas, and includes sambas, bossa nova and ballads written by Caldas himself as well as Ary Barroso, Billy Blanco, Vinicius DeMoraes and others. The musicians include many modern jazz and MPB players such as Nico Assumpcao, Cristovao Bastos, Jorge Helder, with Joao Bosco singing a duet on "Minha Palhoca." Although the production style and instruments are very contemporary, the performances are pleasantly restrained and, other than a couple of cheesy saxophone solos, it's really pretty classy. Recommended!
Ze Renato/Victor Biglione/Litto Nebbia "Ponto De Encontro" (Leblon, 1994)
Ze Renato "Natural Do Rio De Janeiro" (Warner, 1995)
(Produced by Ze Nogueira)
This Ze Keti tribute album opens with a dreadful version of Keti's great anthem, "Opinao," here rendered as a lethargic, over-orchestrated dirge... But the album picks up afterwards, with a more acoustic, samba-y sound. I wouldn't say this is as consistently pleasant as Arranha-Ceu but there's some nice stuff here. Worth giving a listen.
Ze Renato/Elton Medeiros/Mariana De Moraes "A Alegria Continua" (Universal, 1997)
A live album...
Ze Renato "Silvio Caldas 90 Anos" (1998)
Ze Renato "Cabo" (1999)
Ze Renato "Filosofia" (Universal, 2001)
Ze Renato & Trinadus "Navegantes" (Biscoito Fino, 2002)
Ze Renato & Wagner Tiso "Memorial" (Biscoito Fino, 2002)
Ze Renato "Minha Praia" (Biscoito Fino, 2003)
Ze Renato "Ze Renato - Ao Vivo" (2007) (DVD)
Ze Renato "E Tempo De Amar" (Universal, 2008)
Ze Renato "Ao Vivo" (Biscoito Fino, 2009)
Ze Renato & Renato Braz "Papo De Passarim" (Tratore, 2010)
Ze Renato & Renato Braz "Papo De Passarim" (2010) (DVD)
Ze Renato "Breves Minutos" (Universal, 2011)
Ze Renato "Sem Limite" (Universal, 2002)
A best-of collection...
Ze Renato "Canta Beatles" (2011)
