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Okay, I confess that for years I slumbered ignorant of the great glory of Brazilian music. I had glimmerings of insight and reality, but I shrugged them off. Jim R our brother BNBB person kept inviting me to see the light, and I did, slowly, surely, steadily. . . . And now I'm clearly in a shaft of brilliance, dazzled and delighted.

Perhaps the biggest contribution that Jim R has made to my listening life is allowing me to discover the beauty and logic and wisdom and warmth in the music of Antonio Carlos Jobim. I have come to appreciate his work to an extent that surprises me. I've become very fond of the small number of his own recordings that I have, and his work interpreted by others.

I am really amazed by his "banda nova". . . the textures of the flute and the beautiful voices and the cello. . . . This is classical music, this is popular music, this is jazzy music, this is music that is healing and heartfelt.

Thanks to Jim R for the guidance. I'm going to be exploring Brazilian music now as a part of my regular voyaging. . . !

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Jim R has also been a guiding light for me in terms of Jobim treasure hunts. (Althought he'd probably say he was more of another world or a general hospital). One of the greatest things he ever did for me was convince me to get Terra Brasilis, which is one of my favorite albums of ANY genre. I've been listening to that album for about 3 years now, and some of those songs still move me in the same way they did the first time I listened to them.

But there is so much more to say about Jobim. And with any luck, Jim R will get here soon enough and tell us all about it!

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I just bought "Terra Brasilis." It's taking a little getting used to, only for the vocals. The music is wonderful, as it has been with all the other Jobim albums I've heard. I don't know why, but Jobim's singing reminds me of Frank Sinatra. :rolleyes:

My favorite Jobim albums are "Wave" and "Stone Flower." "The Composer of..." and "Tide" are also great. I'm always open to new Jobim suggestions, and suggestions for any type of Brazilian music for that matter.

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Okay, I'm here... I think! :blink: This is my first post on this board, and I just barely managed to get through the registration process (I'm dealing with some bugs, including tiny, almost unreadable text, and occasional dead ends... links to blank pages, etc). I hope I can get these things worked out, but I wanted to get here asap to join this thread! Thanks Lon, Al, and all those who will be taking part. We've had some great discussions about Jobim on other boards, and I have learned a great deal over just the past few years. I always enjoy sharing my enthusiasm on this topic, although I tend to struggle when it comes to helping to enlighten others about the things I love. That's one thing that's great about this for me- I'll be explaining something to somebody, or sharing details that I might not normally think about, and suddenly things will dawn on me that I should have known long ago. Anyway, I'm looking forward to this, and I just hope I can keep up! For those who may be just getting their feet wet in terms of Jobim, a great starting point is the "Clube do Tom" website: Clube do Tom

Other sites to check out:

Remembering Antonio Carlos Jobim

Bossa Nova history

Clique Music (english)

I'll stop there before I get out of control... Thanks again- I hope this post works properly...

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I just bought "Terra Brasilis." It's taking a little getting used to, only for the vocals. The music is wonderful, as it has been with all the other Jobim albums I've heard. I don't know why, but Jobim's singing reminds me of Frank Sinatra. :rolleyes:

I know what you mean. There were some songs that took forever to enjoy (don't feel bad if you can't stand "Two Kites:" me & Jim have been arguing the merits (or lack thereof, depending on who ya talk to) of this song since the Messozodiac era), but as time went on, they grew on me. In fact, there are still some songs on there I don't particularly care for (did we REALLY need another version of "Ipanema?" I mean, it sounds as if someone left the tape rolling while the musicians were warming up). But that's nitpicking. As a whole, this album works like few others I've heard.

Two obvious choices that are wildly popular (and deservedly so) are Getz/Gilberto and The Composer of Desafinado Plays, both of which are in Verve's wildly overpriced Desert Island (aka Verve Master Editions with cheap postcard covers to jack up the prices) series. Get 'em anyway. They sound fabulous and the music is beyond timeless.

I'm so glad the Guru Bossa-rishi is here now!

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I'm not really a big fan of Sinatra, but while we're on the subject... I would recommend the Jobim/Sinatra collaberation to just about anyone (except for the gentleman who started this topic, that is :) ). I think Sinatra relaxed into those sessions very nicely, without trying to hog the entire show, if you will. Anyway, much of that material has been OOP for a very long time (the portion released on the "Sinatra And Company" album), and has been circulating on one comprehensive CD (from europe), and the whole package is really worth having, IMO.

Lon, I think I first noticed the Morelenbaums when I bought the "Passarim" CD, but they really began to impress me on that "Tom Canta Vinicius" CD. After Jobim's passing, when they began working more as leaders, the impression was strongly solidified. Jobim's legacy is in good hands (to say the least) with them, and the success of "Casa" will hopefully be a springboard for more projects. It isn't clear to me yet whether Jobim's son Paulinho (and grandson Daniel) will be doing any more recordings with the Morelenbaums. I hope so...

Here's a nice article/interview/discog on Jaques (slightly dated now, from 2000):

http://www.brazzil.com/musjul00.htm

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I haven't yet heard "Passarim" but will one day soon. Yes, the "Canto Vinicius" is excellent and their participation makes it that way (oh, it's likely would have been that way without them! :D) I really love their participation whenever I've heard them with Jobim, and their work that I have heard without Jobim is also excellent. I hope they get to continue to caretake and expand the legacy.

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Well you are of course welcome. I'm just beginning to explore his work; had a cd that slept in my collection that on rediscovery is EXCELLENT; it is called I think "Rios Vallas" on SJL/Media 7 France. And have discovered one of his early lps that is spellbinding with his virtuosity. Jim R will probably shed light on a pathway to explore his work. . . .

