Assis Valente, the tragic samba artist
The bitter composer of cheerful sambas like ...E o Mundo Não se Acabou and MPB standards like Brasil Pandeiro, Boas Festas and Cai, Cai, Balão would be turning 90
Nana Vaz de Castro
19/03/2001
Assis Valente lived a tormented life. His many hits were not enough to prevent him for attempting to take his own life three times before he would finally succeed, on March 10th, 1958, by drinking a mixture of guaraná with poison on a beach in Rio de Janeiro. Assis, who would be turning 90 years-old on March 19th, tried to drown himself in the sea, jumped out of a window and down the Corcovado mountain, where the statue of Christ the Redeemer stands, in 1941 - but he didn't die.
Even with such a tragic history, one can't say that his life was a collection of flops. At least professionally. Born in Santo Amaro, in the countryside of Bahia, he soon showed some artistic talent and remarkable intelligence. There is a strange tale about his being kidnapped at age 6 by a man who allegedly thought that such a bright kid couldn't live in a place so poor.
Tales apart, the fact is that, at age 9, José de Assis Valente was already living in Salvador, far away from his parents and siblings. He was a pharmacyst and studied drawing and sculpture. Sometime or other, though, he would leave town and follow a circus caravan throughout the state, acting as a comedian. Later on, he took a course on prosthetics. Valente was a man with multiple interests and talents, who never opted definitively for one type of activity.
Professional results on all fronts
After moving to Rio in 1927, he worked as a designer and prosthodontist before starting to write sambas, by influence of Heitor dos Prazeres, the samba master whom he befirended by the late 1930s. His illustrations were good enough to deserve being published on prestigious magazines. His sambas were recorded by the greatest artists on those days: Francisco Alves, Carlos Galhardo, Orlando Silva, Aracy de Almeida, sisters Aurora and Carmen Miranda, and many others.
His personal life, though, was nothing like that. His own inability to choose the samba lifestyle serves as an indication of his intimate lack of definition. According to his biographers (Francisco Duarte Silva and Dulcinéa Nunes Gomes) and to insiders, Assis was a homossexual, repressed by the chauvinist and moralist environment in Rio during the 1930s, 40s and 50s. Married and father of a little girl, he wasted a lot of money on his lovers, thus gathering debts, appointed on the suicide letter as one of the reasons why he was doing himself in. Besides, he was "very tired of foul play and sick of it all", as he wrote it.
Carmen Miranda: love and sorrow
His career in music, though, was highlighted by incredibly happy songs, considering that he had a "sad and bitter" personality, only to use the expression that Valente used in Alegria. This samba says "My people were sad and bitter/they invented the drumming/to stop the hurting/praise the pleasure/praise the pleasure". Assis Valente made up his own drumming, malicious and satirical, conquering fans like Carmen Miranda, but still he never rested. Carmen was his main and dearest interpreter, and he was obsessed with her. After having recorded Good Bye Boy and Etc. in 1933, Miranda was fascinated with the songwriter who was making pearls like Recenseamento, ...E o Mundo Não se Acabou, Uva de Caminhão and Camisa Listrada.
Carmen was also a source of disappointment to Assis. In 1940, upon returning from an American tour, she asked him for more songs to record. Valente offered Recenseamento and Brasil Pandeiro. Carmen liked the first, but turned down the second, claiming it was "a downer", and that it was worthless. Well, Brasil Pandeiro eventually proved to be a big hit, having had three moments, so far. First, still in the 1940s, recorded by the vocal group Anjos do Inferno. In 1972, it was back on the charts with the group Novos Baianos, and in 1994 it was used in a millionaire campaign for a flip-flop factory that was sponsoring the Brazilian soccer team during the World Cup in the USA.
