Since the early 60s, Marcos Valle has established himself as one of the greatest Brazilian songwriters, arrangers, and performers of our time. Following last year’s superb 80s-influenced boogie release Sempre with London’s Far Out Recordings, the “original Rio beach boy” has teamed up with Los Angeles based producers and multi-instrumentalists Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad (also of A Tribe Called Quest) to release a brilliant new album on the Jazz Is Dead label.

Where 2019’s Sempre nicely recaptured Valle’s funky electric 80s sound that made tracks like “Estrelar” and “A Paraiba Nao E Chicago” dancefloor classics, this eight track recording takes us back even further, featuring an early 70s Brazilian-psychedelic fusion vibe that is more reminiscent to some of his legendary recordings of that time like “Garra”, “Previsão Do Tempo”, his 1970 self-titled album. The music has a warm analog feel throughout, featuring Valle’s sweet soulful vocals backed by fender rhodes melodies, cinematic grooves, and Bossa Nova-inspired percussive rhythms. The album also features some nice backing vocals from guest vocalist Patricia Alvi.

The recording was a collaborative writing process among Valle, Younge, and Muhammad with them playing the majority of the instruments. Also featured on the session were guest vocalist Loren Oden, and drummers Aaron Serfaty and Malachi Morehead.

For their third release, the Jazz Is Dead crew have helped bring out the best in one of the greatest artists of our time, and doing so while still sounding fresh and new. This series continues to pay homage to the greats, while pushing the music forward.

Marcos Valle, Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad — ‘JID 003’
(Jazz Is Dead)

1. Queira Bem
2. Isso É Que Eu Sei
3. Oi
4. Viajando Por Aí
5. Gotta Love Again
6. Não Saia Da Praça
7. Our Train
8. A Gente Volta Amanhã

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