All Categories — All Formats  

A glorious celebration of the Luaka Bop label – the groundbreaking imprint first started by David Byrne as a way to bring older Brazilian music to the American market! Since that initial release – Brazilian Classics 1 – the label's been covering a hell of a lot of ground – a fair bit of the South American scene, bits from overseas, and even some home-grown treasures too – all of which can be heard on this wonderfully low-priced collection. The package comes with a cool fold-out cartoon – telling the story of the label and its relationship with the majors over the years – and the CD features 15 titles that include "Ponta De Lanca Africano" by Jorge Ben, "Aht Uh Mi Hed" by Shuggie Otis, "Fuzzy Freaky" by David Byrne, "Sexy" by Los Amigos Invisibles, "Rio Longe" by Moreno + 2, "Defeito 2 Curiosidade" by Tom Ze, "Whoever You Are" by Geggy Tah, "Baby" by Os Mutantes, "Samba Sem Nenhum Problema" by Marcio Local, "Bacalao Con Pan" by Irakere, "Sweet Melody" by Zap Mama, and "Heart Of Glass" by Nouvelle Vague.

A low-priced introduction to one of the most essential world music labels of the past few decades – the mighty Luaka Bop, a key force in opening American ears to a wider world of sounds! The package is heavy on Brazilian bits from the past and present – but also features some other great sounds from around the globe – the sorts of music that Luaka Bop's great at tracking down, pulling together, and presenting in a form that's easy to grasp for the uninitiated. CD features 11 tracks in all – including "Ya Ya Ya" and "Seu Lugar" by Kassin+2, "De Usa Do Amor" and "Possibilidade" by Domenico+2, "Dance With Me" by Nouvelle Vague, "Brother Father Mother Sister" by Tim Maia, "Crash Into The Sun" by Jim White, "Pode Me Chamar" by Eddie, "A Mimha Menina" by Os Mutantes, "Cobrinha" by Tine, and "Diamonds To Coal" by Jim White.

Insanely great sounds from the legendary Tim Maia – easily the most soulful singer in 70s Brazil, and an artist with a heck of a strong ear for funk, too! The music here is an incredible hybrid of American soul and Brazilian elements – especially since some lyrics are in English – and the grooves are often mixed together in a sound that's nice and fuzzy around the edges, with some slight psychedelic elements that makes the cuts a perfect fit for this Luaka Bop series! Yet Tim Maia's hardly a guy who can easily fit into any easy slot or series – because as you'll hear on this set, he's got a vibe that's all his own – a really wonderful approach that's different even from some of his hippest contemporaries in Brazil – and which has gone onto have influence on countless other generations of singers and musicians – including his nephew Ed Motta. The package is great – a real visual tribute to the sounds within – and titles include "Que Beleza", "Ela Partiu", "Do Leme Ao Pontal", "Brother Father Mother Sister", "Quer Queira Quer Nao Queira", "Let's Have A Ball Tonight", "I Don't Care", "The Dance Is Over", "Rational Culture", "You Don't Know What I Know", and "Nobody Can Live Forever".

One of the most compelling albums we've heard from Luaka Bop in awhile – a set of tracks that draws from Sierra Leone roots and 70s African psych – all recorded with an intensity and urgency that really drives the album along, right from the get-go! Rhythms are fast, but never out of control – and certainly not in the too-bombastic mode that you'd hear from more hip hop-styled African work of late. Instead, they've got this bubbling, quick-stepping quality that's really wonderful – fast paced amidst the more echoey, fuzzy-edged sounds on the keyboards and guitars – all held together beautifully by the vocals fo Amed Janka Nabay! Titles include "Somebody", "Rotin", "En Ya Sah", "Kill Me With Bongo", "Feba", "Ro Lungi", and "Eh Mane Ah".

Although there's been a few "best of" collections out already by this legendary Brazilian rock group – this volume still stands as the most nicely-selected batch of tracks, and it comes complete with great liner notes that help you really navigate and understand their music. There's a total of 14 cuts in all – including an English and Portuguese reading of the famous "Baby", plus the tunes "Ave Lucifer", "Desculpe, Babe", "Adeus Maria Fulo", "Panis Et Circensis", "Bat Macumba", "Dia 36", and "Fuga No II".

Although there's been a few "best of" collections out already by this legendary Brazilian rock group – this volume still stands as the most nicely-selected batch of tracks, and it comes complete with great liner notes that help you really navigate and understand their music. There's a total of 14 cuts in all – including an English and Portuguese reading of the famous "Baby", plus the tunes "Ave Lucifer", "Desculpe, Babe", "Adeus Maria Fulo", "Panis Et Circensis", "Bat Macumba", "Dia 36", and "Fuga No II".

A great summation of the Afro-Portuguese sound – with work from Lisbon, Angola, Sao Tome, and Cape Verde too! The grooves are a mix of sambas, rumbas, and more rootsy modes – and titles include "Tulipa Negra" by Tulipa Negra, "Luis Kandihnha" by Pedro Ramos, "Mama Africa" by Dany Silva, "N Gana" by Waldemar Bastos, and "Sodade" by Cesaria Evora. First time on vinyl!

