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Personnel: Milton Nascimento (vocals, violao, piano); Lo Borges (vocals, guitar, violao, piano, bass, surdo, percussion); Alaide Costa, O Povo (vocals); Beto Guedes (vocals, guitar, 12-string viola, bass, carrilhao, percussion); Tavito (vocals, guitar, violao, 12-string guitar, percussion); Toninho Horta (guitar, violao, bass, percussion, background vocals); Nelson Angelo (guitar, piano, surdo, percussion); Paulo Moura (regencia); Wagner Tiso (piano, electric piano, organ, background vocals); Luiz Alves (arco bass, bass, caxixi, percussion); Rubinho (drums, turmbadora); Robertinho Silva (drums, percussion, background vocals). Recorded at Estudios EMI-Odeon, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil in 1972. Originally released as a 2 LP set. Digitally remastered by Milton Nascimento (May 1994, Abbey Road Studios, London, England). The great Brazilian singer Elis Regina once said, "If God were to sing, it would be with the voice of Milton." She probably meant it as a compliment to God. Of all the amazing sounds to come out of Brazil, few are as distinctive or as moving as the voice of Milton Nascimento. CLUBE DA ESQUINA ("Corner Club") is a 1972 collaboration with friend and fellow musician Lo Borges. Joined by a talented group of musicians whom the two had grown up with in the Minas Gerais district of Brazil, Nascimento and Borges cover a startlingly broad range of styles and moods, from folk-influenced tunes of love and lament to rock-tinged songs that veil protest under a gauze of poetry. While the music draws heavily on the roots of Brazilian music, it also takes in elements of pop and rock that only enhance its impact. The influence of the Beatles is unmistakable, but never overbearing. And the use of unusual musical details--jagged chord progressions, odd time signatures--adds depth and color without detracting from the simplicity and directness that lie at the heart of these songs. In short, this is a great work from a great musical artist.
