Like Luiz Gonzaga and Luiz Vieira, Aldair Soares is one of the great voices of baião. It sounds as if he is being beamed in from a different time. Fortunately, the recording is as powerful as it was when it was cut nearly 70 years ago.
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| Aldair Soares - Alvoroço Do Sertão (baião) from Columbia 78rpm (1954) |
Thanks to his position as head honcho and artistic director for forró at CBS, Abdias recorded more albums for the label than any other artist. His early albums were almost exclusively instrumental, but eventually he began adding guest vocalists. O Mané is a great vocal track with masterful production reminiscent of the glorious early 1970s CBS forró sound.
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| Abdias E Sua Sanfona - Deixa Comigo! - Harmony : CBS (1991) |
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| Juca do Acordeon - Ouvindo - Sinter (1950s) |
Na Minha Casa Todo Mundo Canta is a rare killer in the Jacinto Silva style. Olival Santos made a few appearances on compilations in the 1970s, but it seems that he never had solo release.
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| Olival Santos - Na Minha Casa Todo Mundo Canta from compacto - EAE (1970s) |
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| Genival Lacerda - Mungangueiro Prá Daná - Fontana (1970) |
The São João festival is a yearly June Brazilian harvest celebration. Viva São João was a six volume collection of live northeastern music released by Mocambo in the 1960s. The LPs featured famous artists, like Jacinto Silva and Genival Lacerda, and a number of people like Mêves Gama who are interesting, but far more obscure.
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| Viva São João n.3 - Mocambo (1960s) |
Luiz Wanderley is one of the few all-around entertainers in forró, with interesting and collectible records in the samba and forró styles. Matuto Transviado, featured here from the Baiãno Burro Nasce Morto compacto, was also available on the LP version.
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| Luiz Wanderley - Baiano Burro Nasce Morto compacto - Chantecler (1959) |
Guaraci (aka Guaracy) released a single on RCA, an LP on Trinufo and appeared on a compilation on Estúdio . These were all confined to the 1960s. These records are particularly scarce. This is true for virtually all 60s forró. Em Nordeste is a compilation featuring several forró heavyweights. Interestingly, compilations in Brazil almost always feature exclusive recordings, making them nearly, and sometimes more, valuable than artist studio LPs and compactos.
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| Guaraci Do Pandeiro - O Vendedor De Caranguejos (côco) from Nordeste Em LP - Estúdio 7 (1960s) |
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| Jacinto Silva - Meu Xodó from Agora Tu Pega E Vira - CBS (1971) |
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| Jackson Do Pandeiro - Tem Mulher, Tô Lá - CBS (1973) |
Pichincha's Coqueiro Véio Cansado is a strong example of Venâncio e Corumba's signature sound. The performance is excellent and although the sound is a somewhat primitive, this early côco recording from 1952 is a blazing fire.
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| Pichincha - Coqueiro Véio Cansado (côco) by Venancio e Corumba from Odeon 78rpm (1952) |
Trio Banzú's Meu Boné is a classic bit of shellac samba from the Rozenblit label, República. Although the Rozenblit label is common, I have not seen República used with vinyl. This label may have been specific to the 78rpm era. For those less familiar with the different styles, which are always rooted in rhythm in Brazilian music, samba is perhaps the broadest. Most popular Brazilian music has primarily come from branches of samba, including Bossa Nova and MPB. Outside of the rhythm, samba instrumentation can be very similar to forró recordings. With a slight change in rhythm, Meu Boné could easily be a forró single.
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| Trio Banzú - Meu Boné (samba) from República Rozenblit 78rpm (likely 1950s) |
Os Caçulas Do Baião are curious. Many acts that released singles on 78rpm had careers that came to an end in the 1950s or 1960s like Luiz Wanderley, Paulo Tito and Venancio e Corumba. Major acts like Ary Lobo, Jackson Do Pandeiro, Genival Lacerda and the groups known as Trio Nordestino continued. Os Caçulas Do Baião may be the most obscure of the survivors. After two LPs in 1965 and 1969, Os Caçulas Do Baião seemed most prolific in the 1970s.
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| Os Caçulas Do Baião - Pernambuco Deu (baião) from Chantecler 78rpm (late 1950s early 1960s) |
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| Pinto Do Acordeon - As Filhas Da Viúva - Passarela (year unknown) |
Although maracatu rhythms cross over into forró, generally it is much more common in samba. I am bending the rules this week. Banda Da Lua were Carmen Miranda's backing group. One of her stipulations when traveling to work in the United States was to keep her Brazilian backing band. This was a good call, because it would have been impossible for most North American musicians to match the grooves and close harmonies provided by Bando Da Lua.
