{"id":3547,"date":"2021-09-19T23:19:24","date_gmt":"2021-09-19T23:19:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/?p=3547"},"modified":"2022-12-18T12:14:45","modified_gmt":"2022-12-18T12:14:45","slug":"music-the-composer-of-desafinado-plays-1963","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.sebpalmer.com\/blog\/?p=3547","title":{"rendered":"MUSiC: The Composer of Desafinado Plays, 1963"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Jobim\u2019s solo debut kicks off with an instrumental version of what is undoubtedly his best known number, The Girl From Ipanema. [1] Oddly, though, the album is billed with reference to another and different hit he composed, Desafinado. I\u2019m guessing that the latter had already been a pretty big hit, for someone else? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just as it might be hard to credit why the album might be billed under a less obvious\/famous choice of song, until one knows the history of way back when, it\u2019s even harder to appreciate now, how fresh this music sounded at the time it first appeared. It truly was nova<\/em>, new. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Up till this point Jobim had been a back room boy, so to speak. That\u2019s not a sexual euphemism, by the way, but a reference to his behind the scenes role as composer, and whatever else (arranger, studio musician, etc.), working on other people\u2019s recordings. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Edison Machado\u2026<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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\u2026 feeling those grooves!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s also interesting that the album is entirely instrumental. Jobim\u2019s lyric for Desafinado, the headline song promoting this disc, was all about having a weak off-key voice! Like Donald Fagen many years later, Jobim was, perhaps, a reluctant vocalist! [2]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amazingly, every single tune<\/em> on this disc – from opener Ipanema via Insensatez and Samba de Uma Nota So to Desafinado itself – has become part of the contemporary jazz canon. Whether all the compositions were already hits back when Jobim released this album, I don\u2019t know. I suspect probably not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But such is the respect and love for his work, that every single track here has been played countless times, at jazz gigs and sessions around the world. And they continue to be performed and enjoyed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
George Duvuvier, anchors it all beautifully.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

O Morro Nao Tem Vez (Favela), possibly one of the \u2018lesser\u2019 tracks – not at all in terms of quality, rather in terms of fame – exemplifies the spare, pared down nature of bossa nova, in the hands of the master. This number is followed here by the better known but equally minimal yet lush Insensatez. Every piece is a gem. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The clich\u00e9s of easy-listening loungecore decadence, or elevator muzak, something ubiquitous and \u2018cheesy\u2019, which have come to haunt this genre – not something I\u2019ve ever had any issues with, personally – are, I suppose, a shame. As they have the potential to mean people won\u2019t recognise this fabulous music for what it really is, achingly sublimely beautiful, laced with saudade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jobim (and countless others) would revisit these pieces time and again over the years. Perhaps there are legions of tired renditions of some of this stuff? But they are certainly not to be found here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Leo Wright & \u2018Tom\u2019 Jobim\u2026<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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\u2026 recording Favela, 1963.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The cast of players include American jazz cats such as double-bassist George Duvuvier, locking in with Brazilian baterista, Edison Machado. And Jobim\u2019s signature penchants for flute and trombone are entrusted to Leo Wright and Jimmy Cleveland. Great players making great music. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also worthy of note is that way back<\/em> here, in \u201863, we find Claus Ogerman already supplying the luscious yet spare string arrangements. Jobim and Ogerman continued to collaborate for much of their whole lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For those with ears to hear, this is an incredible debut. A motherlode of music that countless extremely talented artists and performers have mined for years, never coming close to exhausting the magic these compositions can potentially reveal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2018Bone appetit, Jimmy Cleveland!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When it comes to the platters that really<\/em> matter, this one is history in the making, and is totally essential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NOTES<\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

[1] According to the Wikipedia entry on the song, The Girl From Ipanema is the second most recorded song of all time, just behind The Beatles\u2019 Yesterday. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

[2] We can hear him vocalising along to his piano solo on Vivo Sonhando, bless him!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jobim\u2019s solo debut kicks off with an instrumental version of what is undoubtedly his best known number, The Girl From Ipanema. [1] Oddly, though, the album is billed with reference to another and different hit he composed, Desafinado. I\u2019m guessing that the latter had already been a pretty big hit, for someone else? Just as … <\/p>\n

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