The title of this Verve compilation is somewhat misleading. After all, Antonio Carlos Jobim, perhaps Brazil's greatest songwriter, and Joao Gilberto, one of its most beloved interpreters, are nowhere to be found. Rather than the collection of classic compositions it appears to be, Canta Brasil is a set of recordings that document Brazilian pop's evolution in the 1960s, '70s, and '80s. At its best, it offers North American listeners glimpses of exciting musical avenues down which they may never have traveled. Joyce and ...
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The title of this Verve compilation is somewhat misleading. After all, Antonio Carlos Jobim, perhaps Brazil's greatest songwriter, and Joao Gilberto, one of its most beloved interpreters, are nowhere to be found. Rather than the collection of classic compositions it appears to be, Canta Brasil is a set of recordings that document Brazilian pop's evolution in the 1960s, '70s, and '80s. At its best, it offers North American listeners glimpses of exciting musical avenues down which they may never have traveled. Joyce and Toninho Horta's "Beljo Partido" is as elegant as a jazz standard, while the combination of wordless chanting and harmonizing that concludes Gal Costa's "Bahia de Todas as Contas" is at once seductively exotic and instantly accessible. Not surprisingly, the contributions of Tropicalia upstarts Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil are the highlights. The instrumental break at the center of Veloso's "Tempo de Esta" -- all handclaps, jazzy piano, and conga -- is a showcase for his sly inventiveness. Gil's "Roda," for its part, needs little more than the singer's boundless enthusiasm to recommend it. On the other hand, Brazilian pop, like pop anywhere, is overloaded with tripe. Dated synthesized textures abound on the disc, along with their inevitable partner in crime: syrupy sentimentality. The worst offenders are Elis Regina's "Aos Nossos Filhos" and Milton Nascimento's "Amor de Indio," a particularly unfortunate selection since Nascimento is one of the country's biggest stars and most outstanding talents. The thoughtful annotation makes one wonder why the compilers of this album couldn't come up with a track-listing that, from beginning to end, represents the beauty and imagination of a music they clearly adore. ~ Daniel Browne, Rovi
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Add this copy of Canta Brasil: the Great Brazilian Songbook to cart. $39.90, new condition, Sold by insomniacsonline rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from South Hackensack, NJ, UNITED STATES, published 1990 by Verve.
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Add this copy of Canta Brasil: Great Brazilian Songbook, # 1 to cart. $96.94, new condition, Sold by Entertainment by Post - UK rated 2.0 out of 5 stars, ships from BRISTOL, SOUTH GLOS, UNITED KINGDOM, published 1990 by Verve.
