João Gilberto
Encyclopedia
João Gilberto Prado Pereira de Oliveira, known as João Gilberto (ˈʒwɐ̃w ʒiwˈbɛʁtu; June 10, 1931 in Juazeiro
, Bahia
), is a Brazil
ian singer and guitarist
. His seminal recordings, including many songs by Antônio Carlos Jobim
and Vinicius de Moraes
, established the new musical genre of Bossa nova
in the late 1950s.
, the young Gilberto was recruited in 1950 as lead singer of the vocal quintet Garotos da Lua (Moon Boys) and moved to Rio de Janeiro. A year and a half later, he was dismissed from the group for his lack of discipline (he would often show up late to rehearsals or not at all).
João Gilberto's first recordings were released in Brazil as two-song 78-rpm singles between 1951 and 1959. In the 1960s, Brazilian singles evolved to the "double compact" format, and João would release some EPs in this new format, which carried 4 songs on a 45-rpm record.
For seven years, Gilberto's career was at a low ebb. He rarely had any work, was dependent on his friends for living quarters, and fell into chronic depression. Eventually, in 1955 he was rescued from this rut by Luiz Telles, leader of the vocal group Quitandinha Serenaders, who took him to Porto Alegre
in southern Brazil. In this provincial town João Gilberto blossomed musically. Next he spent eight months with his sister in Diamantina, Minas Gerais, where he sequestered himself and played day and night in a little bathroom (because of the improved acoustic), forging a personal style for voice and guitar that would come to be known as bossa nova
. The first bossa nova
song, titled "Bim-Bom
", was written as Gilberto watched passing laundresses on the banks of the São Francisco River
balance loads of clothes on their heads.
Just after this time Gilberto's father, upset by João's bizarre singing style and refusal to take "normal" work, committed him to a mental hospital. In a psychological interview there, Gilberto stared out the window and remarked, “Look at the wind depilating the trees.” The psychologist replied, “But trees have no hair, João,” to which Gilberto responded, “And there are people who have no poetry.” He was released after a week. The next year (1956) he returned to Rio and struck up old acquaintances, most significantly Antonio Carlos Jobim
, who was by then working as a composer, producer and arranger with Odeon Records
. Jobim was impressed with Gilberto's new style of guitar playing, and set about finding a suitable song to pitch the style to Odeon management.
Bossa nova ("new style") is a refined version of samba, de-emphasizing the percussive aspect of its rhythm and enriching the melodic and harmonic content. Rather than relying on the traditional Afro-Brazilian percussive instruments, João Gilberto often eschews all accompaniment except his guitar, which he uses as a percussive as well as a harmonic instrument, incorporating the parts of different samba percussion instruments such as the tamborim
and the surdo
from a full batucada
band. The singing style he developed is almost whispering, economical, and without vibrato
. He creates his tempo tensions by singing ahead or behind the beat.
This style, which Gilberto introduced in 1957, created a sensation in the musical circles of Rio's Zona Sul, and many young guitarists sought to imitate it. It was first heard on record in 1958 in a recording of "Chega de Saudade", a song by Jobim and Vinicius de Moraes
. Gilberto had first accompanied singer Elizeth Cardoso as her guitarist in a recording of this song, explaining his vision for the new style, but Cardoso would have none of his singing advice and sung it in the standard way. But shortly after this recording, João Gilberto made his own debut single of the same song, in the new style, followed by the 1959 LP, Chega de Saudade
. The song turned into a hit, launching Gilberto's career and the bossa nova craze. Besides a number of Jobim compositions, the album featured older sambas and popular songs from the 1940s and '50s, all performed in Gilberto's distinctive style. This album was followed by two more in 1960 and 1961, by which time the singer featured new songs by a younger generation of performer/composers such as Carlos Lyra
and Roberto Menescal
.
