Hailing from the coastal city of Recife, percussionist Nana Vasconcelos (1944-2016) was one of the key figures in Brazil's fusion and avant-jazz movements, as well as a pioneering figure in the global "world music" movement. His work may be a little too "out there" for many listeners, but for his loyal fans there's really no other musician like him... Here's a quick look at his work...
Nana Vasconcelos/Nelson Angelo/Novelli "Africadeus" (Saravah Records, 1972) (LP)
Nana Vasconcelos "Amazonas" (Philips/Phonogram, 1973)
(Produced by Raimundo Fagner & Nana Vasconcelos)
Deep, but insufferable. This artsy album by percussionist Nana Vasconcelos delves deep into Amazonian music, both real and imagined, mixing the psychedelic tropicalia ethos with the sounds of the deep jungle. It's an admirable and sincere effort and has some powerful performances, but it's also kind of silly and unless you're really out to prove a point, maybe not a record you'd want to listen to recreationally. But again, maybe this is one of those records where not doing drugs puts me at a disadvantage -- it's possible this record is "a real trip" if you're completely zonked out and stoned on whatever.
Nana Vasconcelos, Nelson Angelo & Novelli "Nana Vasconcelos, Nelson Angelo & Novelli" (Saravah Records, 1974)
Nana Vasconcelos & Egberto Gismonti "Danca Das Cabecas" (ECM Records, 1977) (LP)
The very definition of noodly, this disc is sort of a softer, quieter extension of the free jazz of the 1960s -- flashy in parts but not terribly cohesive. Initially it focuses on Gismonti's acoustic guitar, then shifts into endless improvisational piano riffs. The playing is in essence solo work, with very sparse and minimal accompaniment by a small ensemble. Not really my cup of tea, although this is one of Gismonti's best distributed and most well-known albums in the United States.
Nana Vasconcelos "Saudades" (ECM Records, 1979) (LP)
Collin Walcott, Don Cherry & Nana Vasconcelos "Condona" (ECM Records, 1979) (LP)
The band's name is a mash-up of the first letters in each man's name: CO-DO-NA...
Collin Walcott, Don Cherry & Nana Vasconcelos "Condona 2" (ECM Records, 1982) (LP)
Nana Vasconcelos "Zumbi" (Europa Records, 1983)
Collin Walcott, Don Cherry & Nana Vasconcelos "Condona 3" (ECM Records, 1983)
Nana Vasconcelos & Egberto Gismonti "Duas Voces" (ECM Records, 1984)
Nana Vasconcelos "Nantronics" (Europa Records, 1985)
Nana Vasconcelos "Bush Dance" (Island Records, 1986)
Nana Vasconcelos And The Bushdancers "Rain Dance" (Island Records, 1989)
Nana Vasconcelos & Antonello Salis "Lester" (Brass Star Records, 1990)
Nana Vasconcelos "Contando Estorias" (Velas Records, 1994)
Nana Vasconcelos "Fragments: Modern Tradition" (Tzadik Records, 1997)
Nana Vasconcelos "Contaminacao" (M. Officer, 1999)
Nana Vasconcelos "Fragmentos" (Nucleo Contemporaneo, 1990)
Nana Vasconcelos "Minha Loa" (Tratore Records, 2002)
Nana Vasconcelos & Itamar Assumpcao "Isso Vai Dar Repercussao" (Tratore Records, 2005)
A live recording from 2001, with Sao Paulo's < href = "assumpcao_itamar_01.html">Itamar Assumpcao
Nana Vasconcelos "Chegada" (Azul Records, 2005)
Nana Vasconcelos "Trilhas" (Azul Records, 2006)
Nana Vasconcelos & Pablo Arrieta "D'Aquí Pra La" (2008)
Nana Vasconcelos/Joyce/Mauricio Maestro "Visions Of Dawn" (Far Out Records, 2009)
A previously unreleased "lost album" of spacey jazz-folk recorded by three members of the psychedelic Sagrada Familia collective back in 1976.
Sementeira "Sons Da Percussao" (Baluarte Agencia De Projetos Culturais, 2010)
A collaboration with Caito Marcondes, Marcos Suzano, and Coracao Quialtera
Nana Vasconcelos & Mauricio Maestro "Upside Down" (Far Out Records, 2011)
A new collaboration -- recorded in 2010 -- from two Brazilian experimental musicians whose partnership spans back to the early 1970s. Guitarist Mauricio Maestro and percussionist Nana Vasconcelos rekindle their creativity with this mellow, melodic set which is primarily instrumental music, punctuated by nonsensical vocalizations, simple chanted refrains, and on a few tunes, full lyrics. It's similar in style to the amorphous folk-jazz-MPB of Vasconcelos or Milton Nascimento, but Maestro -- who co-founded the 1980s pop group Boca Livre -- has a more pointedly "pop" approach, with light, lilting melodies and a joyful vibe filing the sound. It's a little Sufjan Stephens-y, and easy on the ears... Singer Kay Lyra sings on several tracks, reprising the role that Joyce played on the Maestro/Vasconcelos session, Visions Of Dawn in 1976. A little gooey, but pretty listenable overall... Definitely worth a whirl.
Nana Vasconcelos "Sinfonia E Batuques" (Azul Records, 2011)
(Produced by Junior Evangelista & Nana Vasconcelos)
Nana Vasconcelos & Murat Verdi "Shuara" (Equinox Music, 2012)
Nana Vasconcelos/Arild Andersen/Fabiano Araujo "Rheomusi" (Tratore Records, 2012)
(Produced by Fabiano Araujo)
Nana Vasconcelos "4 Elementos" (Pernambuco Records, 2013)
Nana Vasconcelos/Zeca Baleiro/Paulo Lepetit "Cafe No Bule" (Selo SESC SP, 2006)
Nana Vasconcelos & Don Cherry's New Researches "Organic Music Theatre: Festival De Jazz De Chateauvallon 1972" (Blank Forms, 2021)
Another archival release...
Nana Vasconcelos "Storytelling" (EMI-Hemisphere, 1995)
