{"title":"Gal Costa","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGal Costa was a Brazilian singer of popular music. She was born on September 26, 1945 in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil and passed away on November 9, 2022. Gal began her musical journey at a young age, immersing herself in classical music during her mother's pregnancy. She developed a passion for Bossa Nova and pursued her love for music by working at a record store. Gal made her professional debut alongside renowned artists such as Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso. Throughout her career, she released numerous albums and became known for her unique blend of Brazilian stylizations and North American psychedelic influences.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGal Costa's first album \"Domingo\" was released in 1967 and featured the hit song \"Coração Vagabundo\". She gained further recognition with her participation in the Tropicalismo movement, recording songs that became classics of Brazilian popular music. Her eponymous solo debut album in 1969 solidified her status as an influential artist within the Tropicalismo genre.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn addition to singing songs composed by well-known Brazilian songwriters such as Tom Jobim and Erasmo Carlos, Gal Costa achieved great success with the single \"Festa Do Interior\" from the album \"Fantasia\". This multi-platinum hit propelled her career to new heights.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"legal","title":"Legal","description":"\u003cp\u003ePure class as always from Gal Costa! The record is her first after the immediate Tropicalia years, and it's a stunning blend of styles that seems to draw heavily from changes going on in the American rock scene at the time. The core of the music is still steeped in Brazilian elements – but there's a lot of influences coming into play on the album, like bluesy rock phrasing, showy nostalgia-heavy arrangements, psychedelic production elements, and some of the baroque orchestrations that would show up on Gal's later albums in the 70s.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Endless Happiness","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50416097067339,"sku":"2194703","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/5060672889162_31783043_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726695506"},{"product_id":"gal","title":"Gal","description":"\u003cp\u003eAfter \u003cstrong\u003eCaetano Veloso\u003c\/strong\u003e broke out with his solo debut, the self-titled 1968 release recognized as the building block for the now infamous Brazilian Tropicalia movement, his friends and musical peers released similar albums, always upping the ante in terms of outrageousness and inventiveness.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis release, the second of two self-titled albums released by \u003cstrong\u003eGal Costa\u003c\/strong\u003e in 1969, set the high watermark in terms of overall insanity and complete experimental freedom for the entire lot; not Veloso nor \u003cstrong\u003eGilberto Gil\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eTom Zé\u003c\/strong\u003e, or even the rambunctious \u003cstrong\u003eOs Mutantes\u003c\/strong\u003e stepped this far out into psychedelia, and even though Costa had hinted at the noisier aspects she was interested in exploring with her previous release, this album must have shocked listeners when it arrived on the shelves.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn fact, 35 years of MPB - or music from anywhere else in the world for that matter - hasn't heard another sonic assault quite like this. Costa is a ball of contradictions here: overtly wild but in control; sweet and accessible, yet brash; and, at times, almost violent as she screams and moans her way through the album while spindly, whiny guitars mix with soulful bass grooves, bombastic drums, exotic horns, woodwinds, and strings.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe sonic textures are taken completely over the top with judicious use of delays, reverbs, and various production techniques new and exciting at the time. When taken all together, the listener may not at first notice the high quality of the songwriting for the unreal, emotional freak-outs laced throughout the performances.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eCosta's crazy improvisations over \u003cem\u003eCaetano Veloso\u003c\/em\u003e's tune \"\u003cem\u003eThe Empty Boat\u003c\/em\u003e\" serve as evidence of this delightful impulsiveness when placed side by side with Veloso's own rather forward-thinking recording of the song, which sounds positively conservative by comparison.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Audio Clarity","offers":[{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":50452740702539,"sku":"2021817","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - Black (Ipanema Sun Version)","offer_id":57613603668299,"sku":"R3285-4845","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/0889397107932_a5be5d9f_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727162591"},{"product_id":"domingo-2","title":"Domingo","description":"\u003cp\u003eWhen his Brazilian LP first appeared on Philips in 1967, both Gal Costa and Caetano Veloso had released only a few singles individually, so this is the first long player from either of them. Although presented as a team effort, this LP is actually mostly Caetano Veloso’s work, with him composing, performing and arranging most of the songs. Gal is featured as the solo vocalist on a few tracks and there are a few duets. These are almost art songs with a tropical wrapping, sometimes defying normal pop song convention by quickly fading out after only 90 seconds or so without a hook or chorus to grab onto, but there’s great vocal control and careful use of strings in the arrangements. This captures a moment when bossa nova was the best known musical export of Brazil, largely through the hugely popular work of Jobim and Astrud Gilberto, but neither Costa nor Velosos would ever sing and play so gently and lushly as this again…they both were to be major figures in the psychedelia-influenced Tropicalia movement that became a cultural and political force in Brazil only a year after this LP was released.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Audio Clarity","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50452741488971,"sku":"2018955","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Domingo_96080018_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727162616"},{"product_id":"india-1","title":"India","description":"More subtle and sophisticated than her previous work, \u003ci\u003eÍndia\u003c\/i\u003e is the perfect starting point to dive into \u003cb\u003eCosta\u003c\/b\u003e's career, and the genres of MPB and Tropicália as a whole.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eJono, Rough Trade Nottingham\u003c\/b\u003e","brand":"Mr Bongo","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50466887827787,"sku":"2023761","price":29.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50466887237963,"sku":"1013473","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":50466887631179,"sku":"1013474","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Black (EU Version)","offer_id":57677170803019,"sku":"R7757-5257","price":29.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/e298afb3-13ee-4699-965b-48ec52241c9b_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727328648"},{"product_id":"gal-costa-2","title":"Gal Costa","description":"\u003cp\u003eA lot changed between Gal Costa's pleasantly straightforward 1967 debut \u003ci\u003eDomingo\u003c\/i\u003e and her eponymous follow-up two years later. \u003ci\u003eDomingo\u003c\/i\u003e, also a debut for young Brazilian songwriter Caetano Veloso, featured a set of airy, somewhat standard bossa nova tunes, sung ably by Costa. Mere months after the release of this relatively safe debut, however, Costa and Veloso found themselves alongside Os Mutantes, Tom Zé, and Gilberto Gil, recording contributions to Tropicália: Ou Panis et Circencis, the unofficial manifesto of the Tropicalismo movement. The compilation dove headfirst into avant-garde experimentalism, embracing the psychedelic tendencies happening in American underground circles, and the politically charged energy of radical dissent to Brazil's ongoing military dictatorship. This wild new hybrid of Brazilian pop and far-reaching outside influences resulted in something instantly miles away from everything that came before it, and Costa's self-titled Tropicalismo debut is no exception. The album begins with a flutter of psychedelic echo effects, dissolving into gloriously lush string arrangements and lighthearted organ on \"Nao Identificado,\" a brilliant opening track that introduces Costa's velvety voice, gently at first, as if to ease the listener into the new sounds about to be revealed. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Audio Clarity","offers":[{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":50501479760203,"sku":"2021816","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - Black (Opiniao Records Version)","offer_id":56071556432203,"sku":"R1922-1736","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Black (Vampisoul Version)","offer_id":56254371725643,"sku":"R1922-6193","price":37.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/0889397107925.jpg?v=1747143505"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/collections\/test_c7167479_thumbnail_4096_f8950c19-e84d-4544-96df-39175b17aa67.jpg?v=1726695486","url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/collections\/gal-costa.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}