Authentic Samba
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to sit down with some of the greatest samba masters and jam all night long? Well, you can go to Rio de Janeiro and spend Friday and Saturday nights at a local bar named Casa de Mãe Joana (House of Mother Joanna) in the São Cristóvão neighborhood or you can listen to Casa da Mãe Joana CD, a historic release uniting some of the greatest samba experts (“bambas”) of Rio de Janeiro’s Velha Guarda do Samba (Old Guard of Samba).
Casa da Mãe Joana is a who’s-who list of samba living legends. Zé Kéti, for example, is the composer of famous hits such as “A Voz do Morro,” “Opinião” and “Máscara Negra.” Roberto Moura once said that Zé Kéti is “a monument of a Rio [de Janeiro] that no longer exists.” Zé Kéti is joined by Nadinho da Ilha in Zé Kéti’s own “Clementina de Jesus,” who was a Brazilian legendary sambista. No samba collection would be complete without songs by Cartola, one of the cofounders of the great samba school of Mangueira. The medley of “As Rosas Não Falam,” “O Mundo É um Moinho” and “Sim” combines three of Cartola’s best and most known compositions. Another Mangueira legend is Nelson Sargento. You can hear him and Wilson Moreira singing about happiness and their beloved Mangueira in “Banho da Felicidade,” “Morrendo de Saudade” and “A Cara do Brasil.” Paulinho Marques’ rendition of “Doce de Côco” is a well-deserving tribute to Brazil’s mandolin master and most celebrated choro composer, Jacob do Bandolim. This instrumental piece gives you the flavor of Rio de Janeiro’s neighborhood bars and introduces you to the other gems in this collection. Guilherme de Brito, Monarco, Samuca de Mangueira, Casquinha, Helô and others will complete your Rio experience in Casa da Mãe Joana.
An unpretentious CD, Casa da Mãe Joana delivers the most authentic Brazilian sambas with the voices that created them. This is a rare treat! You can listen to some of the track in this outstanding collection at Blue Jackel’s home page.
ALBUM INFORMATION
Various
Casa da Mãe Joana
Blue Jackel BJAC 5025-2 (1998)
Time: 53’50”
Tracks:
- Doce de Côco (Jacob do Bandolim) (Instrumental)
- O Marcos Esteve Aqui (Monarco) / Casa de Mãe Joana (Casquinha) – Monarco & Casquinha
- Guerreira (Roberto Serrão – Guilherme Nascimento) – Helô
- Coração em Desalinho (Mauro Diniz – Ratinho) / Eu Agora Sou Feliz (Mestre Gato – José Bispo) /É Preciso Muito Amor (Noca da Portela – Tião de Miracema) /Acreditar (dona Ivone Lara – Délcio Carvalho) – Monarco & Samuca da Mangueira
- Romance de Mentira (Guilherme de Brito) – Guilherme de Brito
- Sou Feliz (Baianinho) /Arerê (Bainaninho) /Nuvem Que Passou (Argemiro) /O Gorjear da Passarada (Argemiro – Casquinha) – Baianinho & Argemiro
- Lição de Vida (Paulinho Miracema – Celmo Arantes) – Helô
- Banho de Felicidade (Wilson Moreira – Adalto Magalha) /Morrendo de Saudade (Wilson Moreira) /A Cara Do Brasil (Nelson Sargento – Arturo Oliveira) – Wilson Moreira & Nelson Sargento
- Dance Conmigo (Clóvis do Violão – Dedé Paraíso – Samuco) – Samuca da Mangueira
- A Cobra (Aimoré Costa) / Cobra Caninana (João de Aquino – Hermínio Belo de Carvalho) / Pavio Curto (Darcy Maravilha – Maurílio Faria) – Nadinho da Ilha & Darcy Maravilha
- Meu Amigo, Violão (Aluízio Dias) – Dorina
- As Rosas Não Falam (Cartola) / O Mundo É um Moinho (Cartola) / Sim (Cartola – Martins) – Monarco & Helô
- Tudo Menos Amor (walter Rosa – Monarco) – Monarco
- Clementina de Jesus (Zé Kéti) / Citação de Benguelê (Pixinguinha) – Zé Kéti & Nadinho da Ilha
A modified version of this review first appeared in Luna Kafé, December 1998.
