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". LP, Vinyl record album

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 straighted up their act a bit, Ze always remained a committed modernist, as you'll hear on this sampling of 13 tracks from his rare releases on a number of labels. 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. Titles include "Ma", "Doi", "Hein?", "Cademar", "Um Oh E Um Ah", and "A Felicidade". CD

A wonderful mid 70s album by Chico Buarque – proof that he was still one heck of a songwriter, and a pretty decent singer, despite the fact that he'd grown a silly-looking moustache! The production's very nice, too – with that excellent compressed sound that was being used on some Brazilian vocal albums at the time, like work by Joao Donato. Includes the "O Que Sera", a sublime duet with Milton Nascimento that's one of the best versions we've ever heard of the song. Other tracks include "Vai Tabalhar Vagabundo", "Voce Vai Me Sequir", "Corrente", and "Passaredo". CD

A beautiful collaboration between two of our favorite Brazilian artists ever – the lovely Joyce and bossa piano legend Joao Donato – both of whom have held onto all of their best early charms of their music! The session's definitely got a Joyce flavor upfront, as she's the main vocalist – but Donato's piano is a strong factor too – pulsating wonderfully with those warmly-crafted rhythms he's always done better than anyone else – that unique stop/start groove first forged in the 60s, heard best on his 70s work, and resurrected here to provide a fresh new setting for Joyce! Arrangements are by Donato and Joyce, and by Jesse Sadoc, who plays trumpet in the group – and the production's got a slightly rootsy quality, without any too-slick modes that might hurt the intimacy of a special session like this. Titles include "Amazonas No 2", "Feminina", "Aquarius", "Chama O Donato", "Tardes Caricas", "Caymmi Visita Tom", and "Amor Nas Estrelas". CD

One of the moodiest Verve albums from Astrud Gilberto – a set that has some surprising arrangements by Gil Evans – working here on one of his few 60s dates with a singer! Astrud's blue-tinged vocals work perfectly with Evans' backdrops – and Al Cohn also takes over the helm on two of the album's tracks, but still does a very good job of keeping the groove. There's a nice mix of sadness and lightness in the set – and titles include a wonderful version of "Berimbau" that actually features berimbau playing by Dom Um Romao, a great take on "El Preciso Aprender A Ser So" with English lyrics, and the titles "Bim Bom", "Lugar Bonito", "Frevo", and "Once Upon A Summertime". LP, Vinyl record album

70s soul from Brazil – and a tremendously strong effort from the legendary Tim Maia! This record was Tim's first after an initial run on Polydor – and it shows Maia tightening up his groove even more, but still avoiding the slicker sounds of later years. There's a really focused sound here that's totally great – one that shows that Maia's work was hardly just some happy cross-cultural accident, and instead the careful work of an artist who was out to challenge the best American soul acts of the time! There's a warm little groove to most of the tracks – tripping along lightly in the vein of some of our favorite US mellow soul from the mid 70s – an approach that's mostly soul, but with some funky undercurrents – and often smooth, but never cloying or overly commercial. Titles include "Ride Twist & Roll", "Flores Belas", "Let It All Hang Out", "Sem Voce", "E Necessario", "Leva O Meu Blue", "Pense Menos", and "Musica Para Betinha". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the strangest albums in the career of Chico Buarque – and one of the best-remembered too! Os Saltimbancos is a children's play adapted by Buarque from original text by Sergio Bardotti – set to music by Luiz Enriquez Bacalov, and recorded in both Rome and Rio! Most of the album is spoken, with narration by Magro from MPB-4 – and the story is about some unhappy animals that are on their way to the big city to become musicians! The donkey (played by Magro) gets tired of doing hard labor and meets a dog (played by Ruy, another of the MPB-4 guys), a cat (played hilariously by Nara Leao), and a hen (Miucha, the sister of Chico Buarque). The music is pretty strange, and some of the tracks have a sound that's actually kind of avant-poetry, with lots of strange sounds, shouts, and whispers – in a manner that's almost as experimental as it is whimsical. Titles include "Minha Cancao", "Bicharia", "O Jumento", "Todos Juntos", and "A Batalha". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the more obscure Brazilian harmony bossa albums of the 60s – yet a set that we'd put right up there next to our favorite work from Sergio Mendes & Brasil 66 – and maybe some of the even groovier acts recording down in Brazil! Mario Castro Neves is best known as a piano player and arranger – and he brings a jazzy vibe to this set, working with a core trio that features Normando on drums and Novelli on bass – while also opening the door to work from female singers Thais and Biba, who soar together in a breezy duet mode – very Brasil 66, but leaner and groovier too – with some scatting qualities that also show an influence from European jazz! There's a sparkling sound here that's strongly influenced by bossa, but which also has some sunnier 60s touches too – and Mario's arranging skills are at an all-time high on the lightly dancing rhythms of the tunes. Titles include "Candomble", "Nana", "E Nada Mais", "Keep Talking", "Once More", "Ta Por Fora", and "Morte De Um Deus De Sal". CD

One of the more obscure Brazilian harmony bossa albums of the 60s – yet a set that we'd put right up there next to our favorite work from Sergio Mendes & Brasil 66 – and maybe some of the even groovier acts recording down in Brazil! Mario Castro Neves is best known as a piano player and arranger – and he brings a jazzy vibe to this set, working with a core trio that features Normando on drums and Novelli on bass – while also opening the door to work from female singers Thais and Biba, who soar together in a breezy duet mode – very Brasil 66, but leaner and groovier too – with some scatting qualities that also show an influence from European jazz! There's a sparkling sound here that's strongly influenced by bossa, but which also has some sunnier 60s touches too – and Mario's arranging skills are at an all-time high on the lightly dancing rhythms of the tunes. Titles include "Candomble", "Nana", "E Nada Mais", "Keep Talking", "Once More", "Ta Por Fora", and "Morte De Um Deus De Sal". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the moodiest Verve albums from Astrud Gilberto – a set that has some surprising arrangements by Gil Evans – working here on one of his few 60s dates with a singer! Astrud's blue-tinged vocals work perfectly with Evans' backdrops – and Al Cohn also takes over the helm on two of the album's tracks, but still does a very good job of keeping the groove. There's a nice mix of sadness and lightness in the set – and titles include a wonderful version of "Berimbau" that actually features berimbau playing by Dom Um Romao, a great take on "El Preciso Aprender A Ser So" with English lyrics, and the titles "Bim Bom", "Lugar Bonito", "Frevo", and "Once Upon A Summertime". CD

Brilliant work from one of our favorite Brazilian artists ever – a singer who only seems to get better with age, and who's working here with some beautiful help from Dori Caymmi! Caymmi plays guitar and sings on a good portion of the album with Joyce – helping to flesh out the overall sound and give it a bit more depth – taking Joyce's already-wonderful mix of breezy vocals, bossa rhythms, and light guitar, and inflecting it with a strong sense of history and tradition. With Dori on board, Joyce is actually freed from playing guitar on most of the record – a feature that seems to bring even more force to her vocals – and as usual, husband Tutty Moreno is in the group, providing some lightly dancing rhythms on the drum kit! Titles include "Mercador De Siri", "Rio Bahia", "Jogo De Cintura", "Saudade Da Bahia", "Demoro", "Pra Que Chorar", "Joaozinho Boa Pinta", and "Flor Da Bahia". CD