New member

[jww]

8) Hello fellow Sergio/66 fans!! I am new to the board, but have been reading postings for a while for info/fun/entertainment. Just as an FYI to you all as to where I am coming from - I have Sergio/66 lps up through Love Music 1973, as well as cds of greatest hits/foursider/UK 2-cd set.
I was curious if we could list our top 5 or 10 Brazil 66 songs !! I am sure you all have beat that horse to death, but I welcome the insight you all provide - I may have to take a new look at serveral song !! Thanks and I am sure to talk with you all again.. J Workman

 

[Harry]

Welcome "J"

It's always a chore to pick the favorites, because so many can really fall into that category, but here's a bunch I like a lot:

Like A Lover - maybe the first Brasil '66 song I ever heard as it was contained on the A&M FAMILY PORTRAIT album. It grabbed me right away and has remained a favorite all these years.

For Me - I'm a sucker for changing time signatures and this one's got it

Festa - another changing time signature that grabs me

Scarborough Fair - despite its "hit" status and appearing on virtually every compilation, this one still "does it" for me. I ALWAYS crank it up!

Lost In Paradise - since I pay little attention to lyrics, the nonsense ones provided here don't bother me. Another that I always turn up when it comes on.

There you are - five favorites among many other favorites!

Harry
NP: the new format on Philadelphia's old Alice radio station - the new "old" Sunny 104.5

 

[jww]

Thanks Harry - I appreciate you insight as one of the "bigwigs" here at the forum. I will send my favorites to you all as soon as I can. Just leaving work (3rd shift !! groan..). J- (that's actually my name, just a letter on the birth certificate...go figure..(and no I don't have a sister "K", heard that before!!))

 

[Mr Bill]

For me the top ten are:

"Pretty World"
"Promise of a Fisherman"
"Ye-Me-Le"
"After Sunrise"
"Look Of Love"
"Night And Day"
"Like A Lover"
"Ma(i)s Que Nada"
and from the 2nd Sergio/A&M era:
"Rainbow's End"
"Olympia"

 

[William]

For Me - I'm a sucker for changing time signatures and this one's got it

Really? The tempo slows down a bit during the "Never at no time..." parts but I'm pretty sure the whole song is a straight 4/4.


- William
being a stickler for detail online

 

[Captain Bacardi]

My Top 10 Sergio tunes would be:

Agua De Beber (great 'bone solo!)

Canto Triste

The Frog

The Circle Game

Casa Forte

O Pato

Festa

Batucada

Mas Que Nada

Roda

As always, this list is subject to change when I darn well feel like it.


Capt. Bacardi

 

[William]

Agua De Beber (great 'bone solo!)

Sure is! I don't know if I ever mentioned it around these parts, but that solo in "Agua" is THE reason I presently play trombone. It still ranks as one of my all-time favorite recorded trombone solos for clarity of tone, economy of notes, logical use of slide & tongue effects, and overall attention to lyricism and beauty. If I could play half as well I'd die a happy man.

(Now if I could only find out who that bone player is...! :|)


Oh, as for my ten favorite Brasil '66 tracks... if you randomly take any five songs from HAP and any five from Equinox, that will probably be accurate enough.


- William

 

[Rudy]

I don't know if I ever mentioned it around these parts, but that solo in "Agua" is THE reason I presently play trombone. It still ranks as one of my all-time favorite recorded trombone solos for clarity of tone, economy of notes, logical use of slide & tongue effects, and overall attention to lyricism and beauty. If I could play half as well I'd die a happy man.

(Now if I could only find out who that bone player is...! :| )

What gets me about this solo is that it's so mellow. If you didn't hear the slide effects, and weren't listening closely, you'd almost mistake it for a French Horn. Except that the 'bone player misses a lot less notes. (Old joke. How do you make a trombone sound like a French Horn? Stick your hand in the bell and miss a lot of notes!) My first guess would have been Bob Edmondson, just for convenience sake. (And for that matter, have we ever really heard his playing outside of the TJB to really know what kind of style he had?)

Oh, as for my ten favorite Brasil '66 tracks... if you randomly take any five songs from HAP and any five from Equinox, that will probably be accurate enough.

Picking some will be difficult, but my tastes aren't far off! Oddly enough, Equinox was my favorite for years, but nowadays there's something about it that bothers me. (Other than the price and the packaging. ) I think it's the unison vocals a lot of the time--it seems like they were trying to overplay the formula from Herb Alpert Presents. Or not.

