África Brasil (studio album) by Jorge Ben

In his 14th album, Jorge goes electric. Opens with a banger (one of his most infectious songs, with a great riff and killer percussion), with other highlights being "Xica da Silva" (made for the Carlos Diegues movie of the same name; Jorge just used the synopsis as lyrics!) and the groovy, but with very poignant and ironic lyrics, "Meus Filhos, Meu Tesouro" ("My Children, My Treasure").

Although this is one of Jorge's classics and a definitive turn to a new direction, it shows some tiredness, since he rerecords 3 of his songs ("Taj Mahal", "Hermes Trismegisto Escreveu" and "Zumbi" _ these last 2 from his masterpiece from 2 years before, "A Tábua de Esmeralda") and "Camisa 10 da Gávea" is a return to the theme of football, being an hommage to Zico, who at the time was an idol on the team Jorge supports, Flamengo.

This is a good entry point to the wonderful world of Jorge Ben's music, but you shouldn't limit yourself to this one. The man is a giant _ if he had been born in the US, he'd been as big as Stevie Wonder or Prince.

Such an energetic album right from the start that is such an infectious and enjoyable listen no matter how many times you hear it. The rhythms on this record are phenomenal and they appear on every single track so it is so easy to stay engaged with the album. The sound radiates energy and passion and it is so easy to be taken over by this with the instrumentalists doing a fantastic job on trying to draw you in. The percussion on this record is simply phenomenal as it creates a vibrant backing which we are lead through the music by which then allows the likes of Jorge Ben to flourish and experiment with his sound. The freedom the other instrumentalists are given by the percussion allows the likes of Taj Mahal and Xica Da Silva to be so animated and full of life. Overall, one of the most high energy and enjoyable records that you could experience and it still sounds extremely fresh and catchy to this day.

Album Rating: 80.09
(881/11)

1.Ponta De Lança Africano (Umbabarauma). 89
2.Hermes Trimegisto Escreveu. 76
3.O Filósofo. 76
4.Meus Filhos, Meu Tesouro. 79
5.O Plebeu. 83
6.Taj Mahal. 83
7.Xica Da Silva. 76
8.A História De Jorge. 73
9.Camisa 10 Da Gávea. 80
10.Cavaleiro Do Cavalo Imaculado. 78
11.África Brasil (Zumbi). 88

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From Droophus 01/09/2020 05:01

Late 70s Jorge Ben is the best period in his staggeringly long and prolific career. This record is probably the very peak of that career, with ‘78s A Banda do ze Pretinho nearly matching it.

From VictorVale 01/02/2019 16:03

Símbolo da década para o Brasil. Jorge Ben cantava a negritude, história e atual!

From neilgee 05/23/2018 21:04

Thank You for introducing me to this album BEA. Fucking brilliant!

I only wanted to sample it but I ended up listening to the whole thing! I think its because the music is Latin.

Fun, up-tempo, very energetic album. And it's aged remarkably well. Highly recommended!

From Jimmy Dread 02/04/2015 12:49

Couldn't agree more with Norm on this. Essential starting point for anyone intrigued enough in the beautiful and often crazy world that is 70s MPB. And once you're done with this record, check out Jorge's other stuff from 69-74 as well as Brun027's fantastic Brazil-centric overall chart.