An insanely wonderful album! Shuggie Otis is the son of Johnny Otis – the LA R&B maestro who was moving heavily into funk at the end of the 60s – and he has this tripped out, super-dope guitar style that he played to strong effect on Johnny's albums of the late 60s and early 70s, and on his first two solo albums, which were kind of bluesy in tone. For this album, though, he shocked the world by moving into a stripped-down mode that pairs his guitar with spare drum machine rhythms, flanged-out deeply soulful vocals, and one of the most laidback conceptions of funk you'll ever hear. The album's a landmark – one of those gems that's unlike anything else you can think of, but which will redefine your concept of what you want in a record for years to come. Every track's a winner – and the whole thing's a perfectly unified batch of tunes that includes instant classics like "Inspiration Information", "Island Letter", "Aht Uh Mi Hed", "XL 30", and "Rainy Day". Plus, this reissue features 4 tracks from Shuggie's Freedom Flight LP – including his original version of "Strawberry Letter 23", and "Sweet Thang", "Freedom Flight", and "Ice Cold Daydream".

With Amir Thompson & Black Thought from the Roots.

The glorious return of Os Mutantes – a recent live performance that marks the group's first new album in many many years! The show was recorded before a very enthusiastic audience in London – at a time when the city was in the throes of a recent new wave of interest in Tropicalia – clearly the inspiration for the group's performance here, which is heavy on work from their best years! The lineup features Zelia Duncan in place of Rita Lee on vocals – alongside founders Arnaldo Baptista and Sergio Dias – and the overall sound is pretty great, with some very focused and full-on guitar work throughout. Titles include "Don Quixote", "Ave Gengis Khan", "Tecnicolor", "Virgina", "Cantor De Mambo", "Baby", "El Justiciero", "Balada Do Louco", and "Ave Lucifer".

A groundbreaking collection of work from the legendary Tom Ze – and a record that really helped introduce his genius to the world outside of Brazil! Although it's hard to understand from the perspective of over a decade – especially one that's seen Tom Ze rise to fame again – when this compilation was first put together, the music of Tom Ze had all but fallen off the musical map of Brazil. Ze was one of the founding fathers of Tropicalia – and unlike other members of that group, who rose to great fame during the 70s, and straightened up their act a bit – Ze always remained a committed modernist, continually inventive well into the 70s and 80s – really coming up with amazing sounds that are always compelling, challenging, and often have a nicely quirky feel as well. The style's incredibly hard to pin down – and in fact, we might describe the recordings as being "anti-style" – but if you've heard any of Ze's work, you know you're in for a treat. The collection brings together material from a number of different labels – and titles include "Ma", "Doi", "Hein?", "Cademar", "Um Oh E Um Ah", "Augusta Angelica E Consolacao", "O Riso E A Faca", "Ui", and "A Felicidade".

Insanely great sounds from the legendary Tim Maia – easily the most soulful singer in 70s Brazil, and an artist with a heck of a strong ear for funk, too! The music here is an incredible hybrid of American soul and Brazilian elements – especially since some lyrics are in English – and the grooves are often mixed together in a sound that's nice and fuzzy around the edges, with some slight psychedelic elements that makes the cuts a perfect fit for this Luaka Bop series! Yet Tim Maia's hardly a guy who can easily fit into any easy slot or series – because as you'll hear on this set, he's got a vibe that's all his own – a really wonderful approach that's different even from some of his hippest contemporaries in Brazil – and which has gone onto have influence on countless other generations of singers and musicians – including his nephew Ed Motta. The package is great – a real visual tribute to the sounds within – and titles include "Que Beleza", "Ela Partiu", "Do Leme Ao Pontal", "Brother Father Mother Sister", "Quer Queira Quer Nao Queira", "Let's Have A Ball Tonight", "I Don't Care", "The Dance Is Over", "Rational Culture", "You Don't Know What I Know", and "Nobody Can Live Forever".

The best album so far from this up-and-coming Colombian group – a great mix of rootsy elements and more electronic production – served up in the forward-reaching style we've come to love in recent projects from the Soundway label! Bomba Estereo are easily one of the most contemporary groups to hit the imprint of late – and they've got no trouble at all moving between upbeat, soulful styles and more earthy levels of instrumentation – all fused together with the kind of warmth and joy we might expect in some of the older productions from Luaka Bop, but with a bit more edge too. Titles include "Bosque", "Bailar Conmigo", "Pa Respirar", "Mozo", "Pajaros", "Pure Love", and "Caribbean Power".

The best album so far from this up-and-coming Colombian group – a great mix of rootsy elements and more electronic production – served up in the forward-reaching style we've come to love in recent projects from the Soundway label! Bomba Estereo are easily one of the most contemporary groups to hit the imprint of late – and they've got no trouble at all moving between upbeat, soulful styles and more earthy levels of instrumentation – all fused together with the kind of warmth and joy we might expect in some of the older productions from Luaka Bop, but with a bit more edge too. Titles include "Bosque", "Bailar Conmigo", "Pa Respirar", "Mozo", "Pajaros", "Pure Love", and "Caribbean Power".