Jackson do Pandeiro E Almira - Samba Do Birim-Bim-Bim from compacto duplo Tem Jebaculé - Philips (1964)

Jackson do Pandeiro E Almira - Samba Do Birim-Bim-Bim from compacto duplo Tem Jebaculé - Philips (1964)

Jackson do Pandeiro and Almira Castilho's Tem Jebaculé is a splashy, classy, beautifully produced LP with one of the greatest covers of all time. The pair is wearing their nightclub finest, but the hats, once worn by the bandit Lampião and later by Luiz Gonzaga, are a nod to the Northeast and their forró roots. 1964 seems to be the beginning of the decline of Jackson and Almira's fame. Although the musical quality remains high, their LPs start including more samba numbers, perhaps indicating a desire to become a more all-around act vs. strictly forró or côco. Since sales numbers are buried in the Philips vaults or lost, I am guessing that sales were diminishing due to the scarcity of mid-60s Jackson LPs. It's probably not a coincidence that the decline coincided with military removal of president João Goulart in 1964. It was a rough year in Brazil.

This transfer of Samba Do Birim-Bim-Bim comes from the even scarcer Tem Jebaculé promotional EP, released to radio stations only with the same distinct cover as the LP, but is compacto-sized featuring 4 tracks. Dig the distinctive trombone break!

Jackson do Pandeiro E Almira -  Tem Jebaculé compacto duplo - Philips (1964)

Carrapeta - Molho De Murupy from Carimbolando compacto duplo - CBS (1975)

Carrapeta - Molho De Murupy from Carimbolando compacto duplo - CBS (1975)

After releasing one album on Fontana in the late 1960s, Carrapeta resurfaced at the tail end of the glory period of CBS forró in the mid-1970s with a highly regarded promotional compacto EP and LP. The carimbo genre crossed over into forró in the 1970s, thanks to artists like Pinduca. Molho De Murupy is a cool throbber with a funky groove and pained vocal. This distinct sound continued to pop up on subsequent records by other artists, most notably by Os 3 Do Nordeste.

Carrapeta - Carimbolando compacto duplo - CBS (1975)

4 Ases E Um Coringa - Não Posso Nem Comigo, O Samba Agora Vai & Onde Estão Os Tamborins? from É Com Esse Que Eu Vou - Odeon (1950s)

4 Ases E Um Coringa - Não Posso Nem Comigo, O Samba Agora Vai & Onde Estão Os Tamborins? from É Com Esse Que Eu Vou - Odeon (1950s)

The history of forró, which started out in the 1940s with Luiz Gonzaga as baião, a term that later became a sub-genre of the entire forró genre, was just one of many styles for groups in the 1940s, 50s and 60s. Most acts didn't stick to their genre exclusively and mixed up styles. As a result, some LPs from the 1950s sound more musically sophisticated than records from later eras. A group like 4 Ases E Um Coringa would play sambas, marchas, côcos, frevos, rancheras, baiãos and basically any other genre, as long as they could interpret the songs in an interesting way. This mixing of styles was far less common in the 1970s. By then, groups usually stuck to one genre. The point is, Quatro Ases E Um Coringa were an amazing act with sophisticated arrangements and singing that defied convention. They classed up the joint. É Com Esse Que Eu Vou is a killer record and far too off the radar for fans of Brazilian music. 

Note that in O Samba Agora Vai, they reference "Miami and Copacabana", which could be a nod to Chiclete Com Banana by Gordurinha and Jackson do Pandeiro, or the writers of the later song were referencing this one? 

4 Ases E Um Coringa - Não Posso Nem Comigo from É Com Esse Que Eu Vou - Odeon (1950s)


4 Ases E Um Coringa - Onde Estão Os Tamborins? from É Com Esse Que Eu Vou - Odeon (1950s)



4 Ases E Um Coringa - O Samba Agora Vai from É Com Esse Que Eu Vou - Odeon (1950s)

4 Ases E Um Coringa - É Com Esse Que Eu Vou - Odeon (1950s)

Borrachinha - Nascimento Grande from Hoje Tem Forró - Fontana (1971)

Borrachinha - Nascimento Grande from Hoje Tem Forró - Fontana (1971)

Happy New Year! I can think of no better way to start 2015 than with Borrachinha, a performer with a vast catalog of music that has yet to be reissued or digitized. I originally thought that this may be his last live appearance, but this track actually originated from a Philips live album from 1964 called São João No Brejo. Fontana, the publisher of this album, was a subsidiary of Philips. Hoje Tem Forró is even stranger for featuring Marinês, who never recorded for Fontana or Philips, as far as I'm aware. The cover shot may also be one of the oddest ever released for a forró collection.

Hoje Tem Forró - Fontana (1971)

Ary Lobo - Garóta Do Amendoim & Novidade De Hoje from compacto simples - RCA (1960)

Ary Lobo - Garóta Do Amendoim & Novidade De Hoje from compacto simples - RCA (1960)

This is a great 1960 compacto from Ary Lobo with a rare picture sleeve. The songs appeared on the equally rare LP, Aqui Mora O Ritmo which is more desirable than some of his other LPs because it was never reissued in any form and finding clean copies is nearly impossible.

Ary Lobo - Novidade De Hoje from compacto simples - RCA



Ary Lobo - Garóta Do Amendoim from compacto simples - RCA 

Ary Lobo - Garóta Do Amendoim & Novidade De Hoje from compacto simples - RCA (1960)

Review: Jackson do Pandeiro - Falso Toureiro from Ao Vivo - Discobertas (1980 2011)

Review: Jackson do Pandeiro - Falso Toureiro from Ao Vivo - Discobertas (1980 2011)


This is a nice surprise! Discobertas uncovered a live recording of Jackson do Pandeiro with Borborema from 1980. The first six tracks were mastered from cassette. It's likely that this was recorded through the soundboard or with a semi-professional setup. Although it doesn't have the bottom end of a super pro recording, it's a fantastic performance and definitely better than most live TV clips floating around on YouTube.Tracks 7-11 are studio tracks that came from two hard-to-find compilation LPs: 100 Anos de MPB (Banco do Brasil, 1976) and a Carnaval LP: Rio, Carnaval e Turismo (Esquema, 1976).

For Jackson do Pandeiro fans, this is well worth purchasing! Even better, for buyers in the US and Europe, less expensive copies have been cropping up on Amazon and eBay lately. Buy it and support Discobertas!

Jackson do Pandeiro - Ao Vivo CD 2011 Discobertas

Osvaldo Oliveira - Estou Querendo from Festejo Junino - CBS (1968)

Osvaldo Oliveira - Estou Querendo from Festejo Junino - CBS (1968)

Although Osvaldo Oliveira later became more of a crooner, the first 8 to 10 years are his most captivating and collectible, mainly because he was recording forró. Festejo Junino is Oliveira's first compacto for CBS and 1 of 2 known from this early part of his career. It features all of the elements that made him famous: clever phrasing, hypnotic melodies and fantastic production.

Osvaldo Oliveira - Festejo Junino - CBS (1968)