João

Bebel Gilberto's childhood was seemingly orchestrated by her illustrious father's “playing and playing and playing.” Because she was always her father's daughter to the Brazilian public, she moved to New York to be “more of an artist, without all the baggage.” Following João's death in 2019, she has now returned to the baggage: an album consisting entirely of her father's songs. The poignant father/daughter photo used as its cover suggests the tenderness with which Bebel approached her filial tribute. Among the 11 carefully selected songs, there are lovely, delicate versions of classics like ‘Desafinado’, ‘Você e Eu’ and ‘O Pato’, but generally she tries to avoid picking the usual suspects. They are mainly played very straight, as on ‘Desafinado’ – with its gently strummed acoustic guitar, discreet percussion and that highly distinctive voice. It speaks volumes for Thomas Bartlett's sympathetic production that you hardly notice the strings on, say, ‘Caminhos Cruzados’.

Ultimately, though, this sits very comfortably in Bebel's own oeuvre. The double-tracking of her voice on the wordless ‘Valsa’ even carries echoes of Tanto Tempo, the album that launched her career into orbit. João is a triumphant and deeply touching tribute to her father's memory and musical legacy.