Samba-Pop
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Samba's swing distilled into radio-friendly pop song: the samba rhythmic feel — surdo, pandeiro, tamborim and cavaquinho or bright acoustic guitar — supports catchy verse-chorus pop structures, soul and jazz-pop touches, and singalong hooks. Tempos are buoyant and mid-to-up, the arrangements crisp and modern; the singing is charismatic and rhythmic rather than plaintive. It keeps samba's groove and Brazilian identity while chasing the immediacy and gloss of pop.
History
Samba-pop grew from the early-1960s crossover of samba with bossa, soul and beat music, epitomized by Jorge Ben, whose 'Mas Que Nada' (1963) fused samba swing with pop directness and became one of Brazil's most globally covered songs. The charismatic Wilson Simonal brought a soul-samba showmanship ('pilantragem') to the mid-1960s charts, and the strand ran forward through artists like Djavan, Seu Jorge and Marisa Monte, who kept samba's groove at the heart of contemporary Brazilian pop. Samba-pop is the bridge between the samba tradition and the mainstream Brazilian hit parade.
Defining artists
Essential listening
Sources
- Chris McGowan & Ricardo Pessanha, 'The Brazilian Sound'
- Ruy Castro, writings on Jorge Ben and Rio pop
- Britannica, 'Samba'