Antonio Adolfo: Love Cole Porter

Brazilian Twist on Cole Porter Classics

— Just in time to heat things for your summer listening pleasure, producer/composer/arranger/pianist Antonio Adolfo releases a beautiful new album. A year ago, I wrote about the fantastic Bossa 65 album. Now, here comes yet another of his internationally recognizable releases of fantastic arrangements and impeccable deliveries that only Adolfo and his musicians know how to do.

This time, Adolfo may surprise you with his repertoire. Spoiler alert: the album title and cover you see here say it all. Like no other arranger, Adolfo puts a fantastic twist to Cole Porter’s music with Love Cole Porter. The album is out on June 7, 2024. At the time of this writing, I don’t see any singles out yet, but I would not be surprised if there is a single before the full album release.

I have always found that Cole Porter’s music has a particular Brazilian flavor. In Love Cole Porter, this is more evident than ever. With the usual qualified team of musicians, Adolfo adds another hit to his vast discography. These musicians need no introduction. Adolfo (producer, arranger, piano, and vocal on track 2) is accompanied by this A-team: Lula Galvão (guitars), Jorge Helder (double bass), Rafael Barata (drums and percussion), Dadá Costa (percussion), Jessé Sadoc (trumpet, flugelhorn), Danilo Sinna (alto sax), Marcelo Martins (tenor sax, soprano sax, and flute), and Rafael Rocha (trombone). That is the recipe for success!

The repertoire choice was perfect to accomplish the Brazilian music feel in Porter’s songs. No one could explore Porter’s music better than Adolfo. More than just samba and bossa, in Love Cole Porter, you will fully enjoy what Adolfo did. He said he “started out by experimenting with different Cole Porter tunes on the piano, trying out different styles of Brazilian music.” That is what you will hear, for example, in the opener “Easy to Love.” Adolfo‘s arrangement will take you to the Beco das Garrafas (Bottles’ Alley) in its 1960’s prime days. The song gets a ballroom samba jazz feel rich with brass and danceable rhythms. He is a superb arranger who can transport the listener to a different time and era with skillful arrangements. “Ev’ry Time We Say Goodbye” gets a slow bossa treatment, perfect for that beautiful and melancholy song. You may remember “I Concentrate on You” in Frank Sinatra’s and Tom Jobim‘s voices. Well, here you will likely hear some echoes of that recording with a similar bossa feel. For “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” Adolfo did not hold back his arranging competence. He mixed Brazilian toada and bossa to create an unforgettable performance. It does not stop there. The next track, “Just One of Those Things,” uses its fast tempo to draw from frevo and quadrilha, those rich Brazilian Northeastern rhythms. From Bahia, we get a beautiful ijexá in “Love for Sale.” And just to make things spicier, as in Bahian food, Adolfo throws in a dash of samba-funk.

I could go on and on in praising this album, but it would be redundant. By now, you should be well familiar with Adolfo‘s music. He is a quintessential musician who knows Brazilian music inside and out. You may think there is nothing new to add to Cole Porter’s music. Well, don’t be so sure of that. If you do not believe me, wait until you hear this exceptional album.

ALBUM INFORMATION

Antonio Adolfo
Love Cole Porter
AAM Music 0718 (2024)
Time: 52’00”

Tracks (all music by Cole Porter):

1. Easy to Love
2. Ev’ry Time We Say Goodbye
3. I Concentrate on You
4. I Love You
5. I’ve Got You Under My Skin
6. Just One of Those Things
7. Love for Sale
8. Night and Day
9. So in Love
10. You Do Something to Me