Happy Birthday Jorge Ben Jor!

Celebrating the birthday of iconic Brazilian singer/songwriter Jorge Ben Jor with a few vintage performance clips worth checking. 

Pokey LaFarge previews new Rhumba Country album with "Sister André"

Watch the video for "Sister André" from Pokey LaFarge's forthcoming Jorge Ben-inspired recording Rhumba Country.

Here's the scoop on Rhumba Country...

Pokey LaFarge returns with Rhumba Country on May 10th via New West Records. The 10–song set was co-produced by Chris Seefried, Elliot Bergman, and LaFarge and was recorded in Los Angeles, CA & Chicago, IL. On Rhumba Country, he reveals his newly heightened devotion to making music that channels pure joy. He says, “There was a time when I glorified sadness because I lost sight of who I was, but now I understand that creating and expressing joy is my gift, and gifts are meant to be shared.” Reclaiming his voice, LaFarge has recorded his boldest album yet.  

 

After criss-crossing the nation for the last half-decade looking for a home, LaFarge found himself in Mid-Coast Maine. Upon arriving, the Illinois-born singer/songwriter/actor pursued a major life change, working 12-hour days on a local farm—a turn of events that catalyzed an extraordinary burst of creativity and redefined his sense of purpose as an artist. As he immersed himself in the album’s creation, LaFarge began dreaming up a kaleidoscopic sound informed by his love of music from far-ranging eras and corners of the globe, including mambo, tropicalia, rocksteady, and mid-century American rock-and-roll. He pares his songs down to the essential throughout the album, ornamenting each track with subtle details and showcasing his distinct voice and ineffable charisma. 

 

His boundless curiosity for music from other cultures was vital in shaping the album’s captivating sound. “Listening to a lot of music from around the world helped simplify my approach,” he notes, naming Brazilian singer/composer Jorge Ben among his key inspirations. “The more you listen to music from around the world, you realize everybody’s got their form of country music,” he says. “It goes back to why I named the album Rhumba Country in the first place: it’s poking fun at the futility of boxing everything into a few genres, ‘What is folk music? What is country or soul?’ I’ve always bucked at all those boundaries and found it much more exciting to create my own genre.” 

 

Today, Pokey shared a video for the album’s first single, “Sister Andre.” LaFarge said, “Sister André is a love song for those who are lonely and looking and waiting to love and be loved. An encouragement to never give up the patient pursuit. It could come at any time! Encouragement, in this case, comes from Sister André, who inspired this song the day of her passing after 118 years of age.” 

You can pre-order Rhumba Country via New West Records right here. Watch the video for "Sister André" followed by a list of Pokey's upcoming tour dates which, unfortunately, doesn't include a stop in Toronto. Oh well, maybe next album.

 

Pokey LaFarge on tour

3/20 & 3/21 – Boise, ID – Treefort Festival

5/3 – Woodstock, NY – Levon Helm Studio

5/4 – Washington, DC – Kennedy Center

5/5 – Pawling, NY – Daryl’s House

5/10 – Indianapolis, IN – Hi Fi Annex

5/11 – Bloomington, IL – Castle Theatre

5/12 – Nashville, TN – 3rd and Lindsey

5/14 – Davenport, IA – Redstone Room

5/15 – Madison, WI – Majestic Theater

5/16 – Duluth, MN – The West Theatre

5/18 – Viroqua, WI – Historic Temple Theater

5/30 – Frankfort, KY – The Grand Theatre

5/31 – Pittsburgh, PA – Three Rivers Festival

6/1 – Cincinnati, OH – Memorial Hall

6/2 – Columbia, MO – Rose Park

6/4 – Omaha, NE – Waiting Room

6/6 – Ft Collins, CO – Washington’s

6/7 – Denver, CO – Bluebird

6/8 – Salt Lake City, UT – Fort Desolation

6/10 – Portland, OR – Aladdin Theater

6/11 – Vancouver, BC – The Pearl

6/12 – Seattle, WA – The Crocodile

6/14 – San Francisco, CA – The Chapel

6/15 – Los Angeles, CA – Troubadour

6/21-6/23 – Mount Salon, VA – Red Wing Festival

8/9-8/11 – Lyons, CO – Rocky Mountain Folk Festival

8/16 – Devon, UK – Beautiful Days

8/17 – Brighton, UK – Chalk

8/18 – Birmingham, UK – Castle & Falcon

8/20 – Liverpool, UK – Philharmonic

8/21 – Dublin, IE – Whelans

8/22 – Belfast, UK – Ulster Sports Club

8/23 – Edinburgh, UK – La Belle Angel

8/24 – Buckinghamshire, UK – Towersey Festival

8/25 – Leicestershire, UK – The Long Road

Jorge Ben covers comp Tudo Ben gets vinyl release... finally!

The 25-track Tudo Ben collection – originally released on CD in 2008 – has now been issued by Mr. Bongo as a 2LP vinyl package.

