Wednesday, September 03, 2014

NEW RELEASES: THE BLUE BEATERS - TOXIC/CATCH THAT TEARDROP; MARISA MONTE - VERDADE UMA IILUSAO - TOUR 2012/2013; GILBERTO GIL - GILBERTO'S SAMBA

THE BLUE BEATERS - TOXIC

Record Kicks proudly presents Italian Ska/RockSteady/Soul giants The Bluebeaters. Active since 1994 with 4 studio albums for King Size Records, V2 and Universal Music and several gold records under the belt, The Bluebeaters are top musicians in love with vintage Jamaican sounds: Ska, Rock Steady, Rhythm Blues and Soul. Blessed by Ken Booth, during the last 20 years of their career they've headline festivals like Rototom Sun Splash and International Ska Fest in 2012 and extensively toured around Europe, including a legendary sold out show at Dingwalls in London in 2011. Amongst their fans, there are folks like David Rodigan and the legendary late lamented Lloyd Knibb (The Skatalites).  The Bluebeaters lands on RK with two brand new tracks "Toxic (one drop version)" and "Catch That Teardrop". Produced by The Bluebeaters and mixed by Tommaso Colliva (Calibro 35) at Toomi Labs studio in London, this double-sider 45 features a storming early Jamaican cover up version, of pop single Toxic by Britney Spears (yes that Toxic!) able to set every dancefloor on fire. On the flip side the band keeps the pressure very high, bringing back to JA roots, Catch That Teardrop, a Northern soul/R&b single originally recorded in 1962 by The Five Royales from Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Welcome Bluebeaters!

MARISA MONTE - VERDADE UMA IILUSAO - TOUR 2012/2013

Really lovely live work from Marisa Monte – an artist who's kept on making marvelous records over the years – even long after the initial wave of attention that brought her some global fame! This set's got Monte working in a mature mode that's almost in the territory of Gal Costa or Maria Bethania – stepping out front of some commanding arrangements that sometimes use bits of strings, sometimes have a smaller spontaneous group – but which are always topped by Monte's proud, confident vocals. There's a classic feel here that's almost better than some of her studio work over the past decade or so – although that's all pretty great too – and title sinclude "Arrepio", "Descalco No Parque", "Diariamente", "ECT", "De Mais Ninguem", "Dizem", "Lencinho Querido", and 'Sono Come Tu Mi Vuoi".  ~ Dusty Groove


GILBERTO GIL - GILBERTO'S SAMBA

One of the best records we've heard from Gilberto Gil in many, many years – a stripped-down session that focuses on his voice and guitar work – in a style that takes us back to Gil's earliest days in music! The album feels like some lost session that Gilberto might have recorded in the 60s – before his Louvacao debut – done with mostly just a bit of light percussion from the enigmatic Domenico, plus some help from Moreno Veloso – who also co-produced the record as well, with that great sense of space he always brings to his own music too. A few cuts feature extra touches – a bit of accordion, or some flute from Danilo Caymmi – but the main focus is on Gil, who hasn't sounded this great in years – still able to capture our imagination when he works in a straightforward style like this. Titles include "Milagre", "Um Abraco No Joao", "Tim Tim Por Tim Tim", "Eu Sambo Mesmo", "Aos Pes Da Cruz", and "Desde Que O Samba E Samba".  ~ Dusty Groove



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