An article written for the April edition of Time Out Sao Paulo, previewing an upcoming appearance by Arthur Verocai at Sao Paulo’s SESC Pinheiros venue.

Preview: Arthur Verocai at SESC Pinheiros

In the 1970s Arthur Verocai was one of Brazil’s finest producers, arranging for luminaries such as Jorge Ben, Marcos Valle and Tim Maia. The problem was, 10 years ago, nobody in Brazil knew who he was. In the US, this was slightly different; hip-hop producers had been taking samples from his only solo album for years. Eventually this culminated in a reissue of that album, which was simply titled Arthur Verocai. That reissue ended up in the hands of the Mochila record label who, blown away by the music, decided the time was right to truly bring Verocai to the world’s attention, and they invited him to perform in Los Angeles with the aim of recording the show for a CD/DVD/LP, part of their Timeless series. Prior to this, and in Verocai’s own words, he “..had never played the record, alive or dead!” The show was so good he returned to do it again. In February this year the film got it’s first cinema screening in Brazil, and now, finally, Verocai will be performing his album, in full, at SESC Pinheiros. It’s funny how things work out sometimes!

If you want to know what Arthur Verocai sounds like you can listen to any Brazilian album of the 70s and he probably arranged it. It’s a mixture of MPB and jazz, with dense orchestration and lots of soul, which is probably why the Americans loved it so much. Songs such as “Pelas Sombras” and “Na Boca do Sol” have been known to bring grown men to tears, such is their magisterial beauty. Feedback from that show in LA included “that was one of the best Los Angeles has ever seen!” I suspect you will be able to substitute Los Angeles for Sao Paulo after this one.

This article may differ slightly from that published in Time Out Sao Paulo.