Brazuca Sounds

Salve! This is a bonus episode for paid subscribers! Every episode is a different song. This is the song today: "Maracatu Atômico" by Jorge Mautner (written by Mautner/Nelson Jacobina) Gilberto Gil released this song as a single (compact), then produced Jorge Mautner's sophomore album, released in 1974 via Polydor. Before making music, Mautner was a controversial writer, with his Trilogy of Kaos b...

This episode is exclusive for paid subscribers . Subscribe now and also get bonus episodes! In episode #71, we celebrate the 50-year release of "Cantar" by Gal Costa. Unlike her two previous works, this is a more soft, calm, reaffirming Gal Costa's and her early bossa nova style - before she turned into Tropicalia sex symbol. Produced by Caetano Veloso and several tracks arranged by...

Salve! This is a bonus episode for Brazuca Sounds paid subscribers! Every episode is a different song. This is the song today: "A Rã" by Gal Costa (written by João Donato/Caetano Veloso) João Donato composed this music as "The Frog", which was recorded by his friend João Gilberto as "O Sapo" and finally has its definitive title after Caetano Veloso wrote the lyrics. Gal Costa recorded for her Caet...

In this episode, we celebrate the 50-year release of "Lóki?", the solo debut album of Arnaldo Baptista. After departing from Os Mutantes, and dealing with depression, drug abuse, and the break up with Rita Lee, Arnaldo put together one of the most melancholy Brazilian albums ever produced. A psychedelic rock n' roll with no electric guitar on it, the album is an adventure of organ, piano, and mode...

Salve! This is a bonus episode for Brazuca Sounds paid subscribers! Every episode is a different song. This is the song today: "Bananeira " by Emílio Santiago (written by João Donato/Gilberto Gil) João Donato composed this music as "Villa Grazia" while touring in Italy supporting Joao Gilberto on piano. Like almost every instrumental song he wrote, the title names were changed upon having lyrics,...

Salve! This is a bonus episode for Brazuca Sounds paid subscribers! Every episode is a different song. This is the song today: "Amigo Branco " by Márcia Maria (written by Leci Brandão) This bonus episode is dedicated to samba legend Leci Brandão, who turned 80 years old on September 12th. Released in 1978 on Márcia Maria's debut album, and produced by boogie-Midas Lincoln Olivetti, 'Amigo Branco"...

In this episode, we celebrate the music career of the great Sergio Mendes. As hard as it is to summarise such a long discography, we hopefully brought the essential of Sergio Mendes in 15 songs (Portuguese language-only, nothing personal). We talked about the origins of "Mas Que Nada" and its meaning, personal favourites from Brasil 65 released as Sergio Mendes Trio featuring Wanda Sá and Rosinha...

Salve! This is a bonus episode for Brazuca Sounds paid subscribers! Every episode is a different song. This is the song today: "Inútil Paisagem " by Wanda Sá Released in 1964, Wandá Sá's debut album, "Vagamente" is a bosa nova masterpiece showcasing her incredible voice, surrounded by the soft, charming, and cool arrangements of Roberto Menescal. "Inútil Paisagem", written by Tom Jobim (also known...

Salve! This is a bonus episode for paid subscribers ! Every episode is a different song. This is the song today: "Na Rua, Na Chuva, Na Fazenda " by Hyldon Hyldon released his debut album in 1975, but a year before he achieved mainstream success with the soul ballad "Na Rua, Na Chuva, Na Fazenda". It is a love song based on Hyldon's long-distance relationship with a girl tha...

In this episode, we celebrate samba once again by listing 10 different songs whose subject is the samba itself. A metalinguistic samba so to speak, where the music genre is the character - one would be impressed by how many songs are out there! Among the highlights are Dorival Caymmi's "O Samba da Minha Terra", Zé Keti's "A Voz do Morro", and Novos Baianos' "Na Cadência do Samba" (written by Ataul...

Salve! This is a bonus episode for paid subscribers ! Every episode is a different song. This is the song today: "Alegria, Alegria " by Caetano Veloso "Alegria, Alegria" is off Caetano Veloso's debut album, a song about freedom and "walking against the wind, without carrying an ID", a clear reference to the Brazilian military regime and its constant vigilance. The...

In this episode, we celebrate the music from the South region in Brazil, from its folklore roots with Teixeirinha, album sales phenomenon Nelson Gonçalves, melancholic-samba pioneer Lupicínio Rodrigues, and the bubblegum-rock early influences of Elis Regina. We also covered the Southern Tropicalia movement, with Os Brasas, O Bando, and Liverpool, and finished with folk-rock artists like Hermes Aqu...

