Milton Nascimento - s/d

Not sure where else he's touring.

Jason, I have the Nelson Angelo and Joyce album, but the Verocai one has passed me by. Thanks for the tip.

It seems like an obvious question, but have you considered the possibility that if you haven't really liked any other Milton you've heard that you're really more of a Lo Borges fan than a Milton fan? Borges doesn't have the world reknown or as deep a catalog as Nascimento, but he's a terrific artist in his own right. I personally prefer Lo Borges S/T '72 and A Via Lactea to any of Milton's other work. I suspect anyone that is a fan of Clube Da Esquina would dig the S/T '72 album.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/08/arts/music/08hort.html?th&emc=th

By BEN RATLIFF, New York Times
Published: August 8, 2007
There is a deliriously inventive strain of popular music from the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, best known from Milton Nascimento’s hot streak of records in the first half of the 1970s. They are ambitiously cooperative, full-throated singing albums; they are also guitar-heavy and harmony-rich. Some prominently included a guitarist in his early 20s named Toninho Horta.

Mr. Horta went on to become a bandleader, crossing over into jazz more often than his Minas Gerais compatriots. But his solo set at Cachaça on Monday delivered many of the same chills as those records he contributed to long before. There was a striking originality and a purity of intent running through the music: it played itself out in quietly intense, trembly trances.

For American audiences, Mr. Horta is one of the geniuses who got away. (Perhaps especially for musicians: if you want to know why modern jazz players are bewitched by Brazilian music, he’s a good place to start.) He has spent stretches of time living in New York, though now he’s based in Brazil again.

In any case, he happened to be in town, and with only a week’s notice was booked to fill an empty night at this new club. Aside from one evening last year at Fat Cat, when he played an unannounced gig with the guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel, this was, he said, his first New York show in nine years.

The room was hectic, packed with Brazilians, Italians, Japanese, Americans and videographers; Mr. Horta knew a lot of them, chatting between songs. (Later in the evening, after a break, he encouraged musician friends to sit in with him.)

But alone for his first set, he easily slipped into deep concentration, playing songs including his own compositions “Gershwin” and “Pilar,” Jobim’s “Amor em Paz” and — one of his signatures — an embroidered version of “Moon River.”

Bossa nova rhythm and harmony are implicit in much of Mr. Horta’s playing, but not bossa nova’s frugal guitar technique: he often strummed all six strings, leaving one or two unfretted, wresting complex harmonies and letting the low strings ring out. He was playing fluid, syncopated music that never sounded shallow or busy.

Like some of the best improvising musicians, he created a self-sustaining pool of sound in each piece, fantasias durable enough for him to hold back or dive in; he could slacken or hasten the tempo and volume without damaging a song’s atmosphere.

And above that, his singing was light and keening. He sang out of the corners of his mouth, moving his head from side to side, wincing at high notes. At one point many members of the crowd sang along to a chorus, but not just monophonically: without prompting, they sang in their own rich harmony.

Wasn't sure where to post this. Anybody know this guy's work?

I'm a big Milton fan, and I understand Toninho Horta's work has some great moments, but I'm afraid I'm not the authority. Thanks for raising this, though - I'll be interested as well in getting some pointers.

For what it's worth, an amazon.com commenter stated "Some of the most notable songs recorded by Nascimento are Horta's compositions", although he did not like Horta's voice. Here's part of a cdbaby bio (maybe a bit over-the-top). I'm still not sure where to start in Horta's solo career.:

http://cdbaby.com/cd/stilohorta

TONINHO'S BIO:

They were a group of childhood friends, all raised together in the land-locked, mountainous, mineral rich Brazilizan state of Minas Gerais. The first name that sprang to international attention - and stays there as the foremost current ambassador of Brazilian song - is Milton Nascimento. Joining him are songwriters Beto Guedes and Lo Borges, poets Ronaldo Bastos and Fernando Brant, and a slew of instrumentalists like Wagner Tiso and Robertinho Silva. And at the side of all of them is a musician who appears on more albums than most anyone in all Brazil, as arranger, as song- writer, as sparkling instrumentalist - Toninho Horta. Toninho Horta is, quite simply, a master whose harmonic sensibility, whose fantastically inventive chording, whose unfailing musicality have made him a session player and a arranger in constant demand for well over two decades. To hear him play live is to be stunned by the alternately lyrical and rythmic lines he is capable of, and at the ability of a musician to think so originally, so complexly on his feet. As a writer, Toninho's musicality has produced standards that top the list of the best-loved songs in Brazil. His story is somewhat typical of the artists of his generation. Like all Brazilians, he grew up with the music of his region everywhere about him: the folkloric traditions of former slaves, the religious music of a deeply religious land, a glorious tradition in samba, and as a youth at a time of worldwide flux, he grew with an ever widening exposure to foreign forms. He and his minas friends were first introduced to American jazz in the 1950's, cool jazz, like that played by Chet Baker (whose phrasing as a singer and instrumentalist made a tremendous impression) and Miles davis, or by richly harmonic masters like Duke Elington. Then came the rock and roll of a later generation - especially a group cited by nearly every Brazilian of the time, The Beatles, with their allembracing concept album and adventouresome musical vision. This varied exposure filtered through some of the most singular musical sensibilities in Brazil, and the the loosely knit clutch of musicians came to be known as the Corner Club, or in Portuguese, the Clube da Esquinha. Toninho Horta was born into a musical family in the capital of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, in 1948. His mother taught him guitar and his uncle a composer and multi-instrumentalist, provided guidance. His successes came early, with a first composition, written when he was only thirteen, beung picked up by local bands, and a later one, "Litoral", becoming an instant standard for its twenty-year-old composer. Given his early recognition as a guitarist to watch, Toninho appeared in the bands of many of Brazil's greatest singers. he even fronted Milton Nascimento's first appearance in Rio, in 1970. since that time he has played with and arranged for Maria Bethania, Elis Regina, Gal Costa and many others.

