index page for Delicado Album Details
Quarteto Em Cy  - Quarteto Em Cy - 1972
Label: Odeon 5424852 (Brazil)
Format: CD
From: Brazil
My rating: 9/10

Entered: 10/15/2002
Last updated: 05/03/2003

Post a comment
Search on Ebay
Search on GEMM

This Brasilian reissue from 1972 is quite magnificent, and exactly the kind of healing music that my exhausted ears need today.

The opening track is Chico Buarque's 'Quando o carnaval chegar', and the spectrum of sound is a superb blend of strings, piano, bossa nova guitars and female vocals. There's a delightful introduction, featuring a Claus Ogerman-like string arrangement, before the song gets going. 'Talvez' highlights the piano more, but has the same wonderfully rich production.

'Tudo que voce podia ser', is the only track on here that I've heard previously (on the 'Blue Brazil 2' compilation). It has a hip rhythm, and the vocals give it a spooky air. Later, the rhythm intensifies, accompanied by some cool scat vocals. It took a while for this song to really 'hit' with me, but it definitely has now.

In spite of my use of words like 'delightful' and 'soothing', many of the tracks are actually quite spooky. 'Incelensa' an unsettling song, starting with other-worldly voices that sound like the angels in the library in Wim Wenders's film 'Wings of Desire'.

There are also a few very poppy numbers. 'Underground' is an extremely bouncy, upbeat track. 'Antes da primeira hora', by the same songwriting team of Luis Carlos Sa and Ze Rodrix, is similarly light. 'Cavaalo-ferro,' with its catchy vocal refrain, is probably the best of the more upbeat and poppy numbers.

'Zanga, zangada' and 'Cantoria' are both strong Edu Lobo tracks, the latter of which has the same chords as 'death of a disco dancer' by The Smiths, but sped up.

The final track features the vocals of Dorival Caymmi and prominent berimbau and percussion.

This is a superb album. I never would have found (or afforded) the original, so I'm delighted that Odeon in Brasil have seen fit to release it.
Quarteto Em Cy recommendations at Musical Taste
   Quando o carnaval chegar
   Vim Da Bahia

   Quick Search (this will search review text, performer, title and year):    

musical taste home