By 1962, bossa nova had been embraced by North American jazz musicians such as Herbie Mann
, Charlie Byrd
, and Stan Getz
, who invited Gilberto and Jobim to collaborate on what became one of the best-selling jazz albums of all time, Getz/Gilberto
. Through this album, Gilberto's then wife Astrud
-- who had never sung professionally prior to this recording session -- became an international star, and the Jobim/de Moraes composition "The Girl from Ipanema
" became a worldwide pop music standard.
João Gilberto lived in the United States from 1962 until 1969, when he moved to Mexico
for two years. There he recorded João Gilberto en México (1970). João Gilberto
, aka the "White Album" (1973), featured hypnotic minimalist execution, limited to the singer, his guitar, and Sonny Carr on drums. 1976 saw the release of The Best of Two Worlds, a reunion with Stan Getz, featuring singer Miúcha
, (sister of Chico Buarque
), who had become Gilberto's second wife in April 1965. Amoroso (1977) backed Gilberto with the lush string orchestration of Claus Ogerman
, who had provided a similar sound to Jobim's instrumental recordings in the late 1960s and early 1970s. As had been the case for all of Gilberto's albums, the album consisted mostly of Jobim compositions, mixed with older sambas and an occasional North American standard from the 1940s.
João Gilberto returned to Brazil in 1980. The following year saw the release of Brasil, with guests Gilberto Gil
and Caetano Veloso
, who in the late 1960s had founded the Tropicalia movement, a fusion of Brazilian popular music with foreign pop. The 1991 release João, with orchestrations by Clare Fischer
, was unusual in its lack of even a single Jobim composition, instead featuring songs in English, French, Italian, and Spanish, plus old sambas and the solitary contemporary song "Sampa" (Caetano Veloso). Also released in 1991 was the album Canto do Pajé by Veloso's sister Maria Bethânia
, on which Bethânia and Gilberto sing an intimate medley of "Maria" (Ary Barroso/Luiz Peixoto) and "Linda Flor"' (Henrique Vogeler/Luiz Peixoto/Marques Pôrto), accompanied solely by his guitar. João Voz e Violão (2000) was an homage to the music of Gilberto's youth as well as a nod to producer Caetano Veloso.
Evenly interspersed with these studio recordings have been the live recordings Live in Montreux; João Gilberto Prado Pereira de Oliveira; Eu Sei Que Vou Te Amar; Live at Umbria Jazz; and Live in Tokyo.
While all of Gilberto's albums since Getz/Gilberto have been released on CD, the first three domestic albums were released in 1988 by EMI
on a single CD entitled The Legendary João Gilberto: The Original Bossa Nova Recordings (1958–1961). The disc also included three tracks from the singer's 1959 Orfeu Negro EP: "Manhã de Carnaval," O Nosso Amor, and A Felicidade, the latter two merged into a single medley track to fit within the recording time of a CD. After its release, Gilberto successfully sued to have the title removed from sale as an unauthorized release of his artistic works.
João Gilberto has long had a reputation as an artist who values his privacy. He lives in an apartment in Leblon, Rio de Janeiro, refusing interviews and avoiding crowds. He also has high standards for acoustics and noise control. He has been known to walk out on performances in response to audiences that interfere with the music by creating inappropriate noise, or out of theaters possessing poor acoustics; on several occasions he requested that the air conditioning be turned off at concert venues. During a recording session of the song "Rosa Morena" Gilberto insisted on 28 takes to get the pronunciation of the 'O' in "Rosa" just right.
He continues to perform, very occasionally, to sell-out crowds in Brazil as well as in Europe, North America, and Japan. His planned public performances in Madrid (2009) and New York (2010) were cancelled at short notice. He is the father of singer Bebel Gilberto
(Isabel), via his marriage to Miúcha.
In 1997, João sued record label EMI
over a reissuing of several of his early works which he contended were poorly remastered. According to The New York Times
, "A statement by his lawyer at the time declared that the reissues contained sound effects that 'did not pertain to the original recordings, banalizing the work of a great artist.'" Following the incident, EMI ceased to manufacture the albums in question, and, as of 2008, the lawsuit is yet to reach a decision.
-João Gilberto's first five records released from 1951-1958 were all 78 rpm
single editions.