So should I see him live? He's touring the USA and I've missed him every other time he's come through town.

um, FUCK YEAH

Minas won't stay off the deck at the minute - beautiful, strange record..

40 years later!

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/419086_394852017191807_100000010355441_1636463_1732180682_n.jpg

that is such a great lp

aw, what a great photo.

took me 10 seconds to "get" the photo, lol. that's fantastic!

Imagine owning and playing that LP when it came out! His music has such a strong sense of time and place.

Oh wow, that photo!

amazing

that's great! what an awesome photo the original is too.

v gd, tick!

Yes!! I also listened to that album on Spotify last night. Nice

Out of boredom and procrastination I decided to go through the RYM all time albums list and find the highest ranked one that I was just not familiar with at all. Which was actually a Kyuss record, which seemed pretty cool but sounded exactly like every stoner rock record.

BUT, the second one was Clube Da Esquina, and wow, this is such a where-have-you-been-all-my-life album.

Assuming the photo here is that went missing a little bit upthread http://brasillinois.wordpress.com/2012/03/19/boys-from-clube-da-esquina-cover-located-after-40-years/

that is great

I think the extent of my familiarity with him prior to now was from Native Dancer. I also just finally heard the original Ponta De Areia, which is amazing

In any case, he happened to be in town, and with only a week’s notice was booked to fill an empty night at this new club.

https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/lyricwiki/images/9/9f/Milton_Nascimento_-_Milton_%2776.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20141025202033

First two tracks on this are extremely my shit right now.

Some incredible vocal phrasing on "my fairytale friend".. hot Shorter playing too

Stick around for "Cloves and cinnamon", that is one pretty track.

Short North American tour coming

I wonder if he's going to be wearing a Milton Nascimento t-shirt.

...not likely, he's got a new look:
https://✧✧✧.tenhomaisdiscosqueami✧✧✧.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Milton-Nascimento-2022-FOT✧✧✧@marcoshermes✧✧✧.j✧✧

He says he is going to retire from touring after this, which isn't a huge surprise. It's been 8 years since he played in New York and after a couple of years I started thinking there might not be another opportunity to see him.

https://✧✧✧.tenhomaisdiscosqueami✧✧✧.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Milton-Nascimento-2022-FOT✧✧✧@marcoshermes✧✧✧.j✧✧

Well, in the photo i'm trying to post he is sporting a bald head (i guess the braids were a wig?) and an elaborately embroidered technicolor robe thing.

all for a new look if that is what he wants.

Definitely, I only brought it up because there was a period a several years back when he was only and always photographed wearing Milton Nascimento t-shirts. There was a thread about musicians wearing their own t-shirts and I mentioned him as an example of someone who had taken this to a whole other level.

Saw that other thread. Good stuff.

He seemed to have retired earlier, but this North American tour this year is now being billed as a retirement tour I think

"There was a thread about musicians wearing their own t-shirts"

Can you link please? I can't seem to find it. TIA.

That photo appears here: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/may/27/milton-nascimento-brazil-farewell-tour

Anyone else prefers Lô Borges' solo career than Milton's ?
(I've heard Milton's 1967 s/t, Milton, Geraes, I don't think I listened to Minas in its entirety. That's against Lô Borges 1972 s/t and a Via Lactea, I need to listen to Nuvem cigana)

I'd more or less agree with that based on what I've heard: a few more Miltons, the same Lôs. It did take me a while to fully embrace A Via Lactea though, and iirc I really love Geraes. Obviously, Clube is what it is because you get the best of both their approaches

Has anyone been to the Pantheon in Rome? The exterior doesn't look like much. On the outside, it's unassuming at best, if not ungainly, and this plainness makes the breathtaking monumental beauty of the rotunda all the more astonishing. The biggest surprise is a massive dome, not visible at street level, that opens to the heavens at the top and the impact of this is all the things people say about Milton Nascimento's voice- "divine", "sublime", "otherworldly". What I'm trying to say, in terms of Clube da Esquina, is that Milton is the oculus that elevates this ragtag bunch of misfits to the height of a pantheon and crowns the boy Lo Borges prince.

