Gloria Estefan
Brazil305
Sony Music Latin
Listen Below
Today, the overwhelming influence of Latin sounds upon the larger framework of Western popular music is readily apparent in some form or another. But it wasn’t always this way—specifically in the United States.
Decades prior to the present-day musical integration that many of us take for granted, a host of Latin American acts diligently tried to breach the cultural margins which held them just outside of the broader stateside pop spectrum. While some got closer than others, it remained quite a task attempting to reach one audience while maintaining another—until Gloria Estefan. The singer-songwriter-instrumentalist paved the road that others now walk upon.
Her journey in song began in 1977 as a member of Miami Sound Machine, a Cuban American sextet that quickly came to prominence in Florida and abroad in wider Latin America. What followed after Miami Sound Machine’s formation was Estefan’s rise as the global standard bearer of the crossover stratagem. She accomplished this feat by putting forward a series of innovative records through the decades—in English and Spanish—that saw her capture two distinctive sets of listeners.
In the last ten years, Estefan’s output slowed as she pursued other avenues of interests. One such avenue was her involvement in the construction of the autobiographical jukebox musical On Your Feet! which opened to strong ticket sales and positive critical notices in 2015. However, the lure of recording proved to be too strong to resist.
Brazil305—Estefan’s fourteenth solo effort (and twenty-ninth studio set overall)—closes the seven-year gap left open after the issuance of The Standards (2013). Production for this album was reliably handled by Emilio Estefan—Gloria’s husband and longtime collaborator—and decorated tunesmith Afo Verde. As an aside, Verde sits as the acting chairman and CEO of Latin America, Spain and Portugal for Sony Music, the label hosting Estefan’s current offering.
Brazil305 is representative of both artistic firsts and continuances simultaneously.
Concerning the former aspect, much of Brazil305 finds Estefan revisiting her awesome back catalog with fourteen (out of the eighteen) selections having appeared on her previous projects. Only four cuts—“Un Nuevo Mundo” (A New World), “Cuando Hay Amor” (When There Is Love), “Hasta Siempre” (Until Forever), “Magalenha”—operate as new material. “Un Nuevo Mundo,” originally in Portuguese as “O Homem Falou” (The Man Spoke), is on loan from the revered canon of Brazilian chanteuse Maria Rita.
With the latter element, Brazil305 succeeds Estefan’s two anterior covers albums, the lauded Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me (1994) and The Standards, where Estefan tackled pieces from America’s contemporary pop and jazz songbooks respectively. Additionally, Brazil305 returns Estefan to the Spanish medium for the first time since 90 Millas (2007). And yet, there are seven sides in English with two of them (“Here We Are,” “Only Together”) acting as “mirror versions” to their Spanish and Portuguese counterparts (“Tú y Yo,” “O Homem Falou”) to give the LP a bilingual vibe.
The common thread that brings everything together on this outing is Estefan’s passion for Brazilian, Bahian and South American sonic styles. No stranger to the studious exploration of various Spanish language musical families with her forgoing collections, Estefan uses Brazil305 as an imaginative conduit to interface with these textures. Her 1985 evergreen “Conga”—here as “Samba (Conga)”—is an appropriate opener for Brazil305 sure to pique the curiosity of the Estefan loyalist and the uninitiated alike; its bold revision points to her overarching approach that favors attention to detail across the expanse of Brazil305.
For example, “Cuts Both Ways,” the title track to Estefan’s 1989 album of the same name, compositionally alternated between acoustic guitar and the adult contemporary polish of the period. Estefan excises the polish while retaining the acoustic ingredient—then, she layers up on the acoustic guitar with gaita, strings, cuíca drums and other percussion. She repeats this process with the remainder of her established charters that line Brazil305 by deconstructing specific portions of their arrangements and rebuilding them with a wealth of traditional Brazilian instrumentation.
Highlights include “Con Los Años Que Me Quedan” (With the Years That I Have Left), “Rhythm Is Gonna Get You,” “Más Allá” (Beyond) and “Hoy” (Today). These reworkings are complementary to the originating takes and demonstrate how well Estefan’s discography is aging. As for the fresh song stock, it is unsurprisingly solid and engaging.
Estefan’s reading of Maria Rita’s “O Homem Falou” as “Un Nuevo Mundo”/ “Only Together” is an explosion of aural color, its tempo joyfully pronounced and rhythmic. That same uptempo energy is apparent too on “Cuando Hay Amor” and “Magalenha.” The pair vibrate with a sort of infectious street carnival zeal that is undeniable and will likely cement them into Estefan’s dance-oriented oeuvre. Returning to “Magalenha,” it spotlights a guest appearance (and co-production credit) from Brazilian singer/percussionist Carlinhos Brown. Brown—who also flanks Estefan on “Get on Your Feet”—never crowds her, instead he lends just enough of his personality for that extra bit of flair.
Amongst the superb production and session player work on Brazil305 is the leading lady herself. At 62, Estefan’s vocal tone is more expressive than ever. Still, while Estefan is an enchanting presence in English, her voice approximates a richer, artful quality when utilized in Spanish on Brazil305. Out of all the beautiful performances on the wax, “Hasta Siempre” emerges as the clear-cut classic of Brazil305 because of how Estefan positions her voice on this track with an emotional evocativeness as only she can.
Although there have been many exceptions to this well-worn rule, often covers projects are not associated with progress—Estefan is an exception. She used this practice to evince her interpretive strengths and challenge herself previously with Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me and The Standards.
This time, rather than turn her gaze toward the works of others, Estefan looked to her own staples and partners them with her investigative inclinations on Brazil305. The product of this action is an album that reverberates with the vibrancy of a woman still at her artistic best despite what she has already achieved—that is a testament to Estefan’s enduring creative excellence.
Notable Tracks: “Cuando Hay Amor” / “Cuts Both Ways” / “Hasta Siempre” / “Magalenha”
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