SOUNDTRACK: BEBEL GILBERTO-Tiny Desk Concert #96 (October 15, 2020).
Typically, I don’t know the international performers that Tiny Desk brings out. Of course I’ve heard of Bebel Gilberto, although I don’t know all that much about her music.
Bebel Gilberto is, of course, the daughter of one of the creators of bossa nova, João Gilberto.
And while her music is lovely, as the blurb says, I’m more blown away by her view!
When we invited Brazilian vocalist Bebel Gilberto to do a Tiny Desk (home) concert, we had no idea her home would have a spectacular view of speed boats gliding across the lagoon in the heart of the picturesque Leblon neighborhood overlooking the iconic Dois Irmãos mountain in Rio de Janeiro.
Her first song, “Cliché,” is mellow and smooth. There a ton of music going on behind her, but she only has one other player with her, Chico Brown. Is it all samples? What’s going on there?
During this concert, she is accompanied by Chico Brown, the son of famed musician Carlinhos Brown and grandson of the legendary Chico Buarque.
Between songs she sits with Ella her tiny dog and talks about her new album–her first in six years.
“Na Cara” opens with a very cool deep bass line. Brown plays the keytar and sings backing vocals.
You can feel the presence of all of that Brazilian musical royalty in one of Bebel Gilberto’s most popular songs, the closing “Aganjú.”
“Aganjú” was written by Chico’s father and is her most popular song. Chico plays the acoustic guitar. The song has a slow beginning but a much bigger sexier chorus.
[READ: November 23, 2020] “Ghoul”
This George Saunders story reminded me a lot of another George Saunders story, “Pastoralia.”
In that story a man and a woman work as “cavemen” in a living diorama. They are watched all the time and must alway be “acting” when there are visitors.
In this story, everyone seems to be working in a living diorama. In fact, their entire world seems to be a theme park or museum and everyone must perform for the visitors.
This story takes the premise of the first story further in almost every way–their entire world s underground with only one way in. Everything has been turned into this amusement area. They eat at Vat of Lunch, and every area of their universe has a clever name like Beneath Our Mother the Sea and Wild Day Out West. The people in each of these scenes act as their are name implies.
The main character, Brian, is a Squatting Ghoul. He and his fellow Squatting Ghouls are with Feeding Ghouls and Li’l Demons. It’s not clear exactly what Brian does, but it doesn’t sound pleasant. (more…)
I Just Read About That... 