Off the top of my head, in NO particular order (and likely well beyond 10 picks):

"Mas Que Nada"
"Agua De Beber"
"Slow Hot Wind"
"Berimbau"
"Chove Chuva"
"Bim Bom"
"Roda"
"Like A Lover"
"Tristeza"
"Batucada"
"So Many Stars"
"Festa"
"Casa Forte"
"Lapinha"
"Song Of No Regrets"
"Pretty World"
"Norwegian Wood"

-= N =-
...watching the storms roll through...

 

[William]

What gets me about this solo is that it's so mellow. If you didn't hear the slide effects, and weren't listening closely, you'd almost mistake it for a French Horn. ...

That's what I like about it. Everyone goes crazy over J.J. Johnson and Frank Rosolino and Curtis Fuller, but they (along with just about every other famous bone player) sound too brassy and too hyperactive for me. Whoever this guy is on "Agua"... he's like a trombone version of Paul Desmond.

My first guess would have been Bob Edmondson, just for convenience sake. (And for that matter, have we ever really heard his playing outside of the TJB to really know what kind of style he had?)

IIRC, someone here (JMK?) asked Sergio about this after one of his San Diego concerts and he said it wasn't Bob Edmondson. Hmmm... I'm certain it wasn't Dick Nash or Milt Bernhart. Urbie Green and Bill Watrous were on the East Coast at that time. Other major LA studio guys like Lew McCreary, Bill Reichenbach, and Lloyd Ulyate I haven't heard enough solos by to judge.

Of course, Sergio could possibly be remembering wrong...

Off the top of my head...
...
"Song Of No Regrets"
"Pretty World"

"Song Of No Regrets" is one of my favorites from the second Brasil '66 lineup, even though Lani Hall seems to be the only actual band member present for the recording! The tune is beautiful and I dig the instrumental interlude, with violins playing ornamental figures over a bass flute melody.

"Pretty World," conversely, is one of my least favorites. I think the tempo is too fast for the song, and I still can't stand that children's chorus that shows up at the end. I get a lot more out of Herb's version on Warm.

- William

 

[Brasil_66_Fan]

After much contemplation and reflection, here's my Top 10, and not in any order either:

The Joker
Agua De Beber
Berimbau
Watch What Happens
For Me
Night and Day
The Frog
So Many Stars
Upa, Neguinho
Salt Sea

There are so many others which shouldn't be omitted, so this list could easily change.....

 

[Rudy]

That's what I like about it. Everyone goes crazy over J.J. Johnson and Frank Rosolino and Curtis Fuller,

I'd say out of 'bone players, Dick Nash and Frank Rosolino are among my favorites. (Did I get the right Nash? ) Don't get much into 'bones otherwise, though...probably too many bad memories of getting my ears blown off by the players behind me in our 'big band' in high school.

"Song Of No Regrets" is one of my favorites from the second Brasil '66 lineup, even though Lani Hall seems to be the only actual band member present for the recording! The tune is beautiful and I dig the instrumental interlude, with violins playing ornamental figures over a bass flute melody.

It's one of those arrangements where you dare not breathe!

"Pretty World," conversely, is one of my least favorites. I think the tempo is too fast for the song, and I still can't stand that children's chorus that shows up at the end. I get a lot more out of Herb's version on Warm.

I like both--the B66 version is more like a "hit single that never was". (Well, calling it B66 is a formality--there's hardly any B66 band in that one! And that chorus on the end is a bit icky!) Neat, though, how Herb's version completely changes around the mood of it.

Surprised nobody has done a "least favorite" B66 topic! (And at the bottom of my own list would be the dreary Sergio vocals , along with "Look Of Love." )

-= N =-

 

[Brasil_66_Fan]

the dreary Sergio vocals , along with "Look Of Love." )

I recall, way back when I dissed Sergio's vocals and got told where to stick it!! And what's wrong with Look Of Love? I'll admit I like the late, great, Dusty Springfield's mellow 'Casino Royale' version as much (or perhaps even a little more), but can't see what's not to like; maybe because Lani's not the lead singer?

N.P. - Berimbau...

 

[Rudy]

I think what bothers me about "Look Of Love" is that it's certainly an attractive enough pop song (heck, I grew up with it--it's nearly part of my genetic code by now), but after hearing Dusty's version, I finally realized the 'mood' that this song is supposed to evoke...the "sultry" angle, for lack of a better term. The only recent version I've heard that goes toward the same approach is Diana Krall's. Plus...I've heard the B66 version all these years, so many times, it could be just the fact that it's become too familiar, and I need a break from it.