-The album João Gilberto released in 1970 is the same version as João Gilberto en Mexico in the same year but by different record companies.
-Live in Montreux from 1987 is the same version as the one released in 1986. The version in 1986 was released in Brasil whereas the 1987 one was released in USA. Both were recorded live.
Juazeiro
Juazeiro is a city and municipality in eastern Brazil in the state of Bahia . It had a population of 260,004, according to the 2010 census, and an area of 6,415.4 km². The population density was 31.34 hab/km² . The elevation is 373 meters. It became a city in 1833...
, Bahia
Bahia
Bahia is one of the 26 states of Brazil, and is located in the northeastern part of the country on the Atlantic coast. It is the fourth most populous Brazilian state after São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro, and the fifth-largest in size...
), is a Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian singer and guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
. His seminal recordings, including many songs by Antônio Carlos Jobim
Antônio Carlos Jobim
Antônio Carlos Brasileiro de Almeida Jobim , also known as Tom Jobim , was a Brazilian songwriter, composer, arranger, singer, and pianist/guitarist. He was a primary force behind the creation of the bossa nova style, and his songs have been performed by many singers and instrumentalists within...
and Vinicius de Moraes
Vinicius de Moraes
Marcus Vinicius de Moraes , known as Vinicius de Moraes and nicknamed O Poetinho , was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Son of Lydia Cruz de Moraes and Clodoaldo Pereira da Silva Moraes, he was a seminal figure in contemporary Brazilian music...
, established the new musical genre of Bossa nova
Bossa nova
Bossa nova is a style of Brazilian music. Bossa nova acquired a large following in the 1960s, initially consisting of young musicians and college students...
in the late 1950s.
Biography
From an early age, music was a part of João Gilberto's life. His grandfather bought him his first guitar at the age of 14. During high school, Gilberto teamed up with some of his classmates to form a small band. Gilberto, who led the band, was influenced by Brazilian popular songs, American jazz, and even some opera, among other genres. After trying his luck as a radio singer in Salvador, BahiaSalvador, Bahia
Salvador is the largest city on the northeast coast of Brazil and the capital of the Northeastern Brazilian state of Bahia. Salvador is also known as Brazil's capital of happiness due to its easygoing population and countless popular outdoor parties, including its street carnival. The first...
, the young Gilberto was recruited in 1950 as lead singer of the vocal quintet Garotos da Lua (Moon Boys) and moved to Rio de Janeiro. A year and a half later, he was dismissed from the group for his lack of discipline (he would often show up late to rehearsals or not at all).
João Gilberto's first recordings were released in Brazil as two-song 78-rpm singles between 1951 and 1959. In the 1960s, Brazilian singles evolved to the "double compact" format, and João would release some EPs in this new format, which carried 4 songs on a 45-rpm record.
For seven years, Gilberto's career was at a low ebb. He rarely had any work, was dependent on his friends for living quarters, and fell into chronic depression. Eventually, in 1955 he was rescued from this rut by Luiz Telles, leader of the vocal group Quitandinha Serenaders, who took him to Porto Alegre
Porto Alegre
Porto Alegre is the tenth most populous municipality in Brazil, with 1,409,939 inhabitants, and the centre of Brazil's fourth largest metropolitan area . It is also the capital city of the southernmost Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. The city is the southernmost capital city of a Brazilian...
in southern Brazil. In this provincial town João Gilberto blossomed musically. Next he spent eight months with his sister in Diamantina, Minas Gerais, where he sequestered himself and played day and night in a little bathroom (because of the improved acoustic), forging a personal style for voice and guitar that would come to be known as bossa nova
Bossa nova
Bossa nova is a style of Brazilian music. Bossa nova acquired a large following in the 1960s, initially consisting of young musicians and college students...
. The first bossa nova
Bossa nova
Bossa nova is a style of Brazilian music. Bossa nova acquired a large following in the 1960s, initially consisting of young musicians and college students...
song, titled "Bim-Bom
Bim-Bom
"Bim Bom" is considered the first bossa nova song. It was composed by João Gilberto around 1956. The song wasn't recorded until July 1958 when Gilberto released it under Odeon Records along with his version of the first produced bossa nova song, "Chega de Saudade", which had been released by...
