Milton Nascimento - Clube Da Esquina

Milton Nascimento, "Tudo Que Voce Podia Ser" (YSI link)

Lõ Borges, "O Trem Azul" (YSI link)

Alaide Costa and Milton Nascimento, "Me Deixa Em Paz" (YSI link)

Milton Nascimento e Beto Guedes, "Nada Serà Como Antes" (YSI link)

I spent the weekend back home in Philadelphia, which ironically gave me the chance to dig into my CD collection that has remained at the original Pound for Pound HQ, i.e. my parent's house. It was quite an archeological dig; I got to upload some great jazz music, Raddest find: Miles Davis' Complete Live At The Plugged Nickel boxed set. Most embarrassing find: I own more than one moe. CD!? Jam band memories came flooding back

One of the gems I got to upload and enjoy again was this one by Milton Nascimento, Clube Da Esquina. This album and the movement of the same name are pivotal in the development of Brazilian music, leading the way for traditional Brazilian sounds to engage with the modern rock music that was happening in the UK and US and jazz and whatever else they heard at the time. The story for Nascimento and the clube da esquina (club on the corner) members begins in 1963, when Nascimento and friend Tres Pontas moved to the same boarding house as the Borges brothers. Add in a few other local friends and they formed a band called The Beavers. Nascimento was always the focal point, as he made his own solo music and would eventually bring the group together to record this album for EMI in 1973.

You will immediately notice that the music has a beauty that you don't find very often. Despite the modern influences, there's really no discordant notes at all. You get a lot of upbeat, jangly pop, a smattering of slow ballads, all with gorgeous vocals sung mostly by Nascimento and Lõ Borges. You can definitely hear The Beatles influence, with the electric guitars and pop sensibility, but there's no denying that this is Brazilian music at heart with its percussion and samba-like rhythms. The songs above should give you a good idea of what you can hear on the 21 tracks on the album.

I'm sure you can tell that I think this is some amazing music. While it's out of our normal posting range here, it's definitely at the heart of what I like to listen to: great, soulful music. Buy a copy today, check the amazing reviews there if you doubt me. An essential purchase and a great way to jump into the Brazilian waters and discover the incredible music of that country. Yeah!

[I'd like to thank Milton for making this album, as its calming sounds were the perfect soundtrack to me having to wait two hours to catch one of the Chinatown buses to NYC last night. I mean, people were fighting, screaming the F word, there was no line whatsoever to get on, just a bum rush when a new bus pulled up. The whole time I was in a total zen state, imagining that the bus was taking me to Rio, where I would end up on the beach with a girl in a thong, playing soccer and discussing urban development and the favelas with said girl. Thank you Milton, thank you.]