Gift for a Bossa Nova Guitarist
December 11, 2009 8:28 PM   Subscribe

My Secret Santee is a Bossa Nova Guitarist. Help me find a couple of CDs that will surprise and delight him.

Yes, I know: previously and previously.

The problem is that my Santee is a not a newbie looking to cut his teeth on the highlights of Bossa Nova. He's a professional (albeit not always well-paid) Bossa Nova guitarist. So, we're not looking for greatest hits, but something obscure and amazing in Bossa Nova or a related genre, by an artist he may or may not know. It could be an oldie, or something cutting edge.

My budget would probably cover two or three CDs.

Thanks in advance!
posted by alms to Shopping (5 answers total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
Does he have any recordings by Horacio Malvicino? He's one of the forgotten giants of Brazilian guitar, but recordings (in print) are hard to come by. I would also check his collection to see what he has by Baden Powell, Luiz Bonfa, or Bola Sete. I have tons of stuff in this area, so me-mail me if you need any suggestions. Vince Guaraldi did a delightful record with Bola Sete that's often overlooked. Also, in a gypsy jazz (guitar, though very different from Django) vein, what about Gabor Szabo? The Sorcerer is a justly revered masterpiece, as is the record he made with Charles Lloyd. And for some swinging, more traditional choro-flavored Brazilian guitar, try Paulo Mauro & Yamandu Costa's record "El Negro del Blanco" and also the second CD from Choro Ensemble (Nosso Tempo). For modern jazz guitar, Wes Montgomery, Grant Green, Kenny Burrell, and Pat Martino are always good choices. If he does not own Burrell's masterpiece "Midnight Blue," then that's a sure bet. Good luck!
posted by HP LaserJet P10006 at 8:58 PM on December 11, 2009


More along the cutting edge, but the band Nouvelle Vague (which is French for "new wave") has done three albums of covers of 80s new wave songs in the bossa nova (Portuguese for "new wave") style. Catchy, swanky, and a little bit tongue in cheek with the plays on words. "Heart of Glass" from their second album Bande a Part is particularly enthralling.
posted by scarykarrey at 11:45 PM on December 11, 2009


Look for Two for Brazil, perhaps at CDBaby.
posted by yclipse at 1:03 AM on December 12, 2009


Tribalistas might fall into a "related genre" label; it's obscure (in the US), plus its a really great record. One of my favorites.
posted by minimii at 4:31 AM on December 12, 2009


I could easily see your giftee already having these, but here goes.

Moreno +2 - Music Typewriter. Moreno Veloso's talents compare quite favorably to those of his father Caetano, and that's saying a lot. Less than half the songs here could be characterized as bossa nova, but they're all good. He and his bandmates rotate leadership and the band name changes accordingly, so there's also Domenico +2 and Kassin +2, which have less guitar and less bossa nova influence.

Arto Lindsay - The Subtle Body. If you knew Lindsay only from his influential work as a noise-rock guitar pioneer, this spacious, thoughtful album would have been a huge surprise. Again, not all of it is bossa nova. His albums that followed incorporated more electronic beats and experimentation, and all are solid. I think Mundo Civilizado is one of the most erotic records ever made.

Vinicius Cantuária is a contemporary of Lindsay's in the downtown New York scene, and a collaborator. A technically proficient guitarist with modern elements to his music, but much less "out-there" than Lindsay. I haven't heard all of his stuff, but I'd recommend Sol na Cara and Tacuma.

As for classic, fifties and sixties bossa nova, that stuff is so obsessively collected that anything not available as a reissue is going to be pretty expensive. You could keep an eye on Dusty Groove's Brazilian music page for new releases or anything they say is rare, but be aware that they lay on the hyperbole pretty thick.

If he doesn't have a copy of the book Bossa Nova by Ruy Castro, that should really be your gift. I read it a few months ago, so you'd think I'd be able to give you tons of recommendations for classic bossa nova, but honestly it's so full of information about amazing music to check out that I didn't know where to start.
posted by hydrophonic at 11:03 PM on December 14, 2009


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