Here's the scoop from Mr. Bongo...

Jorge Ben is surely one of the world’s greatest all-round musical artists. He is internationally renowned and vastly influential as a vocalist, musician, performer and phenomenal songwriter. Famed for penning ‘Taj Mahal’, which was the source for Rod Stewart’s ‘Do You Think I’m Sexy?’, and also ‘Mas Que Nada’, one of Brazil’s most iconic anthems, Jorge Ben is a powerful musical force. A simple glance at his impressive back catalogue reveals a master of his craft, with a depth and quality that is seldom paralleled. 

For 'Tudo Ben' we take a side-step, focusing on Jorge Ben’s songs that have been performed by other artists. Complied by Mr Bongo, Greg Caz and Sean Marquand, this collection features the Brazilian legends Elza Soares, Claudette Soares, and Wilson Simonal, alongside prodigious artists such as Marijô, Os Brazoes, and Doris Monteiro to name but a few. The selection covers a wide range of genres including samba, bossa nova, MPB and batucada workouts. Many of the songs featured have become staples in Mr Bongo DJ sets over the years and are some of our most loved classics. As with many of history’s great songwriters, Jorge Ben’s songs transcend genres and styles, they can be covered and reinterpreted, yet the quality of the writing holds up to the standard of the original. 

In the dark days of the mid to late 2000s when the end of vinyl seemed inevitable, Mr Bongo released 'Tudo Ben' on CD only. Years later, we finally get to put this right and present it for the first time on vinyl with alternative artwork by Mr Krum.

Writes co-compiler Greg Caz... 

"About 15 years ago I put together a compilation of assorted artists doing Jorge Ben songs for the Mr. Bongo label. The basic idea was that Jorge was so prolific that he gave away countless songs to other artists that he never recorded himself, so rounding up as many of them in one place was a no-brainer. It came out pretty cool despite the inability to use anything that was on Universal (so no Philips or Polydor tracks). I wrote extensive liners for each track and the comp came out…on CD only. I screamed and yelled and stomped my feet until they agreed to put it on vinyl too…just now, 15 years later. Patience pays off, I guess. Sadly, they went the cheap route and left out my liner notes (oh, the humanity!) but having these 25 tracks in one 2LP package is better than not having that option at all. So here it is." – Greg Caz

Tudo Ben: Jorge Ben Covered

1. Salinas - Tenha Fé, Pois Amanhã Um Lindo Dia Vai Nascer / 2. Elza Soares - Pulo, Pulo / 3. Sonia Santos – Speed / 4. Osmar Milito - Rita Jeep / 5. Wilson Simonal – Zazueira / 6. Osmar Milito - Quem Mandou / 7. Doris Monteiro - Se Você Quiser Mas Sem Bronquear / 8. Wilson Simonal - Que Pena / 9. Osmar Milito - Morre O Burro, Fica O Homem / 10. Os Originais do Samba - Lá Vem Salgueiro / 11. Os Brazões - Carolina, Carol Bela / 12. Wilson Simonal - Crioula / 13. Claudette Soares - Êles Querem É Amar / 14. Os Incríveis - Vendedor De Bananas / 15. Wilson Simonal - Brasil, Eu Fico / 16. Cyro Aguiar - Rei Do Maracatu / 17. Wilson Simonal - Resposta / 18. Elza Soares - Mas Que Nada / 19. Wilson Simonal - País Tropical / 20. Os Originais do Samba - Cadê Tereza / 21. Marijô - Fio Maravilha / 22. Os Originais do Samba - Tenha Fé, Pois Amanhã Um Lindo Dia Vai Nascer / 23. Os Brazões - Que Maravilha / 24. Os Mutreteiros Grilados - Cosa Nostra / 25. Os Originais do Samba - Falador Passa Mal

Get a copy of Mr. Bongo's “Tudo Ben: Jorge Ben Covered” via Bandcamp right here. Have a listen below followed by a Jorge Ben performance of a number of his classics from 1972.

Happy 80th Birthday Jorge Ben Jor!

Celebrating Jorge Ben's 80th birthday with a fantastic 1970 performance accompanied by Trio Mocoto. 

Jorge Ben vs. José Prates

The melody of José Prates' 1958 recording of Nanã Imborô seems strangely familiar.

A uniquely Brazilian response to Planet Rock

Bahia-born singer/songwriter Lucas Santtana created his super fresh b-boy banger Super Violão Mashup – from his dope new Sem Nostalgia (Mais Um Disco) album – using acoustic guitar samples from the recordings of Dori Caymmi, Jorge Ben, Tom Zé, Novos Baianos, Gilberto Gil and Baden Powell. Only in Brazil. 

Super Violão Mashup


LINKS
site http://www.lucassanttana.com/
MySpace http://www.myspace.com/santtana 
label http://maisumdiscos.net/
download 4 song Oi! A Nova Musica Brasileira! sampler