This edition of Cosmic Jazz is devoted entirely to music from Brazil and artists influenced by its music. Some tunes will be familiar – some less so. Some will take you back a number of years – some are more recent. The show indeed reflects the rich diversity of this country’s wonderful music.
1. Luis Arruda Paes/Paz – Upa, Neguinho from Blue Brazil: Blue Note In A Latin Groove
This classic Brazilian tune – much recorded, remixed and sampled – was written by Edu Lobo and his version is probably the best known. This more orchestral take is most easily located on the first of three Blue Note samplers which focus on Latin music on the label – the original 7in single is listed on Discogs but there are no copies currently available. Paes (alternatively, Paz) was one of the great Brazilian conductors and arrangers of the 1950s and 1960s and featured on many TV programmes in those decades. In 1956 he recorded his first album, Brasil Dia e Noite, considered now to be something of a landmark in Brazilian music – good luck with finding a copy! There are so many versions of Upa, Neguinho (which can be translated as ‘get up, little child’) but this take by Elis Regina is one of the very best. On a personal note, Neil remembers hearing (and recording) the Luis Arruda Paes version when it appeared on the influential Somethin’ Else radio show hosted by Gilles Peterson and Jez Nelson on the first incarnation of Jazz FM in the late 1980s.
2. Alaíde Costa – Catavento from Coração/Blue Brazil: Blue Note In A Latin Groove
This lovely take on Milton Nascimento’s tune – here’s one of his versions, complete with Herbie Hancock on piano – comes from Coração, a great but little known album by singer Alaíde Costa from 1975. First recording from the late 1950s, Costa came out of retirement to appear on one of Neil’s all-time favourite records, Nascimento’s Clube de Esquina (1972) on the song Me deixa em paz. She went on to continue recording and appearing with numerous great Brazilian artists, including Egberto Gismonti, Elza Soares and Toninho Horta. Costa even appeared at the London Jazz Festival in 2003 with veteran singer Johnny Alf and in 2023, aged 85, she was at Carnegie Hall in an anniversary show celebrating 60 years of bossa nova.
3. Clara Nunes – Canto dâs tres raças from Canto dâs tres raças/Rare Grooves Brasil
Another great Brazilian singer, Clara Nunes – who died at just 40 years old – was known as the Queen of Samba. Born in Minas Gerais, she moved to the Copacabana area of Rio in 1965 and began recording a sequence of million selling albums, including Cantos dâs tres raças (1976). Nunes’ distinctive singing style with her rich and resonant voice was informed by her adoption of Umbanda, an African-Brazilian religion that emerged in the 1920s and incorporated elements of Candomblé and Roman Catholicism. On stage, she always wore white costumes, decorated with numerous necklaces and beads. Her funeral in 1983 was held in one of Rio’s most famous samba schools and attended by more than 50,000 people.
4. Eumir Deodato – Flap from Os Catedraticos 73
Pianist, composer, arranger and producer Eumir Deodato has been a leading figure in Brazilian music for over 50 years, and is known for his eclectic melding of different musical genres. One of the country’s most prolific artists, Deodato has been involved in the creation of over 450 albums, racking up a series of best-selling albums and winning a Grammy award. He has written and arranged for artists as diverse as Tom Jobim, Kool and The Gang, Earth, Wind & Fire, Marcos Valle, Aretha Franklin and Bjork. This eclecticism is perhaps most notable in his 1973 hit Also Sprach Zarathustra (2001) – a rare example of a well known classical piece being successfully reconfigured into a jazz funk masterpiece. It’s the centrepiece of his breakthrough album Prelude (1973), which also included September 13. This begins with the one of the most sampled drum breaks in hiphop, courtesy of jazz drummer Billy Cobham. Listen to it here and in Pete Rock and C L Smooth’s In the House. But back to Flap and Os Catedraticos 73 – an album re-released by Far Out Records in 2019 and available here on Bandcamp in download and CD formats (the LP version sold out some time ago). Os Catedraticos 73 was recorded between Rio de Janeiro and New York, featuring a Brazilian rhythm section including Azymuth drummer Ivan Mamão Conti, percussion master Orlandivo, and Sergio Barroso on bass, while the horn section features some of NY’s top players from the CTI in-house brass section. Os Catedraticos 73 opens with the dance floor classic Arranha Céu (Skyscrapers) but the whole record is as essential as the later Prelude. Flap was composed by Marcos Valle – see later in the show.
