“The history of Brazilian popular music is often seen to hinge on the release of a single song, singer-guitarist Joao Gilberto's transcendent, revolutionary "Chega De Saudade," a gentle, intoxicating ditty written by composer-arranger Tom Jobim that made bossa nova the new national music of Brazil, back in 1958, when it came out as a single. However, like any other country, Brazil's cultural history is complex and multi-layered and obviously Gilberto and Jobim didn't just come out of nowhere. This magnificent 2-CD set -- compiled by the ever-fab French archival label, Fremeaux -- documents the many crosscurrents and interconnections that set the stage for bossa nova to explode in the late 1950s, first in Brazil and then across the globe. Both Jobim and Gilberto had long careers in the years before their ascent into the heavens: many of the rare tracks gathered here show their early work with other artists, including early versions of Jobim songs performed by the stars of the 1950's "radio singers" era, while other tracks feature Gilberto backing famous singers or, similarly, show Jobim acting as bandleader on various sessions. At some point, their paths collided, and Gilberto (for a while) became Jobim's voice, while Jobim was Gilberto's muse. Although "Chega De Saudade" is seen as the song that sparked a musical revolution, there are several other songs and albums that are considered "the first bossa nova record," chief among these is perhaps the 1957 album "Cancao Do Amor Demais," where Joao Gilberto backed romantic singer Elizete Cardoso on a series of newly-minted bossa classics. (The results are mixed: while the album was Gilberto's first big break, Cardoso is a pretty old-fashioned, corny singer... I've never been that fond of the record; turns out Gilberto didn't like it that much, either...) Bossa nova was a distillation of many trends in Brazilian music -- classic samba-cancao, the romanticism of boleros, and the influence of cool, melodic jazz and American-style pop vocals taken up by singers such as Dick Farney and Johnny Alf. Also gathered here are fabled pre-bossa artists such as guitarist Garoto (one of Joao Gilberto's idols) and his group Trio Surdina, as well as the vocal group Os Cariocas and divas and crooners such as Sylvia Telles, Doris Monteiro, Lucio Alves and Tito Madi... Even in this golden era of digital reissues, the songs on this collection remain hard to find and expensive to own, so having them all together in such as compact, well-curated collection is a rare treat indeed. Highly recommended -- a great way to explore deeper into the history of Brazilian popular song!”
Par DJ JOE SIX PACK – AMAZON.COM
Par DJ JOE SIX PACK – AMAZON.COM
