Brazil: Samba, Bossa and Beyond!

There is no shortage of Brazilian music compilations out there. So when you put a new one on the market, it is important to offer some sort of narrative or shed a new light on the country’s incredibly rich and vast output. Since 1993, Putumayo have released an impressive collection of records that work as a quite necessary introduction to different cultures from all over the world. Unfortunately, some of those releases make an attempt at creating a lounge dinner soundtrack comfort music that doesn’t demand attention. This compilation falls precisely into that category.

Cruising through ten examples of samba and bossa nova, in more or less traditional approaches, Brazil… presents a nice, albeit faint portrait of the country’s music. And it is simply a question of not summoning up heavyweights into its line-up (the closest we get is Luiz Melodia and Dona Onete). Vänia Abreu is no Elis Regina, while Rogê and Sandália de Prata deliver the same takes on bossa nova and samba-funk we have been exposed to for decades. The highlights end up coming from Dona Onete’s sensuous version of carimbó in ‘Homenagem aos Orixás’ and the beautiful way Bïa makes of ‘Beijo’, a sort of xote (traditional forró dance) pop. For the most of it, however, this is the Brazil we already knew.