Along with backing Miranda on her records, Bando Da Lua put out singles in Brazil and in the United States. The group remained active in the United States until Carmen Miranda's death in 1955. Aloysio De Oliveira was involved in the formation of the famous bossa nova label Elenco. José Oliveira was the voice of the Disney character Zé (short for José) Carioca. This character had a few roles in Disney cartoons, but was even more popular as a comic book character in Brazil and South America.
Nega Do Cabelo Duro is a relatively famous song in Brazil, but Bando Da Lua's version is less well known. It was covered by Astrid Gilberto, Elis Regina and multiple other acts. I am not certain which act recorded it first.
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| Bando Da Lua - Nos EUA - MCA (1975) |
Zepraxédi is a fairly obscure release from 1974 on the Rosicler label. Rosicler also released LPs by Jackson Do Pandeiro, Genival Lacerda, Luiz Wanderley, Natalício Santos and Zé Alves, so Zepraxédi is in fine company. The sound of the act features a strong acoustic sound, wisely featuring guitarist Perez Gonzaga (spelled Peres on this LP) on half of the album tracks. Overall, the album is pleasantly reminiscent of Zito Borborema's best work.
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| Zepraxédi - o poeta vaqueiro - Rosicler (1974) |
Genival Lacerda died in January 2021 of COVID. He was one of the few forró greats to survive past the millennium. Genival Lacerda was one of the reasons I started collecting forró. His work recorded between the early 1960s and 1975 is astonishingly good. Lacerda found a commercial niche after 1975, clowning around on television and recording songs laced with double entendre. Lacerda was always interested in comedy and recorded a comedy record in 1970. However, the comedy part of his persona dominated his career after Severina Xique-Xique in 1975. Serious collectors initially scoffed when I expressed interest in collecting Genival Lacerda's records, primarily because they had not heard the period before he became a variety show staple in Brazil. However, this perception may have shifted some in the past 10 years. A Menina De Campina Grande, written by Genival Lacerda and Elino Julião and recorded in 1968, is a gem from his golden era when his skill in the genre was second-to-none. Genival Lacerda was a blazing light.
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| Genival Lacerda - O Senador Do Rojão - Chantecler (1968) |
Côco Social, from Jackson Do Pandeiro's rarest album from his 10" period, Os Donos Do Ritmo, is a great example of how Jackson could elevate a song that most others would make pedestrian. Côco Social is a côco rhythm, but grooves a bit like a marcha or a samba. Most songs recorded in a march style have aged badly. Jackson, almost without exception, knew how to rise above and create magic.
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| Jackson Do Pandeiro - Os Donos Do Ritmo - Copacabana (1958) |
Tudo Lebra Você is a killer 1970s Ary Lobo track. This may be my favorite Lobo tune from his post-RCA and post-Cantagalo years. The SOM LPs are not quite as consistent as his earlier albums, but it is difficult to find fault with an artist who is a true genius. Ary Lobo's records stand up to anything that Jackson Do Pandeiro, Genival Lacerda and Luiz Gonzaga were releasing at the time. Often, Ary Lobo surpassed these greats.
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| Ary Lobo - Piedade Senhor - Som (1972) |
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| Anastácia - Vamos Xamegá - Tropicana (1972) |
The 4 Ases e 1 Coringa recording of the Luiz Gonzaga composed Tesouro E Meio originally appeared on a 78rpm in 1951. Gonzaga's version was not released until 1956. I assumed that Gonzaga's version was released first, but his recording was not pressed onto shellac until 1956. I am uncertain if Gonzaga played the song on the radio, live or he gave the song to 4 Ases e 1 Coringa to record. Please comment if you know the answer. Tesouro E Meio has a wonderful, bluesy and shadowy chorus sounding like much of Luiz Gonzaga's most wistful and haunting cowboy songs.
The LP, Boneca De Pano, is a collection of 4 Ases e 1 Coringa 78rpm singles. Their 2nd LP, É Com Esse Que Eu Vou, was credited to their full name written as Quatro Ases E Um Coringa and featured a collection of new recordings. For whatever reason, Boneca De Pano is far less common. 4 Ases e 1 Coringa was written about 4 different ways on releases and is a total pain to search for. They just weren't made for these times.
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| 4 Ases e 1 Coringa - Boneca de Pano - RCA (year unknown) |
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| Walter Damasceno - Confusão No Baile from CBS 78rpm (1962) |
Ronando Boldrin is a new name to me. It seems that he primarily wrote softer, middle of the road material with a northeastern flavor. Boldrin seems more comfortable as a balladeer. Não Mexe Em Sertão Que Não É Seu is about as raucous as he ever got. It is a lovely bit of smooth, upbeat forró with a hint of early 70s Gilberto Gil.