", was written as Gilberto watched passing laundresses on the banks of the São Francisco River
São Francisco River
The São Francisco is a river in Brazil. With a length of , it is the longest river that runs entirely in Brazilian territory, and the fourth longest in South America and overall in Brazil...
balance loads of clothes on their heads.
Just after this time Gilberto's father, upset by João's bizarre singing style and refusal to take "normal" work, committed him to a mental hospital. In a psychological interview there, Gilberto stared out the window and remarked, “Look at the wind depilating the trees.” The psychologist replied, “But trees have no hair, João,” to which Gilberto responded, “And there are people who have no poetry.” He was released after a week. The next year (1956) he returned to Rio and struck up old acquaintances, most significantly Antonio Carlos Jobim
Antônio Carlos Jobim
Antônio Carlos Brasileiro de Almeida Jobim , also known as Tom Jobim , was a Brazilian songwriter, composer, arranger, singer, and pianist/guitarist. He was a primary force behind the creation of the bossa nova style, and his songs have been performed by many singers and instrumentalists within...
, who was by then working as a composer, producer and arranger with Odeon Records
Odeon Records
Odeon Records was a record label founded in 1903 by Max Straus and Heinrich Zuntz of the International Talking Machine Company in Berlin, Germany. It was named after a famous theatre in Paris, whose classical dome appears on the Odeon record label....
. Jobim was impressed with Gilberto's new style of guitar playing, and set about finding a suitable song to pitch the style to Odeon management.
Bossa nova ("new style") is a refined version of samba, de-emphasizing the percussive aspect of its rhythm and enriching the melodic and harmonic content. Rather than relying on the traditional Afro-Brazilian percussive instruments, João Gilberto often eschews all accompaniment except his guitar, which he uses as a percussive as well as a harmonic instrument, incorporating the parts of different samba percussion instruments such as the tamborim
Tamborim
A tamborim is a small, round Brazilian frame drum of Portuguese and African origin.The frame is 6" in width and may be made of metal, plastic, or wood. The head is typically made of nylon and is normally very tightly tuned in order to ensure a high, sharp timbre and a minimum of sustain...
and the surdo
Surdo
For the football player of the same name see Surdu.The surdo is a large bass drum used in many kinds of Brazilian music, most notably in Axé/Samba-reggae and samba and its variants, where it plays the lower parts from a percussion section....
from a full batucada
Batucada
Batucada is a substyle of samba and refers to an African influenced Brazilian percussive style, usually performed by an ensemble, known as a Bateria...
band. The singing style he developed is almost whispering, economical, and without vibrato
Vibrato
Vibrato is a musical effect consisting of a regular, pulsating change of pitch. It is used to add expression to vocal and instrumental music. Vibrato is typically characterised in terms of two factors: the amount of pitch variation and the speed with which the pitch is varied .-Vibrato and...
. He creates his tempo tensions by singing ahead or behind the beat.
This style, which Gilberto introduced in 1957, created a sensation in the musical circles of Rio's Zona Sul, and many young guitarists sought to imitate it. It was first heard on record in 1958 in a recording of "Chega de Saudade", a song by Jobim and Vinicius de Moraes
Vinicius de Moraes
Marcus Vinicius de Moraes , known as Vinicius de Moraes and nicknamed O Poetinho , was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Son of Lydia Cruz de Moraes and Clodoaldo Pereira da Silva Moraes, he was a seminal figure in contemporary Brazilian music...
. Gilberto had first accompanied singer Elizeth Cardoso as her guitarist in a recording of this song, explaining his vision for the new style, but Cardoso would have none of his singing advice and sung it in the standard way. But shortly after this recording, João Gilberto made his own debut single of the same song, in the new style, followed by the 1959 LP, Chega de Saudade
Chega de Saudade (album)
Chega de Saudade is the debut album from João Gilberto and is often credited as the first bossa nova album. The title can be translated roughly as "enough longing", though the Portuguese word saudade carries with it more complex meaning....