5. Arthur Verocai – Tudo De Bom from Encore
Ah, where to begin with Arthur Verocai? Until recently, he was largely ignored both in Brazil and elsewhere but thanks to a rediscovery of his first 1972 album around 2000, Verocai was championed by Joe Davis from Far Out records and went on to record Encore in 2007. Both albums are in Neil’s view essential for anyone wanting to understand the sophisticated arrangements that often characterise Brazilian music. Encore features 11 original Verocai compositions with guest musicians including all three original member of Azymuth, composer and singer Ivan Lins and a nine-piece string section. Joe Davis had stumbled upon Verocai’s debut album in a dusty record store in downtown Rio in the late 80s and years later, and back in Brazil, he invited Verocai out of retirement, brought in some of the musicians who had appeared on that first album, and began work on Encore. It was re-issued by Far Out in 2017 on yellow vinyl but you’ll need to look hard now to find a copy.
6. Clara Moreno with Celso Fonseca and Joyce – Meu Samba Torto from Meu Samba Torto/Bossa Nova Baby
We stay with Far Out records for Clara Moreno’s Meu Samba Torto, a tune that includes Clara’s mother, the legendary Brazilian singer-songwriter Joyce, and songwriter and guitarist Celso Fonseca. The album features compositions written for Clara Moreno by Joyce (Sabe Quem) and Celso Fonseca (Litorânea) and there are interpretations of classic bossa nova tracks such as Moça Flor, originally recorded by the Tamba Trio and Morena Boca de Ouro, made famous by João Gilberto. The album is still widely available on CD but the compilation listed above is (despite the cover suggestion) a really good selection of contemporary Brazilian tunes – many from Far Out artists.
7. Wayne Shorter – Ponta de Areia from Native Dancer
Brazilian music featured in saxophonist Wayne Shorter’s repertoire even in his 1960s Blue Note recordings – perhaps most famously in the beautiful take on Dindi from Super Nova, his 1969 album for the label. This included an emotional vocal performance from Maria Booker in which she can be heard quietly sobbing at the end of the tune. Booker was the wife of bassist Walter Booker and was also Shorter’s sister in law. Ponta de Areia comes from the later Native Dancer record which celebrates the music of Milton Nascimento. The album belongs in the same category as George Duke’s Brazilian Love Affair (1980) in that both are Brazilian-oriented jazz-fusion masterpieces that are completely memorable both for the tunes and the inspired arrangements. Native Dancer includes Herbie Hancock on piano and percussionist Airto Moreira. Nascimento is featured on several of his own compositions including From the Lonely Afternoons, Miracle of the Fishes and our choice, the beautiful Ponta de Areia. Neil remembers buying this record in Oxford when it first came out in 1975 and being entranced by Shorter’s piping soprano saxophone alongside Nascimento’s falsetto voice.
8. MONDO GROSSO – Samba Do Gato from MG4
MONDO GROSSO (usually capitalised) was the brainchild of Shinichi Osawa – Japanese musician, DJ and record producer – who formed the group in Kyoto in 1991. When they disbanded, Osawa moved into other collaborations with artists like Monday Michiru (daughter of Japanese pianist Toshiko Akiyoshi and saxophonist Charlie Mariano) and J-pop star Ayumi Hamasaki. Michiru actually appears on four tunes on MG4, along with singer N’Dea Davenport from the Brand New Heavies. Like a number of Japanese musicians, he also wrote for PlayStation games and remixed music for a wider range of musicians – and, more recently, he opened a vegan Australian-Japanese fusion cafe in Tokyo’s trendy Shibuya district. Back to Samba Do Gato and that scatting vocalist… It’s none other than Tania Maria! MG4 is widely available – check out the CD here on Discogs.
9. Laíz & The New Love Experience – Carcara from Ela Partiu
Coming right up to date, we now feature a new star in the making. Laíz was born in the city of Jundiaí in Sâo Paulo state in 1999 before movingto Germany in 2019 where she quickly became part of the Berlin jazz scene, blending Latin and jazz sounds with Afrobeat and Brazilian hiphop. This became the New Love Experience (NLE), an international artistic community of musicians and producers. The first album to emerge from this collective approach is Ela Partiu (Portuguese for ‘she left’) and will be released on Agogo Records in September 2024. We really like the music on this record and we’ll feature more on Cosmic Jazz in coming months.