"Carmen's passing that one really hurt him, he never got over it", says singer Marlene, who recorded her debut LP in 1956, totally dedicated to Assis' music (Marlene Apresenta Sucessos de Assis Valente). "Guitarist Luiz Bittencourt was the one who suggested that I record Assis, and to this day I rest assure that it was the right decision, to go along with him. He was facing financial problems, at the time, nobody was recording his music. My album made him very pleased", Marlene recalls. She also remembers his personality: "He was very shy, reserved, I think that he was scared that someone might discover that he was gay. Can you imagine, at that time! I never saw him with a friend, he was probably a loner. But he was also a very delicate person, interesting, intelligent and extremely classy."
Valente's first hit dates back to 1932, when Araci Côrtes recorded Tem Francesa no Morro, a samba that jokes about the French influence on the Brazilian culture. In the next years, it would be Carlos Galhardo's turn to enjoy huge success with the Christmas march Boas Festas, a classic that's been recorded countless times. Also in 1933, Aurora Miranda and Francisco Alves recorded Cai, Cai, Balão, eventually turned into a most traditional Brazilian song for children.
From a woman's perspective
The 1930s were the height of Assis Valente's career, when his most successful songs were released by the greatest voices on the radio. He was well-accepted among musicians and even introduced Dorival Caymmi to the right people in Rio. After the break-up with Carmen and the success achieved by Brasil Pandeiro, as recorded by Anjos do Inferno, Assis' life slowly slipped into a downward spiral. In 1941, he got married and attempted suicide by jumping from the base of the Christ statue on top of the Corcovado mountain. He enjoyed a few hits during that decade, such as the poignant Fez Bobagem, recorded by Aracy de Almeida. Chances are that this samba, written from a woman's perspective ("My dark man did something stupid/mistreated my poor heart"), was actually made for one of his lovers, as allegedly was Camisa Listrada ("I don't want it and I won't take it, my dear one making fun of me").
After his death, Assis was scarcely praised. Many female singers recorded his music, such as Aracy de Almeida, Elza Soares, Isaura Garcia, Márcia, Maria Alcina, Simone, Olívia Byington, Wanderléa, Nara Leão, Maria Bethânia, Zezé Motta, Clara Nunes, Vanusa, Eliete Negreiros and Ademilde Fonseca. In the past few years, his songs have also been recorded by Eduardo Dussek (ex-Dusek), who has reviewed Carmen Miranda's repertoire, and by Ney Matogrosso, on the recently released album Batuque. There is just one album available with Valente songs only, released on CD in 1986 on the collection Acervo Funarte.
Even with such a tragic history, one can't say that his life was a collection of flops. At least professionally. Born in Santo Amaro, in the countryside of Bahia, he soon showed some artistic talent and remarkable intelligence. There is a strange tale about his being kidnapped at age 6 by a man who allegedly thought that such a bright kid couldn't live in a place so poor.
Tales apart, the fact is that, at age 9, José de Assis Valente was already living in Salvador, far away from his parents and siblings. He was a pharmacyst and studied drawing and sculpture. Sometime or other, though, he would leave town and follow a circus caravan throughout the state, acting as a comedian. Later on, he took a course on prosthetics. Valente was a man with multiple interests and talents, who never opted definitively for one type of activity.
Professional results on all fronts
After moving to Rio in 1927, he worked as a designer and prosthodontist before starting to write sambas, by influence of Heitor dos Prazeres, the samba master whom he befirended by the late 1930s. His illustrations were good enough to deserve being published on prestigious magazines. His sambas were recorded by the greatest artists on those days: Francisco Alves, Carlos Galhardo, Orlando Silva, Aracy de Almeida, sisters Aurora and Carmen Miranda, and many others.
His personal life, though, was nothing like that. His own inability to choose the samba lifestyle serves as an indication of his intimate lack of definition. According to his biographers (Francisco Duarte Silva and Dulcinéa Nunes Gomes) and to insiders, Assis was a homossexual, repressed by the chauvinist and moralist environment in Rio during the 1930s, 40s and 50s. Married and father of a little girl, he wasted a lot of money on his lovers, thus gathering debts, appointed on the suicide letter as one of the reasons why he was doing himself in. Besides, he was "very tired of foul play and sick of it all", as he wrote it.