. The song turned into a hit, launching Gilberto's career and the bossa nova craze. Besides a number of Jobim compositions, the album featured older sambas and popular songs from the 1940s and '50s, all performed in Gilberto's distinctive style. This album was followed by two more in 1960 and 1961, by which time the singer featured new songs by a younger generation of performer/composers such as Carlos Lyra
Carlos Lyra
Carlos Lyra is a Brazilian singer and composer of numerous bossa nova and Música Popular Brasileira classics. He was born on May 11, 1939. Along with Roberto Menescal, he was a primary figure of the younger generation of bossa nova musicians who closely followed the inception of the style by João...
and Roberto Menescal
Roberto Menescal
Roberto Menescal is a Brazilian jazz guitarist important to the founding of bossa nova. In many of his songs there are references to the sea. He is also known for work with Carlos Lyra. Menescal has performed in a variety of Latin music mediums, including Brazilian pop, Música Popular Brasileira,...
.
By 1962, bossa nova had been embraced by North American jazz musicians such as Herbie Mann
Herbie Mann
Herbert Jay Solomon , better known as Herbie Mann, was a Jewish American jazz flutist and important early practitioner of world music...
, Charlie Byrd
Charlie Byrd
Charlie Lee Byrd was a famous and versatile American guitarist born in Suffolk, Virginia. His earliest and strongest musical influence was Django Reinhardt, the famous gypsy guitarist. Byrd became the American guitarist who best understood and played Brazilian music, especially the Bossa Nova genre...
, and Stan Getz
Stan Getz
Stanley Getz was an American jazz saxophone player. Getz was known as "The Sound" because of his warm, lyrical tone, his prime influence being the wispy, mellow timbre of his idol, Lester Young. Coming to prominence in the late 1940s with Woody Herman's big band, Getz is described by critic Scott...
, who invited Gilberto and Jobim to collaborate on what became one of the best-selling jazz albums of all time, Getz/Gilberto
Getz/Gilberto
Getz/Gilberto is a jazz bossa nova album released in 1964 by the American saxophonist Stan Getz and Brazilian guitarist João Gilberto, and featuring composer and pianist Antonio Carlos Jobim. Its release created a bossa nova craze in the United States and internationally...
. Through this album, Gilberto's then wife Astrud
Astrud Gilberto
Astrud Gilberto is a Brazilian samba and bossa nova singer. She is well known for the Grammy Award-winning song "The Girl from Ipanema".-Biography:...
-- who had never sung professionally prior to this recording session -- became an international star, and the Jobim/de Moraes composition "The Girl from Ipanema
The Girl from Ipanema
"Garota de Ipanema" is a well-known bossa nova song, a worldwide hit in the mid-1960s that won a Grammy for Record of the Year in 1965. It was written in 1962, with music by Antonio Carlos Jobim and Portuguese lyrics by Vinicius de Moraes. English lyrics were written later by Norman Gimbel.The...
" became a worldwide pop music standard.
João Gilberto lived in the United States from 1962 until 1969, when he moved to Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
for two years. There he recorded João Gilberto en México (1970). João Gilberto
João Gilberto (1973 album)
João Gilberto is a bossa nova album by João Gilberto, originally released in Brazil as a vinyl LP in 1973 and reissued on CD in 1988. João Gilberto released another album named João Gilberto in 1961, as well as several EPs with only his name as title...
, aka the "White Album" (1973), featured hypnotic minimalist execution, limited to the singer, his guitar, and Sonny Carr on drums. 1976 saw the release of The Best of Two Worlds, a reunion with Stan Getz, featuring singer Miúcha
Miúcha
Heloísa Maria Buarque de Hollanda , whose artistic name is Miúcha, is a Brazilian singer and composer. She is the daughter of historian Sérgio Buarque de Holanda by Maria Amélia Cesário Alvim and sister of the singer and composer Chico Buarque and two other singers Ana de Hollanda and Cristina...
