The Burt Bacharach Discussion Forum

Ok, guys. I'm really excited about this one. That's why although it has a lot to do with Burt's statement to the effect that songwriters should listen to Brazilian music, I am not posting this under the "Rock&Roll" thread. I thought that since some of the last posts there are mine, you could miss this one.

Here's a wonderful link:
http://www.planetarei.com.br/100anos/index.htm

100 top songs in Bz in each of 100 years...

You pick a year on the right. I went to 1968 and have not left since.
I have not tried the YouTube links. I tried the other one, that allows you to listen to the songs on MandaMúsica.
Notice that after you click on a song, you go to MandaMúsica, and find a list of songs. On the top of that list of "related songs" you'll find the song you chose. Of course you should click on it.

But notice: the other songs, listed as related, have links that _do not_, at least as rule, lead to them. The links may or may not lead to a song that has something to do with the song you picked (again, I'm referring to the songs that are not on the top of the list: that one is correct). I actually enjoyed the songs I was able to listen to that way, but my point is that you should not, except for the song listed on the year you selected, expect to listen to the "related songs" that show up just below your pick.

I said I began in 1968. The first Brazilian song listed is by Marcos Valle and Milton Nascimento. Burt mentions Milton a lot and, for whatever it's worth, I agree that he is awfully special. As for Marcos Valle, as I had the opportunity to say here once, he went to speak to Burt after the Rio 2009 concert. It is interesting that the song is a Christmas song, even if I don't recall an explicit reference to the holiday. After Burt's concert I posted here a link to the end of the year song we've been listening to most often on TV here in Bz since I was a child. Apparently, Valle wrote it specifically for our major TV station. (With artists from that channel: .)

If you choose to go to 1968, don't miss Sá Marina. The song Baby comes first, and I like it, but Sá Marina is likely to cheer you up (even if the lyrics sort of go against the melody in the sense that Hald David described what he did with DoYKTWTSJose).

You'll have no trouble finding Dionne and Arethat in the list.

I think you'll get a kick out of this. As I was writing, I decided to check out 1969. Tried Zazueira, #77, with Herb Alpert. Nope. Only YouTube carries it. On related videos: Simonal (Sá Marina) sings Zazueira. The song is by Jorge Ben (now, Jorge Benjor). Who's Jorge Ben(jor)? Start here:
Everything is so intertwined, sometimes...

If you like Bossa Nova, try earlier years. And remember: Tom Jobim is A.C. Jobim.

The first song of 1969 is Viola Enluarada, a very well-known song, not the Christmans song that played when I clicked on it. I was dumbfounded that I didn't know that song. I didn't even realize I had clicked on Viola Enluarada.
Still it is not a bad song at all, in my opinion! (My apologies, nevertheless.)
Also impressive is that entirely by chance I found this other song by Marcos Valle that I had never heard but am enjoying very much:

Some Classic Milton:

Nada Será Como Antes


Tudo Que Você Podia Ser


Clube da Esquina 2


Travessia

(stay away from the live performance, is my suggestion)

I didn't mention it, but of course that first post gives you a chance to find out what we've been listening to here, including the Bacharach songs. I am enjoying finding some songs I might not have sought, whether Brazilian or not.

Rio:
A big THANK YOU for that link. Adding it to my entertainment "Bookmarks" after spending some time on the site this afternoon!
Ron

Thanks Ron!

I've written about Milton and Ivan Lins (truly some of my all-time favorite songwriters). Now, Burt often mentions Djavan. We will never know exactly which songs Burt likes most, but here is a sample of Djavan's classics:

Flor de Lis
Se
Azul
Meu Bem Querer
Pétala
Lilás
Oceano

He reminds me of Cassiano:


(Legendary Tim Maia singing)

A younger Djavan, on the other hand, is Jorge Vercillo (more often but, I think, incorrectly, called Vercilo):




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I don't think I am off topic above, but in any event let me say that ALW is a race horse owner. His filly Dar-Re-Mi did well at the Breeder's Cup in at Santa Anita (CA) in November. She's done great in Europe prior to that.

(Hugely important race. Pink silks on the inside at the start. Sea the Stars (spelling is correct) has entered history as one of the gratest of all time and retired this day.)