Then again, if you look at my other picks, in many cases I gravitate toward the "purer" Brazilian songs like "Bim Bom," "Berimbau", "Casa Forte", "Lapinha", etc.

-= N =-

 

[jww]

Finally getting back with a list of favorites. As aptly stated previously, these are and cannot be in any particular order, since, as we know, these can change at anytime. Thus:
The Joker
Constant Rain (Chove Chuva)
For Me
Chelsea Morning
Laia Ladaia (Reza)
After Midnight
After Sunrise
Salt Sea
Moanin'
Pretty World ( ) (just some fun "pop" I know)

 

[Captain Bacardi]

That's what I like about it. Everyone goes crazy over J.J. Johnson and Frank Rosolino and Curtis Fuller, but they (along with just about every other famous bone player) sound too brassy and too hyperactive for me. Whoever this guy is on "Agua"... he's like a trombone version of Paul Desmond.

I understand what you're saying about the hyperactive part. Sometimes trombone records are no more than technique recordings. But I still love JJ and Rosolino! Conrad Herwig is another I've been enjoying lately. But I do wish we could find out just who did the solo on "Agua".


Capt. Bacardi

 

[William]

I'd say out of 'bone players, Dick Nash and Frank Rosolino are among my favorites. (Did I get the right Nash? )

Yeah, Dick is the trombonist. Given the choice, though, I'd probably rather listen to brother Ted on alto sax. He could have a very very sweet sound when the song called for it. Rosolino (to be perfectly frank ), has never done anything for me. He may have had chops to burn but I find his solos very cold and robotic. (sorry! )

I like both ["Pretty World"]--the B66 version is more like a "hit single that never was". ... Neat, though, how Herb's version completely changes around the mood of it.

I heard Herb's version first, so I guess it's kind of "definitive" in my mind. Anyone know how fast the song was originally performed? Paula and Greg were talking about the original Brazilian recording--titled "Sa Marina" before the Bergmans wrote the English lyrics--back in the old forum. I wonder if it was originally intended as a ballad like Herb's or an uptempo "sunshine pop" thing like Sergio's...?

And at the bottom of my own list would be the dreary Sergio vocals , along with "Look Of Love."

Don't forget the "Paramount" orchestra that comes in for the end of "What The World Needs Now." Whew...

- William

 

[Rudy]

I understand what you're saying about the hyperactive part. Sometimes trombone records are no more than technique recordings. But I still love JJ and Rosolino! Conrad Herwig is another I've been enjoying lately. But I do wish we could find out just who did the solo on "Agua".

I'm reminded of two 'bone players: one is the late Ashley Alexander, who I first heard on a Freddie Hubbard album called Back To Birdland. Interesting that he apparently made a lot of use of his combination valve/slide trombone. Maynard Ferguson probably had something similar in the 70's (a "Superbone" by Holton-LeBlanc, perhaps?). Another is a guy I heard at an IAJE convention here in Detroit, playing in a Dixieland band. You might remember him more as an actor, though: Conrad Janis. Threw me for a loop to see him there, but he's also one helluva player!

Yeah, Dick is the trombonist. Given the choice, though, I'd probably rather listen to brother Ted on alto sax. He could have a very very sweet sound when the song called for it. Rosolino (to be perfectly frank ), has never done anything for me. He may have had chops to burn but I find his solos very cold and robotic. (sorry! )

I first heard him on the Mel Tormé CD Swings Shubert Alley. I probably like him for all the reasons you don't. I liked the "on top of it" sound he had on his solos...but then again, these were maybe 8 bars in the middle of a Marty Paich arrangement.

And the Nash brothers I know mostly from Mancini's jazz albums. I believe it's Dick who plays on "Chelsea Bridge" on the Uniquely Mancini album.

-= N =-

 

[Brasil6699]

I really tried to narrow it down to 10 songs. But I decided on an even dozen:

1. For What Its Worth
2. Wichita Lineman
3. Chove Chuva
4. Joker
5. For Me
6. Crystal Illusions
7. Chelsea Morning
8. Fool on the Hill
9. Viola (Expo 70s version)
10. Norwegian Wood
11. Ye-Mele
12. Viramundo

I was going to try to throw in "So Many People", "Caranguejo", and "Zanzibar", but they are early Brasil '77.
(Many of my post-Brasil '66 favorites come from the "Horizonte Aberto" disc.)