, (sister of Chico Buarque
Chico Buarque
Francisco Buarque de Hollanda , popularly known as Chico Buarque , is a singer, guitarist, composer, dramatist, writer and poet...
), who had become Gilberto's second wife in April 1965. Amoroso (1977) backed Gilberto with the lush string orchestration of Claus Ogerman
Claus Ogerman
Claus Ogerman is a German musical arranger/ orchestrator, conductor, and composer, best known for his works with Antonio Carlos Jobim, Frank Sinatra and Diana Krall.-Life and work:...
, who had provided a similar sound to Jobim's instrumental recordings in the late 1960s and early 1970s. As had been the case for all of Gilberto's albums, the album consisted mostly of Jobim compositions, mixed with older sambas and an occasional North American standard from the 1940s.
João Gilberto returned to Brazil in 1980. The following year saw the release of Brasil, with guests Gilberto Gil
Gilberto Gil
Gilberto Passos Gil Moreira , better known as Gilberto Gil or , is a Brazilian singer, guitarist, and songwriter, known for both his musical innovation and political commitment...
and Caetano Veloso
Caetano Veloso
Caetano Emanuel Viana Teles Veloso , better known as Caetano Veloso, is a Brazilian composer, singer, guitarist, writer, and political activist. Veloso first became known for his participation in the Brazilian musical movement Tropicalismo which encompassed theatre, poetry and music in the 1960s,...
, who in the late 1960s had founded the Tropicalia movement, a fusion of Brazilian popular music with foreign pop. The 1991 release João, with orchestrations by Clare Fischer
Clare Fischer
Clare Fischer is an American composer, arranger, pianist and organist. His parents were of German, French, Irish-Scot, and English backgrounds.-Early years:...
, was unusual in its lack of even a single Jobim composition, instead featuring songs in English, French, Italian, and Spanish, plus old sambas and the solitary contemporary song "Sampa" (Caetano Veloso). Also released in 1991 was the album Canto do Pajé by Veloso's sister Maria Bethânia
Maria Bethânia
Maria Bethânia Vianna Telles Veloso , better known as Maria Bethânia , is a singer and sister of Caetano Veloso. She started her career in Rio de Janeiro in 1964 with the show "Opinião"...
, on which Bethânia and Gilberto sing an intimate medley of "Maria" (Ary Barroso/Luiz Peixoto) and "Linda Flor"' (Henrique Vogeler/Luiz Peixoto/Marques Pôrto), accompanied solely by his guitar. João Voz e Violão (2000) was an homage to the music of Gilberto's youth as well as a nod to producer Caetano Veloso.
Evenly interspersed with these studio recordings have been the live recordings Live in Montreux; João Gilberto Prado Pereira de Oliveira; Eu Sei Que Vou Te Amar; Live at Umbria Jazz; and Live in Tokyo.
While all of Gilberto's albums since Getz/Gilberto have been released on CD, the first three domestic albums were released in 1988 by EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
on a single CD entitled The Legendary João Gilberto: The Original Bossa Nova Recordings (1958–1961). The disc also included three tracks from the singer's 1959 Orfeu Negro EP: "Manhã de Carnaval," O Nosso Amor, and A Felicidade, the latter two merged into a single medley track to fit within the recording time of a CD. After its release, Gilberto successfully sued to have the title removed from sale as an unauthorized release of his artistic works.
João Gilberto has long had a reputation as an artist who values his privacy. He lives in an apartment in Leblon, Rio de Janeiro, refusing interviews and avoiding crowds. He also has high standards for acoustics and noise control. He has been known to walk out on performances in response to audiences that interfere with the music by creating inappropriate noise, or out of theaters possessing poor acoustics; on several occasions he requested that the air conditioning be turned off at concert venues. During a recording session of the song "Rosa Morena" Gilberto insisted on 28 takes to get the pronunciation of the 'O' in "Rosa" just right.
