The popularity of Brazilian music from the 60s, 70s and 80s has experienced quite the renaissance; artists such as Gal Costa, Gilberto Gil, Arthur Verocai, Joyce et al, have become household names to an international audience passionate about global sounds. However, even for die-hard fans and collectors of Brazilian music of the past, discovering contemporary Brazilian artists is not always easy, nor accessible. But, if you know where to look, you will see that there is a resurgence well underway that can be epitomised by an exciting new wave of Brazilian artists beginning to break through and gather momentum overseas. It’s with thanks to Sound and Colours, a website devoted to promoting Latin American music and culture, that we can help shine a light on one particular collective, bursting with creativity and camaraderie.

‘Hidden Waters: Strange and Sublime Sounds of Rio de Janeiro’ is compiled by Joe Osborne (founder of specialist Brazilian music platform Brazilian Wax) and Russ Slater (editor at large of Sounds and Colours). Focusing solely on the 'Rio Scene', rather than taking on the mammoth task of tackling Brazil as a whole, this collection presents 20-plus ground-breaking artists selected from Rio’s resurgent music scene. By presenting a snapshot into the pulse of the city and the vibrant musicians that live in it, ‘Hidden Waters’ collates tracks from a wide spectrum of musical genres from the avant-garde edge to bossa nova, samba, Candomblé, lo-fi rock, jazz and funk.

‘Hidden Waters’ showcases musicians such as iconic Rio mainstays Negro Leo & Ava Rocha, Brazilian jazz upstart Antônio Neves, critically lauded Avant-pop trailblazer Thiago Nassif, breakthrough artists Ana Frango Elétrico and Letrux, lo-fi psych rocker Lê Almeida, plus the Latin Grammy-winning Bala Desejo who are set to explode onto the world stage. 

The music featured on ‘Hidden Waters’ is unequivocally Brazilian, swelling with samba, bossa nova, funk, and jazz. But it’s within the album's blend; from sunny psychedelia to dusky synth-pop via experimental electronics, that marks the compilation as the sound of modern, multicultural Rio. Fans of Brazil’s fertile 60s and 70s will spot the antecedents in Tropicália. Not only in the experimentation but also through the similar political context: back in the late 60s there was Brazil’s military dictatorship, and up until the end of 2022 it was Bolsonaro’s censorious premiership. Here are a group of musicians writing and reflecting on another colourful chapter within Brazil’s musical history.

This comprehensive compilation comes with album artwork designed by Rio music’s leading album artwork designer, Caio Paiva. It features essays by professor and music critic Bernardo Oliveira and music journalist Leonardo Lichote, plus extensive notes on each track by the artists themselves.

Bala Desejo - Lua Comanche

The tenth record in our Brazil 45s series - http://www.mrbongo.com/products/jorge-ben-joao-donato-7

A. Jorge Ben & Toquinho - Carolina, Carol Bela
AA. Joao Donato - Ara

Jorge Ben & Toquinho - Carolina, Carol Bela 

Jorge Ben is a name that any lover of Brazilian music will be very familiar with. He is widely regarded as the James Brown of Brazilian music and is famed for writing the Brazilian anthem ‘Mas Que Nada'. For the duet ‘Carolina, Carol Bela' he teamed up with the singer & guitarist Toquinho. Toquinho is best known for his collaborations, as composer and performer, with Bossa Nova poet Vinicius de Moraes.

'Carolina, Carol Bela' featured on the album ’Toquinho’ by Toquinho. It was originally released in 1970 on the small independent Brazilian label, RGE. This version is the first time it has been reissued as a 45.  

The song was sampled by DJ Marky and XRS for their Drum & Bass track ‘LK’ (V Recordings, 2002). This went on to be a huge chart hit across the world, and a number one hit in the UK.

Joao Donato - Ara

Joao Donato is a Brazilian Jazz and Bossa Nova Pianist. He has collaborated with many of the greats of Brazilian Music, including Tom Jobim, Astrud Gilberto and Gilberto Gil. He was one of the few Brazilian artists who went over to perform in the States during the Bossa Nova boom of the late 60’s. The song ‘Ara’ was originally released on his seminal album Quem é quem”, (EMI, 1973), an album that is full of great tracks and was considered as one of the 100 best albums in all times by the Rolling Stone magazine. 

See more of our Brazilian 45 series here.