Carmen Miranda: love and sorrow
His career in music, though, was highlighted by incredibly happy songs, considering that he had a "sad and bitter" personality, only to use the expression that Valente used in Alegria. This samba says "My people were sad and bitter/they invented the drumming/to stop the hurting/praise the pleasure/praise the pleasure". Assis Valente made up his own drumming, malicious and satirical, conquering fans like Carmen Miranda, but still he never rested. Carmen was his main and dearest interpreter, and he was obsessed with her. After having recorded Good Bye Boy and Etc. in 1933, Miranda was fascinated with the songwriter who was making pearls like Recenseamento, ...E o Mundo Não se Acabou, Uva de Caminhão and Camisa Listrada.
Carmen was also a source of disappointment to Assis. In 1940, upon returning from an American tour, she asked him for more songs to record. Valente offered Recenseamento and Brasil Pandeiro. Carmen liked the first, but turned down the second, claiming it was "a downer", and that it was worthless. Well, Brasil Pandeiro eventually proved to be a big hit, having had three moments, so far. First, still in the 1940s, recorded by the vocal group Anjos do Inferno. In 1972, it was back on the charts with the group Novos Baianos, and in 1994 it was used in a millionaire campaign for a flip-flop factory that was sponsoring the Brazilian soccer team during the World Cup in the USA.
"Carmen's passing that one really hurt him, he never got over it", says singer Marlene, who recorded her debut LP in 1956, totally dedicated to Assis' music (Marlene Apresenta Sucessos de Assis Valente). "Guitarist Luiz Bittencourt was the one who suggested that I record Assis, and to this day I rest assure that it was the right decision, to go along with him. He was facing financial problems, at the time, nobody was recording his music. My album made him very pleased", Marlene recalls. She also remembers his personality: "He was very shy, reserved, I think that he was scared that someone might discover that he was gay. Can you imagine, at that time! I never saw him with a friend, he was probably a loner. But he was also a very delicate person, interesting, intelligent and extremely classy."
Valente's first hit dates back to 1932, when Araci Côrtes recorded Tem Francesa no Morro, a samba that jokes about the French influence on the Brazilian culture. In the next years, it would be Carlos Galhardo's turn to enjoy huge success with the Christmas march Boas Festas, a classic that's been recorded countless times. Also in 1933, Aurora Miranda and Francisco Alves recorded Cai, Cai, Balão, eventually turned into a most traditional Brazilian song for children.
From a woman's perspective
The 1930s were the height of Assis Valente's career, when his most successful songs were released by the greatest voices on the radio. He was well-accepted among musicians and even introduced Dorival Caymmi to the right people in Rio. After the break-up with Carmen and the success achieved by Brasil Pandeiro, as recorded by Anjos do Inferno, Assis' life slowly slipped into a downward spiral. In 1941, he got married and attempted suicide by jumping from the base of the Christ statue on top of the Corcovado mountain. He enjoyed a few hits during that decade, such as the poignant Fez Bobagem, recorded by Aracy de Almeida. Chances are that this samba, written from a woman's perspective ("My dark man did something stupid/mistreated my poor heart"), was actually made for one of his lovers, as allegedly was Camisa Listrada ("I don't want it and I won't take it, my dear one making fun of me").
After his death, Assis was scarcely praised. Many female singers recorded his music, such as Aracy de Almeida, Elza Soares, Isaura Garcia, Márcia, Maria Alcina, Simone, Olívia Byington, Wanderléa, Nara Leão, Maria Bethânia, Zezé Motta, Clara Nunes, Vanusa, Eliete Negreiros and Ademilde Fonseca. In the past few years, his songs have also been recorded by Eduardo Dussek (ex-Dusek), who has reviewed Carmen Miranda's repertoire, and by Ney Matogrosso, on the recently released album Batuque. There is just one album available with Valente songs only, released on CD in 1986 on the collection Acervo Funarte.