He continues to perform, very occasionally, to sell-out crowds in Brazil as well as in Europe, North America, and Japan. His planned public performances in Madrid (2009) and New York (2010) were cancelled at short notice. He is the father of singer Bebel Gilberto
Bebel Gilberto
Bebel Gilberto is a Brazilian popular singer often associated with bossa nova. She is the daughter of João Gilberto and singer Miúcha. Her uncle is singer/composer Chico Buarque...
(Isabel), via his marriage to Miúcha.
In 1997, João sued record label EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
over a reissuing of several of his early works which he contended were poorly remastered. According to The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, "A statement by his lawyer at the time declared that the reissues contained sound effects that 'did not pertain to the original recordings, banalizing the work of a great artist.'" Following the incident, EMI ceased to manufacture the albums in question, and, as of 2008, the lawsuit is yet to reach a decision.
Eviction
In January 2011, Gilberto was notified by the State Court to leave his apartment in Leblon, Rio de Janeiro, where he has lived for fifteen years. According to the lawyer Paulo Roberto Moreira Mendes, the property belongs to Georgina Brandolini d'Adda, who criticizes the eccentric behavior of the musician.Discography
- 1951: Quando Você Recordar/Amar é Bom
- 1951: Anjo Crue/Sem Elal
- 1952: Quando Ela Sai/Meia Luz
- 1958: Chega de Saudade/Bim Bom
- 1958: Desafinado/Hô-bá-lá-lá
- 1959: Chega de SaudadeChega de Saudade (album)Chega de Saudade is the debut album from João Gilberto and is often credited as the first bossa nova album. The title can be translated roughly as "enough longing", though the Portuguese word saudade carries with it more complex meaning....
- 1960: O Amor, o Sorriso e a FlorO Amor, o Sorriso e a FlorO Amor, o Sorriso e a Flor was released in Brazil in 1960. Its portuguese title translates to "The Love, the Smile and the Flower". -Track listing:-Credits :* Artwork - Cesar Gomes Villela* Photography - Francisco Pereira...
- 1961: João Gilberto
- 1961: Brazil's Brilliant João Gilberto
- 1962: João Gilberto Cantando as Musicás do Filme Orfeo do Carnaval
- 1962: Boss of Bossa Nova
- 1962: Bossa Nova at Carnegie Hall
- 1963: The Warm World of João Gilberto
- 1964: Getz/GilbertoGetz/GilbertoGetz/Gilberto is a jazz bossa nova album released in 1964 by the American saxophonist Stan Getz and Brazilian guitarist João Gilberto, and featuring composer and pianist Antonio Carlos Jobim. Its release created a bossa nova craze in the United States and internationally...
- 1965: Herbie Mann & João Gilberto with Antonio Carlos Jobim
- 1966: Getz/Gilberto Vol. 2Getz/Gilberto Vol. 2Getz/Gilberto #2 is a live album by Stan Getz and João Gilberto, released in 1964. It was recorded at a live concert at Carnegie Hall in October 1964...
- 1970: João Gilberto en MexicoJoão Gilberto en MexicoJoão Gilberto en Mexico, is a 1970 album by João Gilberto. Purportedly, after living in the United States, where he recorded the landmark Getz/Gilberto, among other works, João stayed in Mexico for what ended up being two years, instead of an initially planned short visit...
- 1973: João GilbertoJoão Gilberto (1973 album)João Gilberto is a bossa nova album by João Gilberto, originally released in Brazil as a vinyl LP in 1973 and reissued on CD in 1988. João Gilberto released another album named João Gilberto in 1961, as well as several EPs with only his name as title...
- 1976: The Best of Two WorldsThe Best of Two WorldsBest of Two Worlds was released in Brazil in 1976 by Stan Getz as a reunion with João Gilberto. Their last collaboration was a decade before on Getz/Gilberto Vol. 2...
- 1977: AmorosoAmoroso (album)Amoroso, released in 1976, is an album that uses an orchestral arrangement to produce the Brazilian sound of bossa nova. The album features João Gilberto on vocals and guitar, backed by a large, but not overpowering, arrangement.-Track listing:...