Salve! This is a bonus episode for paid subscribers ! Every episode is a different song. This is the song today:"Agoniza Mas Não Morre " by Beth Carvalho Today we're celebrating the centenary of samba-songwriter Nelson Sargento, the author of "Agoniza Mas Não Morre", born in Rio de Janeiro on July 25th, 1924. The song is a homage to samba, which as he sings "may agoniz...

This episode is exclusive to subscribers. Unlock now at patreon.com/brazucasounds In episode #66, we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Alceu Valença's debut album as a solo artist, "Molhado de Suor", released by Philips in 1974. Born and raised in Pernambuco, in the Northeast of Brazil, Valença effortlessly blended folklore sounds of his native land, such as forró and baião, with MPB...

Salve! This is a bonus episode for paid subscribers ! Every episode is a different song. This is the song today: "Trem das Onze " by Adoniran Barbosa In celebration of Adoniran Barbosa's debut album released in 1974, we analyzed his most popular song, "Trem das Onze". Born and raised in São Paulo, Adoniran wrote several songs about the common man, such as a guy who cannot a...

Salve! This is a FREE bonus episode. Subscribe now at PATREON t o have access to all bonus eps, and exclusive playlists. Every episode is a different song: "É Preciso Dar um Jeito Meu Amigo " by Erasmo Carlos  In 1969 Erasmo Carlos left Jovem Guarda behind to join the record label Phillips and introduced a more melancholic aspect to his songs. "É Preciso Dar um Jeito Amigo" is...

In episode #65 we celebrate the music career of Chico Buarque, who turns 80 years old on June 19th. So what about discussing, playing, or mentioning 80 of his best songs ever released? I think it's a great idea, so we discussed his discography from his early days as a bossa-nova aficionado to his protest songs against the Brazilian military regime, his great songs released in the 80s and 90s, cove...

Salve! This is a FREE bonus episode. Subscribe now at PATREON to get access to all bonus eps and exclusive playlists. Every episode is a different song. This is the song today: "As Curvas da Estrada de Santos " by Roberto Carlos (Roberto/Erasmo) In 1969 Roberto Carlos mostly dropped Jovem Guarda to incorporate a variety of sounds into his music such as MPB, soul, and rock. "As Curva...

Salve! This is s bonus episode for paid subscribers ! Every episode is a different song. This is the song today: "Ponteio" by Edu Lobo (Edu Lobo/Capinan) This song was the grand winner of the Festival de Musica Popular Brasileira, a popular music contest made for TV in the 1960s. Performed live by Lobo, Marília Medalha, and Quarteto Novo, "Ponteio" famously finished first ahead...

In episode #64 we discuss songs censored during the military regime in Brazil (1964-1985). In April 1964, a coup d'etat took over Brazil, and four years later the government adopted even more restrictive measures with the Institutional Act nº5, so every cultural work (films, books, theatre, and music), required prior approval from the government to circulate. We had another episode on this topic o...

Salve! This is a bonus episode for paid subscribers ! Every episode is a different song: "País Tropical" by Wilson Simonal (written by Jorge Ben) from 1969 Jorge Ben wrote this song for Gal Costa but Simonal after seeing her performing the song live asked his friend Ben for the scoop. Simonal then not only recorded "País Tropical" first, but his version became an instant hit. C...

This episode is exclusive for paid subscribers. Unlock now by subscribing at PATREON . In episode #63 we discussed the 50th anniversary of Elis & Tom, released in 1974. Elis Regina completed 10 years at Philips, and the record label offered a gift to celebrate the occasion. She chose to record an album performing songs by Tom Jobim featuring the maestro himself. Recorded in Los Angeles, the al...

This is another bonus episode of Brazuca Sounds! Every episode is a different song. This is the song today: "Eu só Quero um Xodó" by Gilberto Gil  from Cidade do Salvador (1973) The accordionist Dominguinhos once created a melody in his tiny apartment. Anástasia was cooking, left everything behind, and wrote the lyrics for the song. They intended to sell it off to a forró  record label,...

In episode #62 we discussed the 50th anniversary of Jorge Ben's masterpiece "A Tábua de Esmeralda", released in 1974. After a period of living in France, Jorge Ben got involved with alchemists. Hence, the album is a reflection of its secrets, legends, and fables, including the album's title (a reference to the Emerald Tablet) and the artwork that incorporates drawings from  Nicholas Flamel ,...

This is another bonus episode of Brazuca Sounds! Every episode is a different song. This is the song today: "Ando Meio Desligado" by Os Mutantes from A Divina Comédia (1970) "Ando Meio Desligado" was a bit of post-Tropicalia from the album A Divina Comédia , with a more rock-infused sound, influenced by Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin (who ironically would both die a few months later). The arrangeme...