This week, I am pleased to present the ultra rare follow up to Coroné Narcizino's Hora Serteneja. The first LP is unusual because it remained in print for years. This is extremely uncommon for most forró artists. I have two copies of the first LP on two different labels and they are both warped, so we are starting with Vol. 2. Bamboleia Sinhá & Caboclinha, from Hora Serteneja Vol. 2, are beautifully produced. Unlike the original Hora Serteneja, the second volume came out once, and only once. in 1967. Coroné Narcizinho - Bamboleia Sinhá from Hora Serteneja Vol. 2 - Discobrás (1967)
Coroné Narcizinho - Caboclinha from Hora Serteneja Vol. 2 - Discobrás (1967)
Coroné Narcizinho - Hora Serteneja Vol. 2 - Discobrás (1967)
As far as I am aware, Carmen Miranda never recorded any baião music . Miranda's recording career started in 1930. She was in the United States by 1939. It is possible that she was only vaguely aware of Luiz Gonzaga, who debuted on disc in 1941. Choro and Toada come from the 1800s and were recorded throughout the 20th Century. Toada songs appeared on albums recorded by baião and forró artists up until the 1960s. Choro and forró have never appeared together on an album by a single artist that I have found (Update: Austin'sVinyl noted several LPs available for download on forroemvinil contain both forró and choro tunes. Thanks for the the info!). Choro, meaning lament, is often played instrumentally. Some vocal choro tunes are stunning with vocals, like Polichinelo, by Carmen Miranda. I have never seen the original 78 rpm for sale.
Carmen Miranda - Polichinelo (Choro) from Odeon 78 rpm (1936)
Carmen Miranda - Polichinelo (Choro) from Odeon 78 rpm (1936)
Bode De Dada & Meu Lindo Sabiá are choice tracks from a scarce, 4 song compacto called É Sucessoby Sebastião Do Rojão. I am unsure of the exact release date, but a post about the compacto on forroemvinil dates the compacto from 1970 or 71, based on a stamp on the cover.
Sebastião Do Rojão - Bode De Dada from E Sucesso compacto duplo - Cantagalo (1970 or 1971)
Sebastião Do Rojão - Meu Lindo Sabiá from E Sucesso compacto duplo - Cantagalo (1970 or 1971)
Sebastião Do Rojão - E Sucesso compacto duplo - Cantagalo (1960s)
As I have said before, there are many voices in forró, but Zito Borborema has one of the most distinctive. The recordings from below come from Os Dois Agarradinhos, an LP issued once and only once in 1973. A few of the songs were also released on a rare Portuguese 4 song EP / compacto on the Roda label. The title track is lively. Nasci Do Sertão and A Flor Do Mal have a bit of tango flavor. Although Tango reportedly originated in Argentina and Uruguay, numerous Brazilian recordings were released through the 1950s. Zito Borborema - Os Dois Agarradinhos from Os Dois Agarradinhos - Tropicana (1973)
Zito Borborema - Nasci No Sertão from Os Dois Agarradinhos - Tropicana (1973)
Zito Borborema - A Flor Do Mal from Os Dois Agarradinhos - Tropicana (1973)
Zito Borborema - Os Dois Agarradinhos - Portugal / Portuguese compacto duplo - Roda (1973)
Zito Borborema - Os Dois Agarradinhos - Tropicana (1973)
Thanks to the endorsement and support of Luiz Gonzaga, Marinês had a long and fruitful career. Her records are still very collectible today. Although she wasn't the first woman to step into the baião / forró genre, she may be the best known and loved. These tracks are from a compacto on RCA from 1963. Both of these tracks appeared on her LP Coisas Do Norte, but the artwork on the LP and single are completely different. Marinês E Sua Gente - Quatro Fia Fême (baião) from compacto duplo - RCA (1963)
Marinês E Sua Gente - Sanharô (tambô) from compacto duplo - RCA (1963)
This particular compacto duplo (meaning double compact or EP) was released in 1963. Marinês, looking as striking as ever, is in the center. The fellow playing accordion is Abdias, who later when on to head up CBS A&R for forró and took Marinês with him. The 4 songs originated on the Marinês E Sua Gente LP, Coisas Do Norte. This particular RCA Victor compacto duplo (a double compact single commonly called an EP in the US and UK) contained no exclusive material, but the sported a nifty, unique picture sleeve.
Marinês E Sua Gente - compacto duplo - RCA (1960s)
This was a nice surprise. I did not realize that Moura Junior recorded for labels other than Philips. This compacto is intriguing. Oricuri (Segrêdo do Sertanejo) was co-written by João do Vale. Pau De Arara was written by Vinicius De Morais and Carlos Lyra. People familiar with Bossa Nova will know the names well. Although forró artists recorded João do Vale songs (Marinês particularly), I have never heard De Morais and Lyra songs recorded by anyone in the forró scene before.
The songs on this release may be described as nightclub samba with a bit of Bossa Nova. The sound of Oricuri (Segrêdo do Sertanejo) also harkens back to late 50s albums by Gilvan Chaves and Volta Seca, who mixed storytelling with music. Like Moura Jr., Jackson Do Pandeiro (E Vamos Nós -1964 & Coisas Nossas - 1965) and Ary Lobo (Quem é o Campeão - 1966) also flirted with supper club poshness during this period. This coincided with the time of the military coup from March of 1964. I am uncertain if the musical choices made by these artists was directly influenced by the political problems in Brazil or if Lobo, Jackson and Moura Jr. were trying to diversify their repertoire to appeal to a wider audience.
My record is a little crispier than usual, but like all compactos, this one only turns up once in a blue moon and is worth the extra effort for preservation and sharing. Thank you Samuel for the image of the rare picture sleeve.
Moura Junior / Jr. - Oricuri (Segrêdo Do Sertanejo) - Copacabana compacto (1963 or 1964)
Moura Junior / Jr. - Pau De Arara - Copacabana compacto (1963 or 1964)
Moura Junior - Oricuri (Segrêdo Do Sertanejo) rare Copacabana picture sleeve - image by Samuel Rodrigues Nascimento
Several musical forms melded with forró in the 1970s: Carimbo, Funk and Disco. These were natural crossovers, since each was a type of dance music. Esperando Só is a catchy number with distinctive, squishy, funky electric bass. One of the first artists to use the electric bass in a forró recording was Luiz Gonzaga in O Folé Roncou in 1973. If Luiz Gonzaga did something, it was like a blessing from the Pope. As the 70s progressed, rock and soul instrumentation gradually became more common in forró.
According to onordeste, Azulão de Caruarú was born in 1942. Musicaria Brasil claims that his first appearance on disc was the compilation called Forró Do Zé Do Gato in 1964, which I will eventually feature on this blog. It should be noted that the history of forró is constantly being rewritten, because new discs are discovered and discographies are populated. Compactos seem to come out of the woodwork all the time. Azulão began recording full length albums in 1975 and has a healthy back catalog. It is difficult to find biographies or current, reliable information about most forró artists, including Azulão. Many do not have their own promotional sites. dictionariompb is the finest resource I have found. According to their website, dictionariompb was created in 1995 by Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio), through the Department of Arts and Livraria Francisco Alves Editora, and with the technical support of IES - Computer and Systems Engineering. This is one of the few resources dedicated to academic cataloging of popular music in Brazil. Azulão de Caruarú - Esperando Só from Vaqueiro Varão - Esquema (1979)
Azulão - Esperando Só from Vaqueiro Varão - Esquema (1979)
