Far Out Recordings releases José Mauro’s 1970 forgotten Brazilian masterpiece ‘A Viagem Das Horas’

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Far Out Recordings releases José Mauro’s 1970 forgotten Brazilian masterpiece ‘A Viagem Das Horas’

In what comes with a remarkable backstory, London’s Far Out Recordings has reissued for the first time ever, the 1970 forgotten masterpiece from Brazilian composer, singer, and guitarist José Mauro, titled A Viagem Das Horas. This exciting new issue of the recording also includes three previously unreleased and unheard tracks from the original studio sessions.

For many decades after releasing the now considered 1970 classic album Obnoxius, it was believed by many that José Mauro had actually died. The rumors for years were that he was possibly killed in a road accident, or even had been killed by Brazil’s military junta at the time. When Far Out label owner Joe Davis was working on the 2016 reissue of Obnoxius, heard word that Mauro is in fact alive and well, and had been living a quiet life on the outskirts of Rio. After years of trying to track him down, Davis was able to locate and meet Mauro, which has now led to the this phenomenal expanded A Viagem Das Horas reissue. Read more about this amazing story, outlined well by Marcus J. Moore in The New York Times here.

Much of this incredible 11-track recording comes from the same sessions that produced Obnoxius, featuring a brilliant mix of MPB (Música Popular Brasileira), psychedelic folk, and a touch of samba and Tropicália featuring beautiful soulful vocals, acoustic guitars, string orchestrations, spiritual melodies, and more. This sense of searching and longing, and that ongoing journey, is a present theme throughout the album.

Mauro sings and plays acoustic guitar through out the recording and he is backed by some of Brazil’s best musicians at the time, including Paulo Moura on alto saxophone, Maurilio on trumpet, Altamiro Carrilho on flute, Geraldo Vesper on guitar, Dom Salvador on organ, Rildo Hora on harmonica, piano, and harpsichord, Sebastião Marinho on bass, Wilson Das Neves on drums, Juquinha Mamão on percussion, and the now highly accomplished journalist and lecturer Ana Maria Bahiana on vocals, whom is also responsible for the albums liner notes.

After Mauro originally released A Viagem Das Horas through the independent label Tapecar, he shifted his focus to creating music for theatrical plays at Rio’s prestigious Tablado Theatre School, and also spent a lot of time in music education teaching guitar. Later on, he was forced to stop playing music altogether due to some unfortunate health complications. According to Mauro, “My body pushed me away from music, health became a stumbling block for me. If I had the strength to carry on with composing, I would have… always focused on achieving a sense of beauty, a sense of wonder.”

Overall, this is an incredible recording and high quality reissue from Far Out Recordings that continues to shed light on the brilliance of José Mauro, and the timeless music he created during these 1970 sessions.