Maraca is one of the most mysterious Brazilian record labels. They released a number of high quality records in the 1960s (and possibly early 1970s) before they disappeared. As far as I am aware, no complete discography exists of Maraca releases.
Compactos (7" singles played at 33 1/3 speed) were primarily used to promote artists on Brazilian radio. They may have also been sold, but in a very limited quantities. Therefore, compactos are far more scarce than LPs in Brazil. Maraca almost exclusively released compactos, with the exception of a few LPs, and may be the best "indie" label from the 1960s, especially for forró music. Many artists on the label, like Elino Julião and Ciço Do Para, went on to acclaim with recordings for larger labels.
While Maraca did not exclusively released forró and northeastern records, the bulk of their releases focused on that music. There are a few notable exceptions covering music that was popular in the 1960s: marchas (carnival music), jovem guarda (youth guard / teen music) and samba, like the compacto below. Belizia is interesting for several reasons. Adeus Barracão is a great song, with a structure, instrumentation and flavor more reminiscent of forró than Bossa Nova or MPB samba. Also, this was a later Maraca release with new label design. Although Belizia may have had a recording career, I have not found any evidence of subsequent releases on any label.
Compactos (7" singles played at 33 1/3 speed) were primarily used to promote artists on Brazilian radio. They may have also been sold, but in a very limited quantities. Therefore, compactos are far more scarce than LPs in Brazil. Maraca almost exclusively released compactos, with the exception of a few LPs, and may be the best "indie" label from the 1960s, especially for forró music. Many artists on the label, like Elino Julião and Ciço Do Para, went on to acclaim with recordings for larger labels.
While Maraca did not exclusively released forró and northeastern records, the bulk of their releases focused on that music. There are a few notable exceptions covering music that was popular in the 1960s: marchas (carnival music), jovem guarda (youth guard / teen music) and samba, like the compacto below. Belizia is interesting for several reasons. Adeus Barracão is a great song, with a structure, instrumentation and flavor more reminiscent of forró than Bossa Nova or MPB samba. Also, this was a later Maraca release with new label design. Although Belizia may have had a recording career, I have not found any evidence of subsequent releases on any label.
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| Belizia - Adeus Barracão (samba) - Maraca compacto (late 1960s) |
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