one of the funkiest albums ever from gilberto gil – a set that beautifully mixes rootsy elements with tighter funk arrangements – in a style that’s not unlike some of the 70s samba soul experiments from jorge ben! the record borrows heavily from american funk and soul of the time, and takes gil’s tight songwriting and infuses it with an even catchier edge than ever before – really creating a fantastic groove that seems to illuminate gilberto’s lyrics even more than before – with a sense of personality and joy that really comes through, even beyond the barriers of language! the whole thing s wonderful – tight, but never overproduced – and very individual, despite an influence from american soul music. titles include -rafavela-, -aqui e agora-, -ile aye-, -baba alapala-, -era nova-, -samba do aviao-, and -balafon-.
this is the debut album from gilberto gil, first released in brazil in 1967, at a time when gil was a man already at the height of his creative powers and yet barely a few years into his career. the album has been digitally remastered here and made available as deluxe limited vinyl edition (1000 copies worldwide) comes on super-loud, super-heavy 180gm audiophile vinyl edition.
teaming up with xrs for the original version, gilberto gil puts his sublime vocal talents to work on dia de sol and whips up a storm over a silky d&b backbone, while on the a side, drumagick toughen things up a bit for the dancefloor crew with some expertly placed low end and serious, stepping
these songs represent but a small sampling of the fruits of a flowering in brazilian creativity. the innovations in structure, lyrics and arrangements, combined with a very restrained but heartfelt intensity, are unique to brazilian pop music… and in their own way, are as radical, seductive and beautiful as the best english language pop.
the vinyl release includes a download code.