Unlike expected by some who thought she could just grab a race for fillies and mares, and at only 3, she decided to face the opposite sex, including older horses, as she had done at the Arc, at the BC:


I remember watching Burt on TV talking about horse racing and how wonderful it would be if more artists got involved. So there.

OK. Sorry about this, but something is bugging me. (And possibly my fellow Brazilians also...)
I might not have been true to my own preferences re Djavan. I should add

Te Devoro
Faltando Um Pedaço (my dad's favorite, I guess)
Nem Um Dia (my wife's favorite, together with FaltandoUP)
Açaí (yeah, the fruit)
Meu Bem Querer is a favorite of many people.

I don't think Ivan Lins writes lyrics. In fact, he says he is totally incapable of doing just about anything other than writing songs and being a musician. Can't pay his bills, nothing, not a clue.

Milton does write them, sometimes (the lyrics to Morro Velho are as wonderful as the song, IMHO). He's one cool guy. So unassuming, so brilliant.

I believe Djavan always writes his own lyrics. Sometimes they are not easy to understand, but a little thinking often pays off, though I am not one to concern myself much with lyrics at all. Jorge Ben writes music and lyrics; his lyrics are the craziest things there are, and that doesn't bother me at all. On the contrary. But they alienate some people.

Deifying article about Jorge Ben came out today on this page of a major Brazilian newspaper
http://www.estadao.com.br/noticias/arte ... 5164,0.htm
Occasion: new box set with "13 classic albums." Should you be serious about becoming familiar with Brazilian music, the name of the set is "Salve, Jorge!"

This post has two parts. Both have to do with Marcos Valle. The first has to do with Bacharach also. The latter, with what I regard as beautiful music that helped shape my ears and pique my interest.
About Valle:
http://www.allbrazilianmusic.com/artist ... rcos-valle

FIRST:
Bacharach/Valle by Paula Faour (look for and listen to her site's opening page, as it has many nice snipets from the corresponding CD; these are better than the snipets that accompany the links for download).

*** Promises, Promises/Campina Grande ***


Campina Grande on YouTube?
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_q ... type=&aq=f

*** Do You Know The Way To San Jose/Samba de Verão ***


Samba de Verão (Summer Jet) on YouTube?

(related videos: one is with Andy Williams)

SECOND:
When I was five I was crazy about these next two songs especially written for a soap opera. This was the first Bzilian soap opera with all songs written upon request. At the time, Nelson Motta said it was very difficult to get such great artists because they all thought it was a corny thing to do and they would have their cool factor drop to zero. Nelson admits he was somethat deceptive when he argued with them that "Véu de Noiva" would be a very different kind of soap opera... Motta is keen to point out that now everybody wants their music on soap operas.

Only now did I learn that Valle was right there when my ears were starting to prick (big time) for music.

Soap opera Véu de Noiva. Opening theme: Azymuth (Mil Milhas)

Marcos Valle

Véu de Noiva's Love Theme and greatest hit:

By Antonio Adolfo (music) and Tibério Gaspar, with Marcos Valle at the piano.
Antonio Adolfo and Tibério Gaspar also wrote Sá Marina:



I found this also amusing to learn...
Following soap opera's theme also by Marcos Valle.
Soap Opera Pigmalião 70. Opening theme: Pigmalião

Living and learning...
I finally bought "Paula Faour and the music of Marcos Valle & Burt Bacharach" (title on the back cover, as the cover itself says this in Portuguese). Am listening to it for the first time now. I definitely like it.
But what I want to say is that the producer interviwed Valle before writing the liner notes. He was aware that Marcos had been influenced by Burt, but didn't know how much so. He quotes Valle saying how and why he fell in love with Burt's music (I can't translate the techincal terms, but he mentions "compassos" and orquestration unheard of before), that Burt was the major influence behind his first LP, Samba Demais, and that since then -- and to this day (emphasis in the original) -- Burt has been the greatest influence in his music.
Valle also says that he was crazy about Wives and Lovers and that when he went to work with Sergio Mendes in 1965 he suggested that Mendes include Bacharach's songs in his works.
So I started appreciating music through Burt and someone who was seriously influenced by him. What's funny is that I've always been more aware of Bacharach, as a composer, than of Valle. Not too long ago I would not have listed him as one of my favorites.
I guess if Marcos had not attended Burt's concert in Rio I would still be ignorant as to how good he is. Maybe if I didn't feel like posting about his meeting with Burt, I wouldn't have digged for his compositions, some of which are actually very much ingrained in the mind of just about every Brazilian. And some of which were among the first works that I recall being madly in love with.

