Okay, so this isn't a very Christmassy album but at least it doesn't involve Phil Spector; actually I'd say that its celebration of the best of humanity is in some ways very on point for the Christmas spirit.
It’s always nice when the list takes us away from the Anglophone world, and it’s quite often to Brazil. Here, Jorge Ben updates the Tropicália sound with elements of funk and soul – samba funk, it’s a fantastic and infectious combination.
It’s also an interesting pedigree for the music – samba already features African elements, while funk and soul grew out of African-American music, so you’ve got two strands of the African diaspora, changing in their own ways, then meeting up again. And unlike most ring species, the two are interfertile.
As might be expected from the title, the African heritage of Brazil, from the quilombos communities founded by escaped slaves, is celebrated in the title track África Brazil, about a celebrated quilombola (resident of a quilombos) leader known as Zumbi. This is probably the most daring political song that Ben sneaks through the censorship of the Brazilian dictatorship, largely because it is pitched as a celebration of Brazilian culture in its variety.
The opening track, Lança Africano (Umbabarauma) is about an African-Brazilian footballer, and Camisa 10 da Gávea is another football-related song (Gávea’s number 10 shirt), again celebratory of Brazil’s football heritage. Xica Da Silva celebrates another Brazilian figure, with a very laid-back track with some Grateful Dead style guitar noodling at the end.
The cuica (played by the mononymic Neném) features heavily throughout, especially in the track Taj Mahal where it really sounds more like a woodwind instrument playing a solo at times. Taj Mahal also features the riff that Rod Stewart "unconsciously borrowed" (so he said) for Do Ya Think I’m Sexy? You’ll recognise it straight away. To his credit, Rod Stewart settled out of court by agreeing to pay money to UNICEF projects and play at a fundraising concert – how nice that the two were willing to settle the matter in a fashion that benefitted others. Although not a direct lift, you can see how Paul Simon was also inspired by Brazilian music; the track Imaculado with its frenetic conga rhythms (and some great drum fills) will make you think of Late In The Evening.
Ben’s other favourite theme, when he’s not celebrating Brazilian footballers and activists, is, obviously, alchemy, with two tracks Hermes Trismegisto Escreveu (very funky) and O Filósofo (much more Latin, with plenty of cuica).
This was a really enjoyable album, made me wish I was able to speak Portuguese – although I did run the lyrics through Google translate to get a better sense. But it’s just music to make you happy, even if you don’t understand the words, absolutely brimming with the joy of simply being alive. In the (translated) words to A História de Jorge - “Fly, Jorge, fly!”
Comments
Post a Comment