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1056124.jpeg

Bossa Nova Brasil is the compilation "Consolicao" is on, and a fine compilation it is. I've been in a hard bop phase, but when I swing back to things Brasilian I'm thinking Baden Powell will be a first choice. :rsmile:

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Consolaçao is a classic, written by Powell in collaberation with Vinicius de Moraes. It's been recorded probably hundreds of times, by a great variety of Brazilian artists. I don't have that particular compilation, but I have some others, and as I recently said to Lon, I think they're often a great way to get into Brazilian music.

Powell was a prolific recording artist, especially after going to europe. Check out this fantastic Baden Powell site!

Baden Powell discography

Edited by Jim R
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"The Waters of March" IMO is life condensed in less than four minutes. I just read where Gene Lees was at first appalled when Ogerman and Jobim first teamed up because Ogerman at the time did not have the best reputation.Doing arrangements for Lesley Gore and others did not endear Ogerman to the jazz community but when the actual results came out a lot of minds were changed including Lees. "Terra Brasilis" is marvelous and I would like to cast a vote for "Urubu". Hell,for that matter I'd like to cast my vote for just about everything that Jobim did.Jobim was,is and forever shall be amazing.

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I'll agree about Jobim. A very wonderful writer and seems like he was a great person.

I love that piece Aguas de Mars as well. It's such an interesting piece in structure and the way that the Banda Nova played it is just. . . exciting I guess is the best word!

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hi guys,

as i´ve already said to Lon, i´m from rio de janeiro - brasil and if any of you need something about brazilian music, i´ll be glad to help :)

it´s nice to know that Jobim's music still touches people around the world. i would recommend for the lovers of "banda nova" as i am, the album entitled "Inedito". it´s an OOP here but i think it should be available elsewhere.

regards to all

Marcus Oliveira

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Marcus, welcome. It's great to have a Brasilian "connection" here. :) On a few of the jazz bulletin boards some of us have visited in previous years, we had the pleasure of learning from other Brasilian gentlemen, such as the writer Jose Domingos Raffaelli, and Alvaro Neder (who has been writing biographical pieces on Brasilian musicians for the AMG- All Music Guide- online). I have also been fortunate to have come into contact with a few other people from Rio, via the old Verve bulletin board. In all cases, the Brasilians I have been in contact with have been extremely helpful and generous people.

Speaking of "Inedito", I think that it is unfortunately out of print everywhere. My friend Joe Carter (a fine guitarist here in the U.S. who has gone from playing jazz to brasilian music) was looking for a copy about a year ago, and had a lot of trouble finding it. I bought a used copy on eBay several years ago, and my understanding was that it was OOP even then. I agree, though- this is one of the finest examples of Jobim's work ever produced.

Marcus, would you happen to know where to find a copy of the LP (I don't know of any CD release, as of yet) "Brasilia- Sinfonia da Alvorada"?

Regarding Gene Lees and his writing about Jobim, I still have not read much myself. I have recently been corresponding with the great jazz pianist Eddie Higgins (a huge fan of Jobim also), and he said he would send me a copy of the piece written by Lees when Jobim passed away. I still don't understand why the english-speaking world still does not have a complete biography of this great artist...

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thanks Jim for your kind answer :D

can you provide me more information about this album you are lookin' for?

i should admit that i don´t know it :(

it´s a shame that Inedito is really OOP. i was lucky enough to attend to one of the recording sessions at Jobim´s house in Rio (Sabia was the tune!). a friend of my father was the producer of this project since a big company here was thinking about a special christmas gift to their selected clients and aksed Mr. Jairo Oliveira to prepare a set of disc & book about Tom Jobim and there was another one with Dorival Caymmi.

one of the greatest moments in my life. i sat on a corner and just contemplated all those talents creating a fresh version from an old song. i´ve exchanged a few words with Mr.Jobim and it took me some time to get back from heaven :rolleyes:

regards to all

Marcus Oliveira

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Marcus, thanks for sharing that with us. What a tremendous memory it must be!

Regarding "Sinfonia da Alvorada", I am really no expert on it either. It is just that it's one of the few Jobim recordings that has eluded me, and I am very curious about it. There is a page about it on the "Clube do Tom" website that I linked above. Here is a link to the specific page (there are links to other pages with further details):

Sinfonia da Alvorada (at Clube do Tom)

[Edit: I keep leaving out the first part of the title. :rolleyes: It's "BRASILIA: Sinfonia da Alvorada"]

Marcus, I was just listening to a CD of a concert in Rio from the year 2000 ("Bossa Nova 2000", a tribute to Vinicius de Moraes), which Lon transferred for me from a VHS video I had sent to him. The concert was aired on Brasilian TV with the subtitle "20 Anos Sem Vinicius". I'm curious- were you at the concert?

Edited by Jim R
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hello ya'll

Jim, there is a store here in Rio specialized in hard-to-find brazilian music. i´ll go there on the weekend and check this Jobim one.

no, i wasn´t at this concert :(

an album that i really love is Toquinho & Paulinho da Viola together on a live performance known as "Sinal Aberto". i would recommend that on for any brazilian music lover ;)

peace

Marcus Oliveira

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Thanks, Marcus.

That "Sinal Aberto" disc sounds interesting. I have some Toquinho recordings, but for some reason never heard Paulinho da Viola! Even though he began recording way back in the 60's, I guess he never recorded much as a sideman...?

Changing the subject, take a look at this photo. I had never seen this until yesterday when I found it online. (I think it may be too large to post here, so I'll give the URL):

http://www.cifrantiga.hpg.ig.com.br/Bossan...iguras/tomj.jpg

Sylvia Koscina! I'm old enough to remember having a crush on her... :winky:

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