Sunday, June 15, 2008

Reissue of the Day - "Gal Costa"

Reissue of the Day
Gal Costa: "Gal" (Philips/Dusty Groove) 1969/2008
Licensed by Universal Music Special Markets for CD reissue by Dusty Groove America, it's easily the most tripped-out album ever recorded by Gal Costa, whose voice sounds crystal clear, but melted with long delay and echo effects, heavy guitars (courtesy of the legendary Lanny Gordin) and psychedelic orchestrations by Rogério Duprat, the "George Martin of the Tropicalia".
Jards Macalé plays acoustic guitar, with both Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil guesting on Jorge Ben's "País Tropical", the radio hit in Brazil at that time, later made famous all over the world by Sergio Mendes. "Cinema Olympia" may be the album masterpiece, but the track that made it a cult album in the European acid scene of the 80s was "Tuareg", which received a lot of airplay on Gilles Peterson's radio show and was included in some compilations.
Bassist Rudolpho Grani Junior and drummers Dudu Portes and Diogenes Burani Filho also took part of this session, produced by Manuel Barenbein.
Christopher Dunn (writer of "Brutality Garden: Tropicália and the Emergence of a Brazilian Counterculture) signs the liner notes for this special CD reissue.

To order, go here:
http://www.dustygroove.com/item.php?id=z93h6tk6t2&ref=browse.php&refQ=kwfilter%3Dgal%2BCosta%26amp%3Bincl_oos%3D1%26amp%3Bincl_cs%3D1
The DG comments:
Heady heady work from the legendary Gal Costa -- caught here right at her early best, smack dab in the middle of the Tropicalia years! The album's one of Gal's legendary collaborations with arranger Rogerio Duprat -- and it's very much in the spirit of her other incredible session from 1969, but also features some even heavier and more tripped out guitar -- in a way that really pushes the psychedelic aspect of the work! The sound here is really amazing -- very fuzzy and freaky at times, in ways that make the album one of the most rocking sets of the entire Tropicalia scene, but in ways that still hang onto the quirky experimental qualities of work by Os Mutantes or Caetano Veloso. Gal's vocals really rip out amazingly at times -- light years away from the sweet sound of the late 70s, and more in the frenetic, urgent style you'd expect from the politically-charged scene that spawned the set. Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil join Gal on a great version of "Pais Tropical", Jards Macale guest stars on the classic "Empty Boat" -- and other tracks include "Tuareg", "Meu Nome E Gal", "Pulsars E Quasars", and "Cultura E Civilizaco". Essential!

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