10. Marcos Valle – Olha Quem Ta Chegando from Sempre
Marcos Valle is the great survivor in Brazilian music. Truly a legend, he has been recording since the early 1960s and is still active today, touring and releasing new music. He’s currently on tour worldwide, celebrating his 80th birthday and Neil saw him live at the Jazz Cafe in London earlier this month. The show was something of a retrospective with tunes from Valle’s very earliest days as a writer, including Crickets Sing for Anamaria (Os Grillos) and Summer Samba, as well as more contemporary material including Bora Meu Bem from his latest record, Túnel Acoustico, to be released next month. Valle has straddled Brazil’s musical world from the early days of the bossa nova craze well into the fusion-soaked sound of ’80s MPB and now into the 21st century. His 1965 hit Samba de Verão is one of the most covered songs in Brazilian music history. and his albums of the 1970s – including Garra, Vento Sul, Previsao do Tempo – married bossa with soul and psychedelia. Valle’s 1981 record Vontade de Rever Voce, largely written with Leon Ware and Peter Cetera from the group Chicago, showed how he could adapt his songwriting for a more mainstream American audience. In addition to his more conventional recorded output, Valle moved into writing music for films and Brazil’s soap operas (or telenovelas) and even wrote the title sequence for Brazil’s version of Sesame Street! After an extended break from recording, Valle emerged with the superb Nova Bossa Nova on the Far Out label in 1998. Sempre appeared in 2019 and reflected both his funk and disco-oriented styles, with album opener Olha Quem Tá Chegando hitting an infectious groove straight out of the gate.
11. Jorge Ben – Bom Dia, Boa Tarde, Boa Noite Amor from A Banda Do Zé Pretinho/Maravilhas (Hits 1978-1985)
One of the most important Brazilian composers and performers to appear in the 1960s, singer and songwriter Jorge Ben infused samba with soul and – very specifically African-Brazilian influences. Influential in both the bossa nova and Tropicália movements, Ben’s mid-’70s albums, including A Tábua de Esmeralda in 1974 and África Brasil in 1976, demonstrated how his deep samba roots could be strengthened with a recognition of his African heritage. Born in a Rio favela in 1939 , Ben began to play his own songs at the Little Club at the Beco das Garrafas, where he first performed his early hit Mas Que Nada. In 1969, Ben had hit singles with Minha Menina and País Tropical from his eponymously titled Jorge Ben album. Fio Maravilha – an ode to the Brazilian footballer and one of Neil’s favourites – emerged in 1972 . Now working with the Som Livre label, Ben named his new 1978 album A Banda do Zé Pretinho after his band name. The album is full of superb writing with Bom Dia, Boa Tarde, Boa Noite having a sinuous semi-samba beat and Amante Amado a lush string arrangement. Interestingly, A Banda Do Zé Pretinho was released on CD in 1994 but was discontinued shortly afterwards. It has never been reissued and is now only available on sites like Discogs where you can pick up a Brazilian original for around £50 (including shipping). Alternatively, go for one of the compilations that are still available – like our choice Maravilhas (Hits 1978-1985).
12. Caetano Veloso – Tropicália from Tropicália (A Brazilian Revolution in Sound)
We closed the show with a definitive compilation from the always relaible Soul Jazz label and a tuen that literally defines Brazil’s Tropicália movement of the 1960s. The album brings together music from Os Mutantes, Gilberto Gil, Tom Ze, Jorge Ben and Caetano Veloso in the collision of psychedelia, avant-garde concrete, samba, funk and soul that appeared as a musical reaction against Brazil’s military dictatorship. In 1969, this would lead to the deportation of Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil. Along with extensive and authoritative background notes, the 20 tracks that make up this 2CD set are the place to start if you want to immerse yourself in this most influential period in Brazilian popular music.
More Cosmic Jazz soon but – in the meantime – there’s more Brazilian magic in Neil’s ten choices below. Enjoy!
Neil is listening to…
- Antero Sievert – Todo Libre
- Eliane Elias – Você
- Jon Hassell – Estate (Summer)
- Eumir Deodato – Baubles, Bangles and Beads
- Luiz Bonfá – Jacaranda
- Marisa Monte – Borboleto
- Milton Nascimento – Bridges (Travessia)
- Claude Fontaine – Vaqueiro
- Marcelo D2 – A Procura da Batida Perfeita
- Mark Murphy – Sconsolato