In Discussion With Gina

Gina and I recently talked about a cover version of Anita Baker’s classic “Sweet Love”, which can be found on singer Gretchen Parlato‘s newest album “Flor”, her first for UK-based Edition Records. The review will follow soon – I’m still waiting for the vinyl version of the album which has been postponed.

We talked about the Brazilian influence of the album and then started to listen to a lot of Joao Gilberto, Joao Donato, some of flutist Herbie Mann’s Brazilian-flavored LPs (he would have been 91 today), and returned to Anita Baker’s “Rapture” album, too. And we listened to a lot of versions of the wonderful and sweet “É Preciso Perdoar”, which opens the album. The song was written by Carlos Coqueijo and Alcyvando Luz and first recorded by MPB4 in 1966, later recorded by Joao Gilberto, too. There are other great interpretations by Flora Purim, Paula Morelenbaum, Leny Andrade, and Césaria Évora with Ryuichi Sakamoto and Caetano Veloso. Stay tuned for the review.