Rare South African Jazz

Later, in 2018, Kassin performed in London alongside the players of the multi-platinum Polish combo Mitch & Mitch, and when Kassin offered the proposal, Gary answered, “Yes!” Let’s do it, but we will need to perform in Poland with these artists. “

This resulted in Gods being recorded in Brazil in the Polish Radio Studios in Warsaw with the Mitch & Mitch guys and a lot of conventional session players, and concluding 

Gideon Nxumalo, together with Chris McGregor, helped establish the pre-exile South African Jazz sound. ‘Jazz Fantasia,’ his 1962 album, is largely regarded as a pioneering South African jazz record.

A very teenaged Kippie Moeketsi and a very teenaged Dudu Pukwana appeared on the album. Dudu Pukwana performs saxophone in the style of Albert Ayler! Moeketsi was a huge South African jazz icon during that era, and ‘Jazz Fantasia’ was his final box office success before his battles with booze and despair took their toll. The album was recorded in September 1962 at Wits University’s Great Hall.

It was sponsored by the university as part of an arts festival. While having a small release at the time, the new album has become a cherished cornerstone of current South African jazz music, despite being difficult to locate.

In both style and attitude, Gideon Nxumalo’s 1962 Jazz Fantasia is a seminal work of contemporary South African jazz. It is possibly the most important small group recording of the 1960s, and one of the rare full sets by a small contemporary group issued on LP in the period. It is significant, adventurous, and flawless in idea and execution.

Nxumalo is a pivotal factor in the emergence of modernist jazz sounds in South Africa. He was a trained pianist who taught piano and theory at Dorkay House and composed the music for the Sponono musical, South Africa’s first Broadway production.

His playing is distinctive, and his melodies are revolutionary and imaginative, as demonstrated here, but, as with so many South African entrepreneurs, his recorded footprint is infuriatingly limited and extraordinarily tough to obtain. Because only a few LPs were released under his name, he has become an unknown musician. But his stature is undeniable.

Deluxe Mad About Records 180-gram printing with hefty card sleeve and obi.

“Sounds delicious. Makes everyone happy.” – João Donato

Gary shared an apartment in Rio with Kassin in the mid-1990s, then in an unnamed local band, but subsequently became one of Brazil’s top producers, working with Gal Costa, Caetano Veloso, and Gilles Peterson. Gary used to create lyrics all the time but could never get anyone to listen to them. But the melodies stayed with Kassin and haunted him for years.

Over the years, Kassin would frequently enquire, “What about your album?” Gary would shrug and add, “Maybe one day.”

Later, in 2018, Kassin performed in London alongside the players of the multi-platinum Polish combo Mitch & Mitch, and when Kassin offered the proposal, Gary answered, “Yes!” Let’s do it, but we will need to perform in Poland with these artists. “

This resulted in Gods being recorded in Brazil in the Polish Radio Studios in Warsaw with the Mitch & Mitch guys and a lot of conventional session players, and concluding at Kassin’s studio in Rio with some of the best guests. 

The album was so successful that Gods in Brazil Vol. 2 is currently in the works.

The CD pays homage to the iconic sounds of Brazilian albums from the 1960s and 1970s, with hints of Gary McFarland along the way. The song Juanito Caminante is already a favorite of Joao Donato, who had a significant effect on the album’s style.

Alberto Continentino and Ryszard Borowski of the Polish Radio Big Band collaborated on the preparations.

Gods of Brazil will be available on vinyl through Mad About Records via Bandcamp, as well as special versions on tape and MiniDisc.

About Gary

Gary worked to design the world’s original digital distribution system in the mid-1990s and oversaw the operation in Rio, where he became actively immersed in the local music scene. Later, he founded the legendary reprint company, Whatmusic, which released over 80 records on vinyl and CD, as well as a reissue series for EMI Odeon and, most lately, the CBC’s secret collection of iconic recordings from the 1960s and 1970s.

Reissue for the first time Worldwide

Legendary sessions produced by Amado Maita

Live in S. Paulo in 1982, it was first released on Amado Maita’s modest indie label Poitou in the 1980s. Nestico, one of the greatest Brazilian sax players, and his sister composer, pianist Lilu, star.

Nestico became a part of the various Jazz bands in So Paulo after taking part in the first Jazz festival held at the Municipal Theater in 1977, alongside artists Samuel (piano), Nilson (bass), and Caram (drums).

He played with the Syncro Jazz ensemble in So Paulo multiple times. Together with the artists Lilu Aguiar (piano), Peter Wooley (bass), Vidal (sax and flute), Dagmar (trumpet), and Ronny Machado, the band issued the LP “Syncro Jazz-Live” in 1982. (drums).

