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

A água lava o corpo, mas somente a arte limpa nossa alma da poeira diária. 

Música da trilha sonora da peça "Pobre Menina Rica", na soberba interpretação da baiana Thelma Soares, gravada em julho de 1964.

A música tem a ver com a submissão das mulheres ao bicho homem.
 

Maria Moita (Carlos Lyra e Vinícius de Moraes) - Thelma na trilha sonora de Pobre Menina Rica - 1964

http://www.mrbongo.com/products/mulatu-astatke-yegele-tezeta-yekatit-7

Africa 45, number 3; a Mulatu Astatke double A side.

Mulatu is an Ethiopian born instrumentalist, composer and arranger extraordinaire. Schooled in the UK and then the USA, Mulatu fuses jazz, latin and traditional Ethiopian styles to create a unique sound, most commonly referred to as Ethio-jazz.

Over the past decade years he has gained much exposure via the Ethiopiques series, a collaboration project with the Heliocentrics, and through the inclusion of ‘Yegelle Tezeta’ - featured here - in the soundtrack of Jim Jarmusch's film, ‘Broken Flowers’, starring Bill Murray.

A: Yegele Tezeta

Low slung, mysterious organ led groover, with building, layered horns a sampled by Nas & Damian Marley on ‘As We Enter’ released in 2010.

Originally appeared on the legendary ‘Ethiopian Modern Instrumentals Hits’ compilation album from Ethiopia in 1974, of which six out of ten tracks were by Mulatu. It was also released on an Amha 7”, that is very tough to find.

AA: Yekatit

Originally appeared on the also legendary ‘Ethio Jazz’ album by Mulatu that changes hands for $1000's, released in Ethiopia. Typically Ethiopian horn line, about as classic as it gets.

Mulatu Astatke - Yekatit

Overdub instrument at Home Recording - 10/06/2025
Performed on Yamaha DTXtreme III Drum Kit with a Yamaha M12 Percussion Drum Pad

These are the days - Vocal n Drums.wav

Having made her mark on Brazil’s rich musical legacy with three best-selling albums to date, Rio’s original nu-bossa queen returns with a tour de force of golden-era Brazilian soul music. From the spiritual swing of the early pioneers of modern Samba, to the dizzying hedonism of Brazil’s eighties disco/boogie craze, Clareia is a life-affirming journey through the rich and varied sounds Sabrina Malheiros has been immersed in since she can remember. For her most up-lifting and danceable album to date, Sabrina has (as always) enlisted her father Alex Malheiros - bassist of samba jazz-funk legends Azymuth – and visionary London based producer Daniel Maunick (aka Dokta Venom), son of Incognito’s Bluey.

Clareia

Vinyl / CD / Digital

Sabrina Malheiros - Salve O Mar

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"

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

Another song I was introduced to by my father.
Everything's in place.
J

Free / Support

Wayne Shorter - Ponta de Areia (Middle Sky Boom Edit)

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