Part One: Joci Batista - Festão (Festa Nordestina) & Os Cabeludos from Os Cabeludos compacto simples - Maraca (1960s) & Juazeiro Verde - AMC (1969)

Starting during the rock book of the mid-1950s, lots of acts from the US and the UK released indie singles that were either re-released or re-recorded by major labels. The re-recorded songs were fun, because one could hear the differences between a small, budget studio version vs. a fancy studio recording. This continued into the 1970s, during the new wave era in Britain and the US, due to initial lack of interest from major labels. I became aware of, and coveted releases by, several artists that released indie 45s that were later re-recorded for big labels. R.E.M. - Radio Free Europe, The B-52's - Rock Lobster, Devo - Jocko Homo (and a number of other songs) and the Pretenders - The Wait spring to mind, but there are numerous other examples. Back in the early 1990s, many of these were very expensive and hard to find. These days, thanks to eBay and shifting tastes, I have been lucky enough to find these singles.

Shifting to Brazil, I haven't found many examples of this in the forró genre. However, I managed to get an ultra-rare copy of Joci Batista's Os Cabeludos single on the Maraca label in the 1960s. Both sides were later recorded, for what I believe was, Batista's 1969 debut album, Juazeiro Verde. The Maraca versions definitely sound more indie and rough, but both recordings are interesting. I prefer Festão (Festa Nordestina), but I wanted to include both sides of the rare single for a/b comparison. Interesting stuff. 

Joci Batista - Festão (Festa Nordestina) from Juazeiro Verde - AMC (1969)



Joci Batista - Festão (Festa Nordestina) from Os Cabeludos compacto simples - Maraca (1960s)



Joci Batista - Os Cabeludos from Juazeiro Verde - AMC (1969)

 

Joci Batista - Os Cabeludos from Os Cabeludos compacto simples - Maraca (1960s)

Ciço Do Pará - Convite (Rojão) & Deusalina (Xote) from Stereo 6 - DEX (1976)

I've been posting a lot of silver and golden age forró, so it's the right time to return the 1970s, or the bronze age of forró, with Ciço Do Pará. Ciço has an extensive catalog of great releases. I've had this album sitting on the shelf for too long. 

Stereo 6 is one of several releases on DEX by Ciço Do Pará, which confusingly has the same cover as his 1977 LP. It looks like Ciço is posing with some dudes on the street that weren't even his band. The production and songs are excellent, even if the cover is another disaster for the genre.

Convite cooks and Deusalina is a xote, one of the subgenres of forró that I rarely feature. Most xotes are on the plodding side almost like a forró waltz, but Deusalina has a standout melody and production.


Ciço Do Pará - Deusalina (Xote) from Stereo 6 - DEX (1976)

Ciço Do Pará - Stereo 6 - DEX (1976)

Nóis No Rio - Sertanejo (1960)

Nóis No Rio - Sertanejo - featuring Osvaldo Oliveira & Geraldo Nunes - (1960)

Nóis No Rio is one of the scarcest and most sought after forró LPs, mainly because it features the first recordings of Osvaldo Oliveira. Oliveira became part of the 3rd big wave of new forró stars, along with eventual CBS label-mates Jacinto Silva and Elino Julião. Oliveira was an excellent interpreter and songwriter. He became a balladeer in the 70s and lost a bit of his fire, but he was responsible for creating some of the best forró of the 1960s.

A contender for the best track on the LP may be Fazenda Véia by Geraldo Nunes, although it's tough to top Oliveira's Opinião de Pau de Arara. 

Geraldo Nunes - Fazenda Véia from Nóis No Rio - Sertanejo (1960)

Osvaldo Oliveira - Baiano de Oxixá from Nóis No Rio - Sertanejo (1960)



Osvaldo Oliveira - Opinião de Pau de Arara from Nóis No Rio - Sertanejo (1960)

Nóis No Rio - Sertanejo (1960) (featuring Osvaldo Oliveira & Geraldo Nunes)