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Diego Figuieredo: Follow the Signs

By Jack Bowers
April 30, 2022
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Latin allure, anyone? Follow the Signs is a wonderful salute by guitarist

Diego Figueiredo

guitar, acoustic

" data-original-title="" title="">Diego Figueiredo to the sunny and rhythmic music of Brazil, comprising an album of themes much like those he came of age listening to in his hometown of Franca, about four hours north of Sao Paulo. To carry out his plan, Figueiredo amplifies his core trio (bassist

Eduardo Machada

bass

" data-original-title="" title="">Eduardo Machada, percussionist

Marcilio Garcetti

percussion

" data-original-title="" title="">Marcilio Garcetti) with a string quintet on most numbers to help underscore his melodious frame of mind.

Figueiredo was a teen-ager when he began to combine the Brazilian music of

Antonio Carlos Jobim

piano
1927 - 1994

" data-original-title="" title="">Antonio Carlos Jobim,

Joao Gilberto

vocals
1931 - 2019

" data-original-title="" title="">Joao Gilberto and

Baden Powell

guitar, acoustic
1937 - 2000

" data-original-title="" title="">Baden Powell with the jazz stylings of

Joe Pass

guitar
1929 - 1994

" data-original-title="" title="">Joe Pass,

Pat Metheny

guitar
b.1954

" data-original-title="" title="">Pat Metheny,

George Benson

guitar
b.1943

" data-original-title="" title="">George Benson and others. After six years studying classical guitar, followed by ten years playing alone in his room for many hours each day, Figueiredo was ready to share his remarkable gifts with the world. Those talents include superlative technique, flawless timing, an inbred flair for the rhythms and intricacies of jazz, and an intellect that forges composing and arranging into impressive weapons in his arsenal.

Figueiredo wrote and arranged every number on Follow the Signs save one,

Erroll Garner

piano
1921 - 1977

" data-original-title="" title="">Erroll Garner's durable "Misty," played in a Latin groove like everything else. Most tunes are sambas or bossas, written in the familiar style of his illustrious predecessors while embodying more than enough neology to keep things interesting. While there are tributes to Gilberto ("Dear John") and Jobim ("Jobim Forever"), the album is for the most part a tribute to the music of Figueiredo's homeland, performed with happiness and warmth by the leader and his colleagues. If a Latin pinnacle is the destination you have in mind, simply Follow the Signs.

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Track Listing

Follow the Signs; Infinite; Dear John; Delicate Samba; Jobim Forever; Misty; Our Friends; Samba in New Orleans; My Home; Five Times; Sobre as Aguas; Imagination.

Personnel

Diego Figueiredo

guitar, acoustic

Eduardo Machada

bass

Marcilio Garcetti

percussion

Album information

Title: Follow the Signs | Year Released: 2022 | Record Label: Arbors Records

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Diego Figueiredo Concerts

Sep 27 Sat

Diego Figueiredo + 1

Irishtown Bend Taproom At Market Garden Brewery
Cleveland, OH

Sep 28 Sun

Diego Figueiredo Brazilian All Stars Featuring Ella &...

Irishtown Bend Taproom At Market Garden Brewery
Cleveland, OH

Nov 21 Fri

Suncoast Jazz Festival

Sheraton Sand Key Resort
Clearwater, FL

Nov 22 Sat

Suncoast Jazz Festival

Sheraton Sand Key Resort
Clearwater, FL

Nov 23 Sun

Suncoast Jazz Festival

Sheraton Sand Key Resort
Clearwater, FL

Feb 4 Wed

Diego Figueiredo & Friends - The Jazz Duets

Amaturo Theater
Fort Lauderdale, FL

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