“Pro César,” dedicated to pianist César Camargo Mariano, “Winter Know,” and “Black Cock,” all by Lilu Aguiar, are included in the repertoire, as are “For Guzi” (Peter Wooley), “Cruzan” (M. Santamaria), and “Revelation” (S. Fortune). The album has incredible Fender Rhodes solos in Heavy Modal Spiritual and Bossa Jazz reminiscent of Strata-East and Black Jazz Records.

For the First Time, the Official Worldwide Reissue of 180g Vinyl in a Hardcover Sleeve with an OBI Strip

Vinhas, Luiz Carlos “O som psicodelico” is a timeless masterpiece and a watershed moment in Brazilian music. Psychedelic Jazz Bossa.

He began playing the piano at night in the late 1950s in Rio de Janeiro and rapidly became involved in the Bossa Nova movement. He became a member of the famed Bossa Três, along with drummer Edison Machado and bassist Tio Neto, and released three albums in the US in 1962.

Back in Brazil, he continued to perform with Bossa Três alongside other works by Jorge Ben, Quarteto em Cy, Elis Regina, and many others.

Vinhas was a legendary Bossa Nova performer. He was a pianist at Beco das Garrafas and appeared on CDs by Elis Regina, Quarteto em Cy, Jorge Ben Jor, and Maria Bethânia, among others. He also founded one of the first artistic ensembles of the time, Bossa Três, which was rebranded Gemini V in 1966 with Leny Andrade and Pery Ribeiro on vocals. He published the LP “The Bossa 3” in 1963. In 1964, he appeared on the fantastic album “O Som” by Meirelles e Os Copa 5. Nonetheless, that same year, he released the remarkable LP “Novas Estruturas.”

In 1968, he released “O Som Psicodélico de Luiz Carlos Vinhas”, a bold mix of jazz with the sounds that came from the tropicalist movement and psychedelic.

This LP is a milestone in Brazilian music and is very rare in its original edition. Finally, Mad About Records officially reissued it.

“Black Rio” is a classic track from the 1970s.

The Legendary Singer’s Soul Funk Grooves Warner Music releases from 1977 to 1979

Carlos Dafé, one of the most important exponents of Brazilian soul music, has had songs recorded by Tânia Maria (“A Cruz”) and Nana Caymmi (“Passarela”), in addition to his solo career (registered in six albums from 1977 to 1997). Carlos Dafé’s initial musical role model was his dad, who trained him in many pieces and exposed him to choro and samba traditions. Dafé honed his singing abilities as a crooner in the bars of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro in the 1960s.

In 1977, he released his debut solo album (Pra Que Vou Recordar). Carlos Dafé, a Carioca (from Vila Isabel) suburbia, created their own soul music tinge, initially evident in his 1978’s Venha Matar Saudades, when he was supported by the Banda Black Rio.

He was a founder of Brazilian Soul music and had one of the most distinctive voices of the 1970s. He sang for geniuses such as Tim Maia and began his career by joining the bands Fuzi 9 and Aboliço.

Between 1977 and 1979, Carlos Dafé made three iconic records for Warner Music. This collection brings together some of the most stunning topics from these recordings.

Legendary Texas Jazz Latin Soul

Mad About Records is pleased to announce the vinyl reissue of Joe Gallardo & Sol’s “Sol,” initially published in 1975.

“Sol” is a Latin-funk psych fuzz blaster that pretty much covers every aspect of unique record collecting in one shot. There’s the funk fuzz blaster “Maranatha,” the Ray Barretto Latin jazz groove song “El Que Se Fue,” with its crazy synth blasts, the Texas smooth funk movements of “Squeeze,” which sounds like one of Steam Heat’s songs, and the lounged-out soul interpretation of Stevie Wonder’s classic “Bird Of Beauty.” Something for everyone, and extremely uncommon!

Gallardo’s work has always included Latin Jazz. His first major break occurred in the late 1960s, when Luis Gasca, a trumpeter from Houston, Texas, asked him to perform the trombone on his debut Atlantic Records album, “Little Giant.” 

On the first occasion of this project, Joe Gallardo met outstanding Latin jazz players like Mongo Santamaria, Mark Levine, and Julio Collazo, among jazz heavyweights like Herbie Hancock, Joe Henderson, Richard Davies, and Bernard Purdie. That period was crucial for Joe Gallardo, who never ceased performing or publishing.

