Two for Brazil

Checkerboard Lounge, Chicago,IL
Mar. 30, 2008

Paulinho Garcia

Two for Brazil

Story and Photos by James Walker

Although "Two" for Brazil technically no longer exists with the recent exodus of saxophonist Greg Fishman to Arizona, the restructured group, with the addition of Scott Burns on sax and Heitor Garcia on percussion joining mainstay Paulinho on acoustic guitar and vocals preserves that same basic Brazilian sound that has thrilled audiences throughout the world, took center stage at the weekly Checker Jazz set at the Checkerboard Lounge last Sunday night.

Performing before a smallish but very attentive crowd that appeared to be, for the most part, new to Hyde Park Jazz Society's Sunday Jazz set, Garcia and his bandmates made it very clear from the top that some of the players' names had changed, but the game was still the same. Music from Paulinho's native Brazilian homeland would remain the format that had garnered him great success and accolades since the inception of Two for Brazil in 1999.

Scott Burns took the lead on the first Brazilian number with some very smooth tenor playing. This was followed with a Bossa Nova tune that is always part of this group's repertoire. This set is sooooo different from most Checker Jazz shows in that it was quite laid back with Garcia's velvety vocals and warm sounding guitar that's complemented by the soft and deliberate sounds emitting from Burn's horn.

Not all of their time on stage is soley dedicated to the beautiful Brazilian sound, but as evident by the playlist of this evening, they are also influenced by the likes of Chet Baker, Stan Getz, Paul Desmond, and Dizzy Gillespie, among others. One such Stan Getz number was initiated by the Garcia's acoustic guitar only before being accompanied by his brother Heitor on the bongos. Heitor had a great influence on this performance as he used an arsenal of percussion instruments to communicate his message to the audience. Such instruments included Pandeiro (tamborine), tamborin (little drum), congas, bongos, and cuica. These are all vital instruments found in most Latin oriented bands.

The second set began with a Brazilian tune called "A Different Beat," roughly translated to English. This was one the few upbeat songs of the evening and relied on the beautiful vocals of Paulinho. As is done with the majority of his songs, this was sung in Portuguese. It really doesn't deter from his beautiful sound if he's singing in English or his native language.

"Take Five," the Dave Brubeck signature tune that was actually written by Paul Desmond, displayed solid interaction between Paulinho and Burns. Done with an energetic tempo, it provided Burns with the opportunity to showcase his talent with the smooth tenor. He also turned in a fine emotion driven solo on Dizzy's tune "One for my Head." The sax solo that was originally done by Dizzy with his trumpet was well done while maintaining the integrety of the original song.

Perhaps the highlight of the first two sets occured at the conclusion of the 2nd set with a beautiful guitar and vocal ballad entitled "Manha De Carnaval" that was taken from the movie "Black Orpheus." This song received a well earned rousing applause from this very knowledgeable audience.

This writer wasn't sure what to expect tonight since he hadn't previously been party to this particuliar Brazilian sound of the former "Two for Brazil" acoustic guitar player along with his new group. Although most of the vocals were performed in Portuguese, the vibe was there and regardless of the lyrical language, the smooth groove was felt by this very appreciative crowd.

A set like tonight's take few words to describe. No need to interject a flurry of adjectives, to highlight the players, for these three just calmly sat back and played beautiful music all night long.

For those "Two for Brazil" fans longing for an early reunion, you are in luck. Paulinho announced plans to perform this summer with Greg Fishman in addition to playing with a 14 piece band on July 24 at Millinium Park with several musicans coming from Brazil for this engagement.

Don't miss fine trumpet player Pharez Whitted at this Sunday's Checker Jazz set. For future programs, please refer to their website at: www.checkerjazz.org.