Once, I provided links to the two Marcos Valle songs that were played by Paula Faour on YouTube. Each video had intertwined versions of a Bacharach and a Valle song and corresponded to a CD (see below) track. I decided to resume (and probably conclude) my effort to help you share the joy I've been deriving from litening to Marco's songs by including links to the other Valle songs from said CD.

If ayone missed it, he considers Burt the major influence in his music. And Burt recommends listening to Brazilian music...

= Songs by Marcos Valle in Paula Faour's "A Música de Burt Bacharach e Marcos Valle":

Samba de Verão (Summer Samba/So Nice) – No need to provide a link. (English lyrics by Norman Gimbel, who wrote with Burt.)

Seu Encanto (I can only find the English version, The Face I Love)
All three versions below have their charm. (I think the Japanese guys are more into it.)
(in the style of "The Sound of Music")
(Japanese duo)
(Andy Williams)

Terra De Ninguém


Eu Preciso Aprender A Ser Só (classic)
(Brazilian music icon Elis Regina says that this song is probably responsible for a turning point in her career, as she thinks she started being taken seriously after singing it.)

(No lack of options):
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_q ... type=&aq=f

Campina Grande (Valle mentions that the fact that Burt also enjoyed using baião was something that added to his attraction to his music.)



Pigmalião, soap opera theme
(Version sounds somewhat like Francis Lai?)


Um Novo Tempo (super classic)
(I provided a link before, but what the heck. I read that this waltz, including its original arrangement, was inspired by WTWNNow. Can't find the text anymore.)
(1971-2009 on TV)
(1979)
(the piano at the start reminds you of What The World Needs Now?)

Samba de Verão 2


==============================================================
You may find this selection helpful:

Viola Enluarada (M. Valle/ P.S. Valle)
Milton Nascimento singing. (Classic)


Tema de Vila Sésamo - our Sesame Street's Theme
(Inescapable for years. Valle also wrote all the character's themes.)


Azimuth
(I'm repeating this one, but now with better sound. The soap opera turned around car racing. A version of the song was also used in the movie "O Fabuloso Fittipaldi," for which he wrote the soundtrack. He formed a group to record that soundtrack. The group is called Azymuth, and it had quite a bit of success of its own.)


Adam's Hotel
(Not too long ago I rediscovered this one and placed it on my YouTube favorites, thinking it had been written by Eumir Deodato. Maybe SteveO knows his work as an arranger?)


Brasil/México (Best version, by far, is in "Jet Samba": initial part with trumpets is much more forceful and reminds us of Mexico.)


Os Grilos (Crickets Sing For Anamaria)
(short version)

(still making the rounds)

Gente (cute, as The Face I Love)

(I think the piccolo often comes in when a female vocalist would normally sing, but am not sure.)


Estrelar (80s hit)


Meu Herói



I got a kick from finding out that Valle wrote this overture for a 70s cartoons' program called Globo Cor Especial (anyone living in Brazil as a youngster at the time remembers it).


Selva de Pedra (soap)
(soap overture) before (live)

Próton, Elétron, Nêutron (new to me; me likes it)

Parabéns (same)

Bar Inglês
(Song is in "Jet-Samba"; not one of my favorites; link is of incomplete live version. I think that this all-instrumental album is worth buying. Some of the songs were listed above. Esperando O Messias, for instance, is great, with conversations among brass instruments. Previsão Do Tempo is divine. No videos, unfortunately.)

Rockin' You Eternally

Valle and Ed Motta have a much nicer version in "Marcos Valle - Songbook 1."

Black Is Bautiful
(Elis)
Better yet: Sandra de Sá's version, in "Marcos Valle - Songbook 1."
(Sandra + 2; diction isn't good, and lyrics are stranger than in Elis Regina's original version, but I like it anyway)

=======================
Down somewhere, a picture of Valle and singer Emílio Santiago backstage after a Dionne concert. (This is not because of the picture, of course, but of his musical interest and taste.)
http://oglobo.globo.com/blogs/antonio/? ... odo=200608