And people always recommend Nelson Angelo & Joyce, Arthur Verocai as companion pieces (see jaxon upthread). I absolutely love those records, don't get me wrong. Everyone should hear those records. NA&J explores a connection between the intimacy of lovers and divinity, and in that sense might scratch the same itch. But it's really more about the former. Verocai, though- that record is much more controlled and precise and very much in thrall to this idea of a recording as the "master performance" that Clube da Esquina gleefully blows raspberries in the face of. In other words it is a Masterpiece by a Genius, which is one reason Celia's "Na Boca Do Sol" trounces his own: it doesn't put the song on a pedestal. Of all the "companion" albums, Disco do Tenis highlights the looseness of Clube da Esquina's approach, the tunings are even more imprecise, and it engages with Belo Horizonte at the street level, compared to Milton's bird's-eye view.

Now, if you're going to make a case for Lo > Milton, it makes no sense whatsoever to frame it in terms of a "career". Milton's discography from 1970-76 is absolutely unimpeachable (Minas is his best album, btw), with 77-80 not far behind. With Lo there's... a confounding 7 gap in his resume between Disco do Tenis and A Via Lactea, during what surely would have been his artistic peak. And then all his albums after the debut have one or two indelible, instant sugar rush pop moments (e.g. Equatorial, Força Do Vento, Vagas Estrelas) that outshine the rest. So I would say you need the first one obviously, and otherwise I would take the Best Of, or a mixtape, over any of his albums. The songcraft gets more and more advanced, for sure. He seems to be the kind of songwriter who finds inspiration in learning music theory, but give me an oculus.

The t shirt thread is here.

Deflatormous, do you speak Portuguese? I do not and often find that lack is something of a problem when talking about BR music with people who do. Maybe in this case, (my not) being raised Catholic could also be a factor.

I'm not sure I understand your oculus metaphor, but I almost said in my earlier post that I tend to think of Clube as Milton's album with Borges more of the guest artist. I didn't post that because I don't remember much about the historical circumstances of the recording and didn't want to slight Borges without cause, but fwiw it ~feels~ that way to me, possibly due to his subsequently scant output as you mentioned.

To my memory Minas has some astonishingly beautiful parts but is a little uneven as an album? Or maybe it's just too much ravishing gorgeousness to take in one sitting or something. Or some of the fusion-y sounds didn't work for me when I first heard it. At any rate, I'm going to put it on now and figure it out.

The less entertaining take on this particular T/S would be that it's pretty wild that Clube, Borges s/t, and Minas + Geraes all exist in this fallen world.

I totally get why NA&J would be part of this convo, but I tend to turn to that album for something else, which might be what you're getting at too.

Not exactly following oculus metaphor either.

x-post to another -
Here's the thread with Nascimento wearing t-shirts with his own photo on them. I think there's another thread somewhere of musicians wearing t-shirts of musicians who they sound nothing like.

Wearing a band's t-shirt to one of their concerts: Classic or Dud?

https://i.pinimg.com/736x/48/f0/0c/48f00c43a69ea9902aae02b2c09433a5--vatican-rome-roman-holiday.jpg

incase it helps

Deflatormous, do you speak Portuguese? I do not and often find that lack is something of a problem when talking about BR music with people who do.

I tried to learn Portuguese years ago but didn't get too far. I've read most of the lyrics in translation, which I know doesn't count for much- but I will say that some artists' songs really come up when you know what the words mean (Chico Buarque, Jorge Ben) while others sorta plateau, and these guys are among those that mostly plateau. And it seems important that Milton does so many astonishing wordless vocals, and his vocalizations have that openness.

Or some of the fusion-y sounds didn't work for me when I first heard it.

It has that veneer, i never found it off putting.

I tend to think of Clube as Milton's album with Borges more of the guest artist.

this is accurate and Milton holds court to a degree but he doesn't play the control freak, it's a group of very musical friends hanging out and the informality of it is very important for me.

I totally get why NA&J would be part of this convo, but I tend to turn to that album for something else, which might be what you're getting at too.

Indeed, it's much clearer the way you said it lol

Looks like all the surviving shots of Milton on the t-shirt thread are professional portraits, fairly sure the others were much more snapshotty pics of him hangin with his pals fwiw.

Milton > Lo, but love Lo as well.

Milagres dos Peixes is all time <3 – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6h1l0BV4SIY

But Clube is a very collective effort btw – I don't think it would exist without the whole surrounding musicians and lyricists as well...

Agree with all that.

I wish the lineage of 12 string guitar sounds, how they're tuned and their role in a mix was derived from 'Lilia' instead of 'Ticket to Ride' or the Byrds.

https://www.instagram.com/p/C09ymoOOjHn/

Nice photo of those 2

Nice

Nascimento is name checked by all GOATS like Bacharach.

<3

somebody needs to reissue clube da esquina

I'm still early in discovering this man's music but I quite like his confusingly named Miltons from 1988, which is him on guitar and vocal, Herbie Hancock on piano. it's gentle but lively, with occasional bits that get more energy than that (a crazy Hancock solo on "San Vincente"). Haven't heard his classic 70s albums yet so I don't know how this one compares but that'll be next for me to check out

and I started with that album because of Nascimento's beautiful track with Paul Simon on Rhythm of the Saints. The two albums came out around the same time and have a similar dreamy quality