Album brings back Tito Madi's nightly voice
Bossa nova predecessor makes a new CD with 17 tracks
Rodrigo Faour
21/03/2001
Singing in a soft and casual manner is quite usual, today. But in the early 1950s, the biggest music stars in Brazil would only place their bets on the dramatic potential of the chest voice. That's when Tito Madi came up with his sophisticated songwriting, ideal for intimate atmospheres. With his unmistakable and unaltered style, he has returned to recording studios six years after releasing his latest production (Tito Madi, recorded with pianist Gilson Peranzzetta, on CID), cutting a new CD with 17 tracks, out of which eight have never been released. The disc shall come out on CPC-UMES on the first half of 2001.
Besides the new tracks, Tito has decided to record a few MPB standards from a generation that came after his own. Songs written by Sueli Costa & Abel Silva (Voz e Suor), Milton Nascimento & Fernando Brant (Fruta Boa) and Flávio Venturini (Nascente). The album was arranged and performed by maestros Alberto Chimelli (piano) and Chiquito Braga (acoustic and electric guitars and cavaquinho), plus José Luiz Maia (bass, son of legendary bassist Luizão Maia) and Rodolfo Novaes (sax).
Why is Tito going back into the studios? "Firstly, I felt obliged to disclose a new phase of my music. I became known due to Chove Lá Fora, Cansei de Ilusões and Balanço Zona Sul. I lived many years off of that success. But I have been writing new songs for the past 10 years, and I've just kept them, because I had no opportunities to record. Now, I'll finally be able to show what I've been working on, by myself and with partners like Mário Telles and Paulo César Pinheiro", he explains.
Among the songs written with Paulo César, Tito recorded Papéis Antigos and Dançador, and Águas Passadas, written with Mário. Faithful to romantic ballads, the CD also features waltzes and samba-tunes. "I think my current songs are a bit more up-to-date than what I used to write in the past", he compares.
Well done
Lover of the more sophisticated MPB, Tito still believes that a song should have a nice melody, elaborate harmony and rich lyrics. All topped with crafted arrangements, of course. Therefore, he can't get used to the current mainstream music. "Brazilian music is going through a confusing phase, there are not many things that I enjoy. I still would rather listen to Djavan, Leila Pinheiro. I'm a little dizzy with the media that this music that is not really Brazilian is getting. These are confusing mixtures for a veteran like myself, who's used to more peaceful things", he confesses.
Tito makes an option for softness. In fact, he dismisses songs that are very syncopated, so that the listeners will pay attention to the details on his songs and lyrics. All the more appropriate for someone who has always chosen intimate venues to perform at. Tito hung out around all of the bars and clubs in Rio from the 1950s through the 1980s, often sharing the stage with singers Helena de Lima and Marisa Gata Mansa. "I was a bohemian out of necessity", he jokes. "I worked nights for 40 years, mainly in Rio. In the past, nightclubs weren't meant to open only on weekends. It was from Monday to Saturday, and there public was always there."
Also in the Rio nightlife Tito met with three MPB stars that have now been rescued on his new album: Luís Cláudio, Ary Barroso and Luiz Peixoto. The first one had the song Noite de Ficar Sozinho included in the set list. Ary Barroso and Luiz Peixoto were homaged with the song Por Causa Dessa Cabocla. "Ary was a very nice person, whom I had always admired. But Luiz Peixoto was a true genius!", he praises.
Besides the new tracks, Tito has decided to record a few MPB standards from a generation that came after his own. Songs written by Sueli Costa & Abel Silva (Voz e Suor), Milton Nascimento & Fernando Brant (Fruta Boa) and Flávio Venturini (Nascente). The album was arranged and performed by maestros Alberto Chimelli (piano) and Chiquito Braga (acoustic and electric guitars and cavaquinho), plus José Luiz Maia (bass, son of legendary bassist Luizão Maia) and Rodolfo Novaes (sax).
Why is Tito going back into the studios? "Firstly, I felt obliged to disclose a new phase of my music. I became known due to Chove Lá Fora, Cansei de Ilusões and Balanço Zona Sul. I lived many years off of that success. But I have been writing new songs for the past 10 years, and I've just kept them, because I had no opportunities to record. Now, I'll finally be able to show what I've been working on, by myself and with partners like Mário Telles and Paulo César Pinheiro", he explains.
Among the songs written with Paulo César, Tito recorded Papéis Antigos and Dançador, and Águas Passadas, written with Mário. Faithful to romantic ballads, the CD also features waltzes and samba-tunes. "I think my current songs are a bit more up-to-date than what I used to write in the past", he compares.
Well done
Lover of the more sophisticated MPB, Tito still believes that a song should have a nice melody, elaborate harmony and rich lyrics. All topped with crafted arrangements, of course. Therefore, he can't get used to the current mainstream music. "Brazilian music is going through a confusing phase, there are not many things that I enjoy. I still would rather listen to Djavan, Leila Pinheiro. I'm a little dizzy with the media that this music that is not really Brazilian is getting. These are confusing mixtures for a veteran like myself, who's used to more peaceful things", he confesses.
Tito makes an option for softness. In fact, he dismisses songs that are very syncopated, so that the listeners will pay attention to the details on his songs and lyrics. All the more appropriate for someone who has always chosen intimate venues to perform at. Tito hung out around all of the bars and clubs in Rio from the 1950s through the 1980s, often sharing the stage with singers Helena de Lima and Marisa Gata Mansa. "I was a bohemian out of necessity", he jokes. "I worked nights for 40 years, mainly in Rio. In the past, nightclubs weren't meant to open only on weekends. It was from Monday to Saturday, and there public was always there."
Also in the Rio nightlife Tito met with three MPB stars that have now been rescued on his new album: Luís Cláudio, Ary Barroso and Luiz Peixoto. The first one had the song Noite de Ficar Sozinho included in the set list. Ary Barroso and Luiz Peixoto were homaged with the song Por Causa Dessa Cabocla. "Ary was a very nice person, whom I had always admired. But Luiz Peixoto was a true genius!", he praises.