Haven’t been back to Brazil in a while. It’s time.
YouTube poster makes the case that this is perhaps the world’s first hip hop record
Don’t know about that, but it’s 4 years before Hustler’s Convention in any case
The opening track on Zito Righi’s “Alucinolandia” from 1969, featuring the rap stylings of one Sonia Santos
Those are some bugged out eyeballs
Zito Righi was born in Rio but raised in Paty do Alferes, a small town in the state’s mountainous interior
His dad was the station agent on the train line that passed through
At 17, he moved back to the capital to try to make a living as a musician
He started out on cavaquinho, the small 4-string guitar ubiquitous in Brazil
But eventually moved on to sax
In the 50s, he had his own band and played in festivals, tours, shows around Rio and the whole country
At some point (for reasons I cannot ascertain) he adopted the pseudonym “Bob Fleming” and put out a bunch of records under that moniker
Trying to pass as a gringo bandleader, I guess?
By the mid 60s, he was back under his real name
The title of this record plays on the word “alucinado” (crazy, hallucinating) and the legendary Rio neighborhood of Cinelandia (“Theatre-Land” – in front of the Teatro Municipal with a large concentration of mid-century cinemas, and right next to the center of Rio’s bohemian nightlife, Lapa)
It’s referenced in the song’s intro, where Sonia describes the band heading to Cinelandia to deliver their delightful danceable sound to the listener
What comes next is the rap, “the rhythmic poem of the malandro”
The comparison to Lightnin Rod’s Hustler’s Convention is deliberate
Cuz the “malandro” is kind of a hustler
I can’t do full justice to the term, concept, and history here
Especially as it’s now midnight
But the malandro and his malandragem is the defining figure of Rio
Standing in opposition to work (and of course the legacy of slavery, and wage labor exploitation), authority, and rules
The malando survives on his wits, style, and finding a “way”
Not quite a gangster, though not averse to violence
He’s a lover, not a fighter, but will still cut your ass if need be
Lives in the bohemia after dark
You’ll find him at the bar or gafieira in patent leather shoes, a linen suit, and a panama hat
With a mulata on his arm
Playing, singing, and dancing samba
Sonia Santos composed the poem and delivers it proper here, riding right behind the beat
Let me tell you, neither Zito Righi nor Bob Fleming put down anything like this, before or after
I will resist the temptation to translate each verse
But, among the many worthy lines, she lets you know that if you think the malandro life is easy, don’t get it twisted
It’s hard, tiring, and risky
Playing cards, capoeira, and drinking all night!
And writing samba, too, of course
But the malandro wouldn’t have it any other way
The malandro transits between the morro (hillside favela) and asfalto (city street)
And delights when the time comes that the police can’t impose their order
When the world turns upside down, the city goes crazy, and licentiousness reigns
Chegou Carnaval, Chegou Carnaval!
The coda, repeated 5 times with increasing speed:
(Zito and his band pick up the rhythm, too)
“Escrevemos samba no asfalto selvagem”
“We write samba on the savage asphalt”
Remember, this asphalt isn’t the concrete jungle; it’s the street below the hillside — elite, white, monied, policed, where the malandro is generally persecuted (while the exploited worker is welcome, as long as they know their place, and go back when their shift is over)
Anyway, back to the music – the “balanco” (swing) is out of control on this one
Many years later, it became an underground hit at Sao Paulo black bailes (dance parties)
Though Santos didn’t know it
She had moved to the U.S., and–like Vashti Bunyan–discovered her fame via the internet
Alucinolandia is a now a very rare piece of wax
It’s gotten Japanese and British reissues
And this cut has shown up on some compilations
The youtube video is actually a user edit extending the samba-rock batucada with its bass drum, tamborim, and whistle
The dose would not normally promote such bastardization, but in this case, you need as much Poema Ritmico do Malandro as you can get