Brazilian Funk Soul Finest Record Collection

Deluxe version of a very rare Funk-Soul-Boogie.

The Finest Brazilian Funk Soul Record Assortment. A delectable piece of Brazilian Soul and Funk from the 1970s and 1980s, particularly from the golden 1970s.

In the 1970s, soul and funk were forming all over the globe. The Brazilians expanded on their own great tunes, merging them with elements from Funk and Soul music from other countries to establish something distinctly Brazilian.

The disco-boogie-funk sound generated in Brazil in the late 1970s and early 1980s has received attention. Some albums have gone on to become renowned classics and best-sellers. 

Several have become niche recordings that have probably disappeared unnoticed by the general public; some of these uncommon albums are now included in the first volume of “Disco é Cultura.”

Double LP Deluxe Edition, OBI Strip

1979 Very Rare Private Hawaii Spiritual Jazz Funk

First-Ever Worldwide Vinyl Reissue

Gary Washburn, a well-known Hawaiian composer, musician, and educator, created this special Jazz-Fusion record. “A Life in a Day” was a project for which he received a National Endowment for the Arts grant, and he also received a State Foundation grant.

It’s a concept CD that Gary created in Hilo specifically for the people who played the song in the same manner that Duke Ellington composed for his orchestra.

The Justin Thyme lineup performed a series of gigs throughout the isle, which was first captured on a 4-channel recorder. Kent Washburn, brother, and composer, was exposed to the track and decided to release it on his own company, EmKay Records.

The record was produced and manufactured, but his production firm quadrupled it, and the CD was never released publicly. Washburn’s musical techniques for presenting this one-of-a-kind conceptual portrayal include conventional and modern Jazz, Funk, Pop, and, in certain instances, classical.

A Life In A Day is a 13-movement orchestral suite created and composed by Gary Washburn under the auspices of a National Endowment For The Arts award.

The composition, written expressly for the Justin Thyme group, illustrates the stages of life from creation and formulation through self-realization and satisfaction, and finally death, which symbolizes rebirth and progress.

“Circles are cycles of forms that spiral out and back… always starting and terminating at the same location, but always finishing an eternal trip.” Back and forth.

Legendary Mexican Psych Latin Jazz Funk Reissue for the first time

Leobardo Acosta Quintanar was born in 1925 in Huetamo, Michoacán. He was a well-known drummer, composer, arranger, and conductor.

In 1970, he released his final album for Capitol with a small group of his best mates. Rogiero Silva, the sound engineer for these sessions, says that it occurred late at night.

Leo was typically highly demanding with all of his artists during studio sessions, and he did not accept blunders or failures, but he was completely comfortable and appreciated this one very much. Despite his earlier releases, when the labels obliged him to record at least six songs that charted, all of the tracks on “ACOSTA”, also known as “El Leon”, are originals.

The magic of this album is Leo’s talent to blend the impact of jazz and funk fusions with Latin rhythms, which he skillfully dominates. The standout “Rencorosa” has a big effect on Willie Bobo’s “Evil Ways” through Santana.

“Noches de Viaje” is one of the greatest instances of mid-tempo jazz, and the humorous lines in “Carga Pesada” capture the ambiance of Leo’s nightclub activities, complete with a drum solo. Meloda de Amor Eterno ” focuses on a more spiritual jazz side of Mario Patrón’s Hammond B3 and Tomás “La Negrita” Rodriguez’s Sax Tenor.

Regrettably, regardless of the fact that two 45rpm recordings were published as promotional items: Rencorosa/Noches de Viaje and Rosa Rosita/Mi Guitarra, the album remained undetected on the broadcast and sold badly.

Mad About Album is thrilled to bring you the worldwide premiere of this cult record, one of the rarest in Latin Jazz.

South African Jazz Holy Grail

Tete’s Big Sound was released in the 1970s, a golden era for indigenous South African jazz music. It was the debut album attributed to pianist Tete Mbambisa as a solo artist, released in 1976 on the independent As-Shams/The Sun label. By the mid-1970s, Mbambisa was already an arranger, seasoned composer, bandleader, and performer—a musician at the pinnacle of his talents who had meticulously honed his craft to make his unforgettable breakthrough.

Mbambisa has just published a series of live recordings in collaboration with the Music Research Center at the University of York. Tete Mbambisa, who will be 80 in 2022, resides in Cape Town and continues to amaze crowds with sporadic exclusive performances.

Mad About Records’ 2021 edition of Tete’s Big Sound, reprinted in conjunction with Tete Mbambisa and As-Sham/The Sun, is the song’s first foreign publication.