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GAZETTE STAFF / NEW YORK CITY
JOAO VOZ E VIOLAO:
THE WORLD-MUSIC GRAMMY WINNER IN FULL U.S. RELEASE
 oao Gilberto, the
creator of Bossa Nova, finally has his new album in full U.S. release
after his recent Grammy Award
Joao Voz e Violao, by Joao Gilberto. Produced by Caetano Veloso,
Verve Records. At local stores for an average price of $ 18.00
As usual, certain albums by musicians from foreign countries who
happen not to be too "commercial" are always ignored by U.S. labels,
which leaves fans with no alternative but to get the costly import at
their local or online stores if they want to appreciate their sounds.
It is quite a sensible commercial attitude, but when time-honored,
internationally acclaimed foreign musicians' new releases do not get
their work released in the United States, one can't help but wondering
what is wrong with the record companies.
Such is the case of Joao Gilberto's latest release, "Joao Voz e
Violao".
Although the album originally came out in his native Brazil in March
2000, only now, after the album was awarded Best World Music Album at
the latest Grammys, did Verve finally give it a full U. S. release.
For those unaware or who don't remember what Bossa Nova is all about,
this album is a great introduction or a good refresher course on the
subject.
In Brazil, samba had been around for ages, but it took the genius of
Bahia-born João Gilberto to develop the local beat and blend it with
elements of cool jazz, thus creating a whole new style, Bossa Nova,
which swept the planet during the late fifties and early sixties, and
still influences a great number of musicians, from Charlie Byrd and Stan
Getz in their time to George Michael and Tuck & Patty nowadays.
Pray silence now, for the man who created the whole thing, with the
support of Antonio Carlos Jobim (who ,against his own will, took the
fame for the Bossa Nova craze for himself), Vinicius de Morais and
others has released a new studio album, recorded eight years after
1992's "João" and three after the live "Eu Sei Que Vou Te Amar" (both
titles, are, by the way, available in the U.S.).
This time, alas, he plays by himself. Just the man, his guitar and
his voice, and no audience sounds. The album, properly titled "Joao Voz
e Violao" (Joao, Voice and Guitar) opens with Caetano Veloso-penned "Desde
Que O Samba É Samba" (Ever Since Samba Was Samba).
Veloso,also a son of the same Bahia where Gilberto was born, wrote
the song in 1993 as a tribute to samba and Bossa-Nova. In João
Gilberto's voice, the lyric is taken to a whole new dimension:
"A tristeza é senhora/ Desde que o samba é samba é assim/ A lágrima
clara sobre a pele escura /A chuva fria que cai lá fora /Solidão apavora
/Tudo demorando em ser tão ruim /Mas há uma coisa acontece no quando
agora em mim /Cantando eu mando a tristeza embora..."
(Sadness is dominant/Ever since samba was samba it has been like
that/the clear tear over the dark skin/The cold rain falling on the
outside/Solitude is frightening/Bad things taking so long/ But there is
something inside me/By singing I send sadness away...)
Caetano Veloso,who produced the album, is,like Gilberto, an innovator
in his own right.
He was the co-founder of of yet another wave in Brazilian popular
music which blended Bossa Nova and other elements of Brazilian sounds
with the influence of late sixties psychedelics and came up, in 1968,
with a whole new sound, later labeled "tropicalism" after a song he
released that year.
With time,he became more and more refined in his songwriting, and
João Gilberto's influence became more and more evident in his work, to
the point of his recording a rare Gilberto composition, "Você Esteve Com
Meu Bem?" (Have You Been With My Sweetheart?", never recorded by its
composer) in his 1996 "Fina Estampa En Vivo".
Veloso and Gilberto are longtime friends, and the latter was
instrumental in Veloso's return from his politically enforced exile
after three years in Europe during the dark years of military
dictatorship in Brazil.
Joao Voz e Violao also contains two classic songs which are present
on virtually every Bossa Nova or João Gilberto collection: Desafinado
(Off-Key) and Chega de Saudade(No More Blues), which are both Tom Jobim
co-compositions.
The first was present in 1964's quadruple Grammy award winner
Getz/Gilberto, a classic album which was very important for the
popularization of what was then called "new Brazilian sound."
The second one is considered by music historians the song that, in
1959, started the whole Bossa Nova wave.
In the new album, those songs are performed like Gilberto does
onstage these days, with no accompaniment. I believe the singer and
Veloso decided to re-make the two songs (specially "Chega de Saudade")in
order to have a "proper" studio versions, since the earlier ones,
recorded years ago, where too much in the musical format of the era, and
Gilberto's guitar playing was not very well heard.
There are, of course, the many live versions, but the applause
somewhat damages the recording, specially when you're dealing with a
very subtle vocalist and guitarist such as Gilberto.
The other tracks are equally interesting. My personal favorite is "Não
Vou Para Casa"(I'm not Going Home), a humorous samba in which the singer
is urged to go back home, but refuses to return "before the sun rises".
Very good are also
Tom Jobim's "Você Vai Ver"(You'll See) and another Veloso
composition, "Coração Vagabundo"(Vagabond Heart). The only bad thing
about the CD is that is is too short for the price; it has merely 35
minutes, which gives the listener a feeling of dissatisfaction as it
ends.
The cover of the album shows a girl with her finger on her
lips(Brazilian model/actress Camila Pitanga),requesting silence. It is a
direct message to the public of Credicard Hall in São Paulo that booed
Joao Gilberto during a1999 performance, when Joao, ever the
perfectionist, complained of excessive feedback from the sound system.
He reacted by showing his tongue to the public and left Caetano Veloso,
who was also performing that night, alone on stage to finish the show.
One can be almost sure that the idea for the cover came from Veloso, who
has a reputation for his caustic sense of humor.
One fact that gives this CD great importance is the fact that many of
the original Bossa Nova players are no longer in this world. Stan Getz
passed away in 1991, Jobim in 1994, Vinicius de Morais in 1980, Charlie
Byrd and Luis Bonfá(the author of Manhã de Carnaval ) left us recently.
Of course they left us countless recordings of their music, but fresh
work from them is very rare, as João Gilberto himself rarely does studio
work.
The album, yes, is short, but it is a very good addition to the
collection of a listener of good music. A fine wine will go well when
listening to it.
Ernest Barteldes
Staten Island,NY
A writer needs feedback in order to write properly.
Please send feedback to: ebarteldes@nycny.net
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