Joao Donato - A Ra

Overdub instrument at Home Recording - 9/29/2025
Performed on Yamaha DTXtreme III Drum Kit with a Yamaha M12 Percussion Drum Pad

In a another light  -  Vocal n Drums.wav

Brazil 45, number 64 https://www.mrbongo.com/products/marilene-sinal-vermelho-nonato-buzar-verao-vermelho-7-vinyl

‘Sinal Vermelho’ – midtempo psyche-funk workout tough on the drums. Brilliant vocal from Marilene. Taken from 1973 compacto 7” released on Copacabana. 

‘Verão Vermelho’ is taken from Nonato Buzar’s 1970 LP ‘Temas De Novelas’, a collection of songs he wrote for Brazilian soap operas.

Marilene – Sinal Vermelho

Release Date: Dec 15th

Vinyl Pre-Order:
https://fatbeatsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/as-10-mais-boogie-vol-1

What exactly is Boogie? Is it a genre, an era, a style? Colours, clothes, textures are all part of its make up. For me, Boogie is the "top shelf" music of the 80's. Anything from this era that brings along Moog synths, vocoders, DX7s, or triggered Oberheim drum sounds, is Boogie!

Brasil has a huge archive of underground dance-floor heat. Different styles of music ranging from Macumba to Samba, MPB to Pop, Electro to early Hip Hop, were all stung by this Brasilian "Boogie Bug", cleverly orchestrated by geniuses of the style; Robson Jorge, Lincoln Olivetti, Junior Mendes, Mister Sam, Sergio Sá, to name a few, were the backbone of uncountable projects by big names of Brasil´s pop and underground music scene during the 80´s.

This compilation brings together a bunch of non-obvious "compactos" (33 RPM 7" singles), most of them, promos, which never saw the light of record store shelves, but instead sat for years in the dead-vaults of radio stations or ended up in sebos, flea markets, church basements to junk yards.

I´m excited to put together this eclectic selection inspired by the finest in brasilian 80's music. Even after so many years, Brasil's  most obscure boogie gem is yet to be found on a long diggin' session thru thousands of records full of weird looking haircuts, somewhere near São Paulo or Rio de Janeiro. 
This project is dedicated to all the "Boogie Heads" doing what they do best, keep searching!

Elizio de Buzios "Tamanqueiro"

Available on vinyl 2LP and CD from https://www.mrbongo.com/products/mr-bongo-record-club-volume-two-vinyl-2-lp-cd-1

This instalment follows on from our acclaimed ‘Volume One’ – Lauren Laverne’s ‘Compilation Of The Week’, supported by the likes of Disclosure, Horsemeat Disco, Hunee and Laurent Garnier. ‘Volume Two’ picks up where the last one left off — with a touch more soul and disco — records we’ve been spinning in our DJ sets and on the radio show of the same name, that inspired this series.

Compiled by David ‘Mr Bongo’ Buttle and Gareth Stephens, plus a few personal favourites from Gary Johnson, Ville Marttila and Graham Luckhurst.

TRACKLIST, VINYL 2-LP: A1. Elbernita ‘twinkie’ Clark – Awake O Zion (full length, original version) / A2. Dee Edwards – Put Your Love On The Line / A3. Anubis – Ecology / B1. Guy Cuevas – Ebony Game / B2. Kiru Stars (Julius Kang’ethe) – Family Planning / B3. Teaspoon & The Waves – Oh Yeh Soweto / C1. Leny Andrade – Não Adianta / C2. Rosa Maria – Samba Maneiro / C3. Tom & Dito – Obrigado Corcovado / C4. Inezita Barroso – Maracatu Elegante / C5. Joao Diaz – Capoeira / C6. The Equatics – Merry Go Round / D1. Elias Rahbani And His Orchestra – Liza… Liza / D2. The Beaters – Harari

TRACKLIST, CD: 1. Luiz Henrique – Mas Que Nada / 2. Elbernita ‘twinkie’ Clark – Awake O Zion / 3. Guy Cuevas – Ebony Game / 4. Kiru Stars (Julius Kang’ethe) – Family Planning / 5. Kelenkye Band – Jungle Music / 6. Effi Duke & The Love Family – The Time Is Come / 7. Anubis – Ecology / 8. Dee Edwards – Put Your Love On The Line / 9. Teaspoon & The Waves – Oh Yeh Soweto / 10. Oby Onyioha – Enjoy Your Life / 11. Leny Andrade – Não Adianta / 12. Rosa Maria – Samba Maneiro / 13. Tom & Dito – Obrigado Corcovado / 14. Inezita Barroso – Maracatu Elegante / 15. Joao Diaz – Capoeira / 16. Elias Rahbani And His Orchestra – Liza… Liza / 17. The Beaters – Harari / 18. The Equatics – Merry Go Round

