Originally released October 15, 1989
Reissued September 16, 2022
Luaka Bop
2xLP
David Byrne’s Luaka Bop's inaugural release acts as a who's who of Brazilian music, with bona-fide legends like Jorge Ben Jor, Gal Costa, Caetano Veloso, Milton Nascimento and many others all found on this set. Many of the artists here are associated with the tropicalia movement, which acted as both an artistic and a protest movement against Brazil’s military junta, with many of the artists featured here facing prison and exile for their work. Beyond the political backdrop of this work, what is equally staggering is the sheer diversity of sound coming out of this set with bits psychedelia, samba rock, bossa nova, funk and rock all heard throughout this release which acts as an excellent time capsule of Brazil through the late 1960's and early 70's but as well a collection of really, really good songs.