TOM ZE - BRAZIL CLASSICS - THE BEST OF TOM ZE(COMPILED BY DAVID BYRNE)

It wasn't until his 'discovery' by Talking Heads frontguy David Byrne that Brazilian singer-songwriter Tom Ze - one of the pioneers of the tropicalia movement that emerged in the late 1960s - finally found the recognition he craved. Brazil Classics 4: The Best of Tom Ze now looks back on the artist's stellar career, laterally moving across albums like Estudando o Samba (1976), Todos os Olhos (1973) and Nave Maria (1984) - as well as some rare tracks and remixes - to selectively best represent the maturity of an artist who changed the landscape of Brazilian music, over the course of at least two decades. Ze's was considered an eccentric, preferring to mix bits of folk, rock, pop, jazz, and even avant-garde music into his works, and penning witty and comment on Brazilian society, politics and culture to provide counterpoint. But we'd wager his rep was mostly due to the inclusion of unconventional instruments in the music such as household appliances, tools and prepared guitars. Elements from the then burgeoning musique concrete movement - such as vocal samples and odd effects and noises - also appear here. Luaka Bop did divine work in reissuing it in 1990, but its top-up reissue here is no less justified, of course.

• Includes liner notes by Tom Ze, Annie Sarabia, and David Byrne.
  
• A cofounder of the tropicalista movement with Veloso, Gil, Bethania, et al., Z‚ has faded into obscurity as his music becomes more and more experimental and eccentric. This is by far the best Brazilian recording I've ever heard (caveat emptor!), partly because of the gentleness of Z‚'s weirdness and partly because he sounds so Brazilian even as the other tropicalistas come to associate "avant-garde" with increasingly Pan American pop-soup. ~ Carl Hoyt

Rolling Stone (2/21/91) - 3.5 Stars - Very Good - "..fresh and acutely on target...the greatest coup David Byrne has pulled off since he got the Reverend Howard Finster to do the cover for "Little Creatures.."

1.
"Ma"
3:54
2.
"O Riso E A Faca"
2:41
3.
"Toc"
2:56
4.
"To"
2:44
5.
"Um "Oh!" E Um "Ah!""
0:59
6.
"Ui! (Voce Inventa)"
3:02
7.
"Cademar"
0:44
8.
"So (Solidao)"
4:27
Side 2
1.
"Hein?"
3:30
2.
"Augusta, Angelica E Consolacao"
3:42
3.
"Doi"
3:21
4.
"Complexo De Epico"
0:01
5.
"A Felicidade"
4:34
6.
"Vai (Menina, Amanhade Manha)"
2:22
7.
"Nave Maria"
3:27