- 1977: Gilberto and Jobim
- 1980: João Gilberto Prado Pereira de OliveiraJoão Gilberto Prado Pereira de Oliveira (album)Prado Pereira de Oliveira was released in 1980 by João Gilberto. It was recorded in 1980 live on TV Globo. In english, it roughly translates to olive tree and pear tree in a meadow.-Track listing:...
- 1981: Brasil
- 1985: Interpreta Tom Jobim
- 1985: Meditação
- 1986: Live in MontreuxLive in MontreuxLive in Montreux is a bossa nova album by João Gilberto, recordedlive in the 1985 Montreux Jazz Festival and released in 1987. This is a single-discedition of the double album Live at the 19th Montreux Jazz Festival, released in 1986.-Track listing:...
- 1987: Live in MontreuxLive in MontreuxLive in Montreux is a bossa nova album by João Gilberto, recordedlive in the 1985 Montreux Jazz Festival and released in 1987. This is a single-discedition of the double album Live at the 19th Montreux Jazz Festival, released in 1986.-Track listing:...
- 1988: O Mito
- 1990: Stan Getz meets João & Astrud GilbertoStan Getz meets João & Astrud GilbertoStan Getz meets João & Astrud Gilberto: New York 1964 is a live recording of bossa nova in the making. In 1990, the Giants of Jazz label released a live recording of a 1964 New York City performance featuring Stan Getz, Joao Gilberto and Astrud Gilberto, his then-wife...
- 1991: João
- 1994: Eu Sei que Vou Te AmarEu Sei que Vou Te Amar (album)Eu Sei que Vou Te Amar was released in 1994 in Brazil by João Gilberto. It was recorded live.-Track listing:-Sources:Gridley, Mark. Jazz Styles: History and Analysis. 9th. NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, Print....
- 2000: João Voz e ViolãoJoão Voz e ViolãoJoão Voz e Violão is a bossa nova album by João Gilberto, released in 2000, winner 2001 Grammy Award for Best World Music Album...
- 2002: Live at Umbria JazzLive at Umbria JazzLive at Umbria Jazz was released in 2002 in Brazil by João Gilberto. The album was recorded live at the Umbria Jazz Festival at the Teatro Morlacchi in Perugia, Italy on 21 July 1996.-Track listing:-Sources:...
- 2004: In TokyoIn TokyoIn Tokyo is a bossa nova album by João Gilberto, recordedlive in Tokyo in September 2003 and released in 2004.-Track listing:# "Acontece que Eu Sou Baiano" – 2:56# "Meditação" – 5:33...
-João Gilberto's first five records released from 1951-1958 were all 78 rpm
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
single editions.
-The album João Gilberto released in 1970 is the same version as João Gilberto en Mexico in the same year but by different record companies.
-Live in Montreux from 1987 is the same version as the one released in 1986. The version in 1986 was released in Brasil whereas the 1987 one was released in USA. Both were recorded live.
Sources
- Castro, Ruy (trans. by Lysa Salsbury). "Bossa Nova: The Story of the Brazilian Music That Seduced the World." 2000. 1st English language edition. A Capella Books, an imprint of Chicago Review Press, Inc. ISBN 1-55652-409-9 First published in Brasil by Companhia das Letras. 1990.
- McGowan, Chris and Pessanha, Ricardo. "The Brazilian Sound: Samba, Bossa Nova and the Popular Music of Brazil." 1998. 2nd edition. Temple University Press. ISBN 1-56639-545-3
- Gridley, Mark. Jazz Styles: History and Analysis. 9th. NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, Print.
External links
- Plain João—The Man Who Invented Bossa Nova, a biographical profile by Daniella Thompson
- João Gilberto Discography by Laura Pelner McCarthy
- João Gilberto Discography by SomBras (meanwhile a dead link)
- Nos bastidores do legendario concerto da bossa nova 1962
- The Brazilian Sound: Brazilian Music & Culture Website
- Bossa Nova Guitar Transcriptions (Mostly of songs performed by João Gilberto)
- João Gilberto Discography on Slipcue.com