Recife, the capital of Brazil's Pernambuco state, has never enjoyed the status or publicity of Salvador or Rio, but it's one of the country's great music centres. A port city famous for its African-influenced maracatu styles and the wild fusions of the Mangue Bit movement in the 1990s, it was also the centre of an experimental music scene in the 1960s and 70s that provided a local answer to Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso' s Tropicália movement – and angered the military authorities, who destroyed albums they disapproved of. As this intriguing compilation shows, the Pernambuco bands of the era were influenced by western psychedelia, Indian music and local styles, and were all bravely different. The set starts with the furious guitar riffs of The Gentlemen, then settles down to concentrate on three artists: Geraldo Azevedo matches cool, crooned vocals against often discordant backing; Lula Côrtes (who once recorded in the woods to escape the military) switches from acoustic and electric guitar styles to choral work; and Marconi Notaro's engaging tracks include maracatu percussion and sitar-backed folk-rock. An uneven set, but worth checking out.
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Side 1
1.The Gentlemen - "Sorriso Selvagem"
2.Flaviola E O Bando Do Sol - "O Tempo"
3.Geraldo Azevedo & Alceu Valenca - "Mister Misterio"
4.Marconi Notaro - "Antropologica"
5.Lula Cortes & Ze Ramalho - "Beira Mar"
Side 2
1.Geraldo Azevedo & Alceu Valenca - "78 Rotacoes"
2.Lula Cortes - "Nordeste Oriental"
3.Geraldo Azevedo & Alceu Valenca - "Novena"
4.Lula Cortes - "Bahjan - Oracao Para Shiva"
5.Marconi Notaro - "Maracatu"
Side 3
1.Lula Cortes & Ze Ramalho - "Bailado Das Muscarias"
2.Flaviola E O Bando Do Sol - "Desespero"
3.Lula Cortes - "Noite Preta"
4.Marconi Notaro - "Fidelidade"
Side 4
1.Geraldo Azevedo & Alceu Valenca - "Planetario"
2.Marconi Notaro - "Ah Vida Avida"
3.Lula Cortes & Ze Ramalho - "Maracas De Fogo"
4.Geraldo Azevedo &Alceu Valenca - "Virgem Virginia"
5.Lula Cortes - "Alegro Piradissimo"
...
THANKS
KIRK