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| Ronando Boldrin - Não Mexe Em Sertão Que Não É Seu from compacto - Continental (early 1970s) |
Luiz Gonzaga's impact on forró and northeastern Brazil is like the invention of electricity. Everything changed after he put the northeastern sound on 78rpm in the early 1940s. His career spanned the 78rpm, compacto, 10" LP, vinyl and CD era. It is amazing that he had such a huge impact on Brazilian music, yet the world is still barely aware of the entire genre. Rosinha appeared on a rare compacto and the LP "Lua" from 1961.
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| Luiz Gonzaga - Vida De Vaqueiro compacto - RCA (1961) |
João Silva is a legend in the forró community, both for his prowess in the genre and for the scarcity of his high-quality early recordings. This particular 78rpm is as rare as hen's teeth and deserves to be out in the world with the best sound possible.
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| João Silva - O Côco Tava Bom from Sertanejo 78rpm (likely late 1950s early 1960s) |
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| Clemilda - Eu Vou Tambem - MusiColor (1975) |
Borrachinha created some serious magic in the 1960s and earned enough love to share several coletânea (compilation) LPs with Jackson do Pandeiro on Philips in 1960s. Philips were, arguably, among the big 3 labels for forró in the 60s, along with RCA and CBS. Compilation LPs in Brazil almost always contained original music, unlike collections from the US or Europe. Borrachinha was on at least one magical LP, Alegria Do Norte, and multiple collections before disappearing by the late 1960s. A friend of mine swears that he once saw a Borrachinha solo album, but nothing has surfaced.
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| São João No Brejo Vol 2 - Philips (1965) |
Carcará Trio are an unusual act for forró in 1974. Why? Vocal Harmonies. There were some harmony acts from the 1950s, like 4 Azes E Um Coringa and Trio Maraya, that recorded baião, forró and other northeastern music. Most of these acts were no longer active by 1970. Some of the best forró was recorded in the 1970s, but most acts stuck to the instrumentation and rhythms established by Luiz Gonzaga in earlier decades. Carcará Trio deserve credit for trying to push the genre forward.
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| Carcará Trio - Sanzatri - Discos Chororó (1974) |
Ciço Do Parã was primarily active in the 1960s and 1970s. He made fabulous recordings. As with many artists in the forró genre, his 1960s work is scarce. A Dança Do Xenhenhen was released in small numbers on the short-lived Aurora label in 1969. Information about albums by artists with incomplete discographies are particularly difficult to date. Thank you, Samuel, for finding the release year.
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| Ciço Do Parã - Maria Elena from A Dança Do Xenhenhen - Aurora (1969) |
Benedito Nunes was well connected and released quite a few records in the 1970s. He also appeared on later volumes of the CBS Pau De Sebo compilation series, with original songs that featured almost all of the big forró artists in the 70s, with a few notable exceptions. His earliest records are scarce. Levo Saudades, from 1968, sports a gorgeous cover and the music is beautifully produced. Egal mainly released vinyl in the 1960s and virtually everything on the label is exceedingly rare. Levo Saudades does not even appear in most Nunes discographies. My friends Samuel noted that the same bird cage appears on an Ary Lobo and a Caxanga LP. O Pai Da Gabriela was composed by Elino Julião.
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| Benedito Nunes - O Pai Da Gabriela Levo Saudades - Egal (year unknown) |
Databases and discographies for forró artists are improving, but haven't been as heavily researched as they need to be. My information about the careers of many of these folks is woefully incomplete. Alas, much of the information from this blog will be revised as more complete histories are published.
What is starting to surface is how intertwined the work may have been. While I knew that there was a tight scene around forró, suggested by the cross-collaborative nature of 1970s CBS records, it seems to be traditional for forró musicians to collaborate and cross-pollinate. Many people like Pedro Sertanejo, Abdias and Carlos Diniz may have been producers, engineers, label owners, songwriters, collaborators and session musicians. Forró from at least the 1950s through the 1970s, seemed to be similar to scenes in Nashville or Los Angeles, with lots of the same brilliant session players popping up on multiple records. Forró was more traditional, like the country Nashville scene, and never got quite as weird as the more experimental records coming out of LA in the 1960s.
Carlos Diniz's career as a recording artist spanned from the late 1950s on 78rpm (some reissued on compilation LPs) until the late 1960s with a string of great compactos and a single LP. Forró Do Bom is one of the stronger albums from the period. Diniz also collaborated with and/or wrote songs for a number of important artists from the day, including Luiz Gonzaga, Gordurinha, Zé Gonzaga, Trio Nordestino and Trio Nortista, indicating that he continued working into the early 1970s.
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| Carlos Diniz - Rozenblit (1968) |