First rate set of Brazilian soul, samba and psychedelia
Joe Sixpack -- Slipcue.com | ...in Middle America | 05/03/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The soundtrack to Fernando Meirelles' hard-hitting, gritty feature film about life in Rio de Janeiro's favela slums. An excellent collection of vintage "Black Rio" Brazilian soul, including tracks by funk pioneer Tim Maia, crooner Hyldon and Wilson Simonal's hipsterdelic, Ray Charles-ish "Nao Vem Que Nao Tem," which was previously anthologized on the Six Degrees "SAMBA SOUL '70" compilation album (which is also very good). Also included are sweet samba tunes from songwriter Cartola," an elder of the Mangueira samba school, and the anthemic "Metamorfose Ambulante," by rocker Raul Seixas (who was a pretty amazing character). It's a fine set of classic songs to start with, but the new material that augments and connects these tracks is also pretty cool, '70s-styled funksploitation instrumentals by Antonio Pinto and Ed Cortez, along with a new samba-soul song by Seu Jorge, one of the best new artists in the style. This is a really groovy collection, definitely worth checking out!"
Decent.
ph2072 | New York City | 08/27/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I like it, but I wish there were more Brazilian songs like tracks 11 and 12. That's the only reason I gave this product 4 stars instead of 5. This and the movie itself fascinated me enough to make me want to visit Brazil and learn Portuguese even more."