Marcos Valle & Stacy Kent Ao Vivo

Marcos Valle was the Renaissance man of Brazilian pop, a singer/songwriter/producer who straddled the country's music world from the early days of the bossa nova craze well into the fusion-soaked sound of '80s MPB. Though his reputation in America never quite compared to contemporaries like Caetano Veloso, Milton Nascimento, Gilberto Gil, or even Tom Ze, Valle is one of the most important and popular performers in the history of Brazilian pop.

Marcos and the other Brazilian luminaries Adrian and Ali hosted for Jazz Is Dead, are able to create an entirely different sound and feel using the exact same palette.

It is with great joy that we present the Mr Bongo edition of Marcos Valle's 1983 self-titled masterpiece. A pure vintage that features the ultimate Brazilian-boogie cult-classic ‘Estrelar’ and iconic 80s cover art that sees a gloriously sun-drenched Marcos dressed in a pink v-neck t-shirt surrounded by a generous selection of deadly-looking neon cocktails.

To call Marcos Valle 'a legend' of Brazilian music is much more than just easy press-release hype. As singer, writer, musician and record producer, Marcos has played an integral role shaping the sound of the country’s music from the 'golden era' of the 60s and 70s, through to the modern day. Alongside his brother, Paulo Sergio Valle, they have penned a huge catalogue of classic songs, not just for themselves but for other greats such as Elza Soares, Astrud Gilberto, Claudia to name a few.

Cinzento is the third studio outing from Marcos Valle in two years. After the critical acclaim for 2019's disco-fied Sempre in June 2019, Valle returns to the essence of Brazilian pop and samba on Cinzento ("Gray"). The set was recorded for the independent Deck Disc and is loosely related to his classic 1973 offering Previsão Do Tempo ("Weather Forecast"). Deck label boss Roberto Ramos, who has reissued several Valle titles including Previsão Do Tempo, buttonholed the artist in 2018 and exhorted Valle to cut an album for Deck at their studios, while looking to the 1973 album for inspiration. He accepted.
Valle revisited the 1973 collaboration with Azymuth, who were still a young band, not yet the influential fusion trio they would become…

Brazilian Jazz-funk trio Azymuth and singer-songwriter Marcos Valle once decided to collaborate on a promotional record for South American airline company ‘Cruzeiro’. Luckily for you we've unearthed it from the hazy sun-bleached skies of history. Strap yourselves in for a flight back in time with generous helpings of Jazz, Funk & Bossa Nova.