Mr Bongo Record Club Volume Two

Rosa Maria – Samba Maneiro

Available on vinyl only!
https://jazzandmilk.bandcamp.com/album/levanta-poeira-compiled-by-tahira

The compilation starts of with a key figure of Brazil’s music scene. Since the 1950s, the Genius Gilberto Gil has been gifting us with countless musical blessings. Very few artists were able to not only explore but embody the diversity of Brazilian music as well as he did. Gil’s endless row of classics include the wonderful track “Toda Menina Baiana” which has been revisited by Tahira himself. Adding Ijexá beats, as well as Afrobeat stlye guitars and a horn section on top of the original, Tahira managed to make this legendary song attractive to a young and modern audience. The remix starts of with a long percussion intro, builds up very slowly before finally introducing the first vocal verse - an arrangement especially designed for DJs who love to mix and blend brazilian rhythms in their sets. This remix will be available on vinyl only!

Levanta Poeira (compiled by Tahira)

Toda Menina Baiana (Tahira Remix)

Gilberto Gil - Toda Menina Baiana (Tahira Remix) | vinyl only

Far Out Recordings proudly presents the 1975 self-titled debut album from Brazilian vocalist and bossa nova luminary Emilio Santiago. Nicknamed ‘the Nat King Cole of Brazil’, Santiago was a master bossa balladeer and a top-class crooner. But he is known equally for his Brazilian funk, soul and boogie classics. One of his best know is album opener ‘Bananeira’, a party-starting version of the song originally written by Joao Donato and Gilberto Gil. ‘Brother’ is a smooth-grooving killer with great horn arrangements and a huge backing choir, while ‘La Mulata’ is a soulful, swinging salsa stepper.

Originally released on the CID label, the album showcases the full range of Emilio’s talents, while paying homage to some of Brazil’s greatest composers, including Jorge Ben, Marcos and Sergio Valle and Ivan Lins among others. 

The credits on the album are a ‘who’s who’ of Brazil’s greats, with João Donato on keys, Wilson das Neves, Ivan ‘Mamão’ Conti and Paulinho on drums, Durval Ferreira, Carlos Roberto Rocha and Helio Delmiro on guitar, Ariovaldo, Orlandivo, and Chacal on percussion, Danilo Caymmi on flute, a brass section featuring Victor Assis Brasil, Edson Maciel and Jesse Sadoc, and backing vocals from Jaime and Nair, Lúcia Lins, Jurema and Marcio Lott.

Emilio Santiago - Bananeira

Após cinco anos embalando as noites olindenses de terças-feiras, o Projeto Terça do Vinil amadureceu, ampliou seu acervo e deu aquela caprichada no visual. 

Isso tudo para dar cria ao novo Projeto, o Vinil em Brasa, que nasceu para levar as mais variadas vertentes da musica brasileira e mundial, para outros dias, afinal não dá pra deixar tanta música para apenas um dia na semana né?!

Balanços brasileiros e delicias mundiais integram o som do projeto Vinil em Brasa Encabeçado pelo DJ 440, o projeto visa levar música de alta qualidade, marca registrada do seu trabalho em mais de 12 anos de discotecagem. 

Com uma discotecagem 100% Vinil, o Projeto conta com o mesmo acervo da famigerada Terça do Vinil, que possui discos dos mais variados ritmos e locais do mundo, somando um acervo de mais de dois mil discos de música de qualidade, sem apelações e fuleragens. É festa pra ir, ouvir e curtir!

https://www.facebook.com/vinilembrasa/

Rubinho E Mauro Assumpcao - Ta Tudo Ai

An extended edit of a classic track by the great Jorge Ben!

Spliced up an extended intro, created an outro and added just a bit of some slight filtering and delays on an overdubbed track to dub it out just a touch.

As always, if you dig the edit, do yourself and the artist a favor and go check out more by Jorge Ben Jor, a true brasilian master!



Jorge Ben - Oé Oé (Faz O Carro de Boi Na Estrada) Sine Qua Non Edit

Helio Matheus - Eu, Réu, me condeno

7" Eu, Réu, me condeno / Feijão com farinha
RCA VICTOR, 1973

Helio Matheus - Eu, réu, me condeno (1973)

Record label. Record shop. Film label. Since 1989.

Bala Desejo - Lua Comanche

Mr Bongo

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