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Flora Purim: If You Will

By Ian Patterson
June 4, 2022
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Everyone loves a great comeback, and, after a lengthy hiatus, Flora Purim obliges with If You Will, the Brazilian's first studio album since Flora's Song (Narada, 2005). Released to coincide with her 80th birthday, If You Will is a somewhat nostalgic celebration that polishes a few old gems from a recording career that began—under military dictatorship—with the groundbreaking Brazilian jazz album é M.P.M. (1964, RCA). The production values are excellent, as are the performances from Purim and the trusted collaborators with whom she surrounds herself.

Airto Moreira

percussion
b.1941

" data-original-title="" title="">Airto Moreira's dancing percussion opens "If You Will," an uplifting tune originally penned by

George Duke

piano
1946 - 2013

" data-original-title="" title="">George Duke, and sung here by Flora's daughter,

Diana Purim

vocals

" data-original-title="" title="">Diana Purim. Short-and-sweet solos from keyboardist

Mika Mutti

synthesizer

" data-original-title="" title="">Mika Mutti and electric bassist Fábio Hess come and go, but the album as whole is less about individual virtuosity and more about the collective vibe, with half a dozen percussionists and almost twice as many backing vocalists creating rich rhythmic layers and melodic textures. Mother and daughter share vocal duties on "This Is Me," a soaring, percussion-fueled slice of Brazilian jazz with call-and-response, a fine keyboard solo from

Bryan Velasco

" data-original-title="" title="">Bryan Velasco and an utterly infectious vocal motif that proves impossible to shake.

The leader takes centre stage on

Chick Corea

piano
1941 - 2021

" data-original-title="" title="">Chick Corea's "500 Miles High," from

Return to Forever

band / ensemble / orchestra

" data-original-title="" title="">Return to Forever's Light As A Feather (Polydor, 1973). Purim's pipes are still in remarkably good shape, her delivery of Neville Potter's lyrics as soulful and bright as it was half a century ago. Moreira's distinctive non-syllabic vocals bookend

Jose Neto

guitar

" data-original-title="" title="">Jose Neto's breezy "Newspaper Girl." The guitarist's tasteful solo adds colorful splashes to this tune of loping rhythmic gate and sunny melodic contours. Another long-term collaborator of the leader, notably in the group Fourth World, Neto shines on Nuno Mindelis's

Pino Daniele

" data-original-title="" title="">Pino Daniele-esque blues "Dois +Dois = Tres," though it is Flora Purim who is in the driving seat.

The elegant bossa-jazz "Dandara," named for the 17th century Afro-Brazilian warrior who fought against slavery, is a family affair. Poet Judith de Souza wrote the lyrics, which grandson Felipe Machado put to music. His grandfather, singer-songwriter Filó Machado, who has worked with Michel Legrand,

Jon Hendricks

vocals
1921 - 2017

" data-original-title="" title="">Jon Hendricks and

Hermeto Pascoal

flute
b.1936

" data-original-title="" title="">Hermeto Pascoal, arranged the track, also adding acoustic guitar and backing vocals alongside Vitor Pinheiro. Flora Purim rolls back the years to makes it her own. Claudia Villela's catchy pop-samba "Zahuroo" features the leader on wordless vocals, with sizzling percussion from Celso Alberto and Moreira.

The shuffling acoustic ballad, "Lucidez," co-written by Diana Purim, Krishna Booker and Fabio Nascimento, closes the album on an introspective note. With percussion assuming a more subtle role, Flora Purim's warm vocals are to the fore, framed by Nascimento's acoustic strumming and Todd S. Simon's painterly touches on flugelhorn.

Whether If You Will marks a late-career renaissance or a joyous swansong for Flora Purim remains to be seen. Regardless, it is a fine testament to a unique figure in contemporary Brazilian music.

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Track Listing

If You Will; This Is Me; 500 Miles High; A Flor Da Vida; Newspaper Girl; Dandara; Zahuroo; Dois + Dois = Tres; Lucidez

Personnel

Flora Purim

vocals

Additional Instrumentation

Airto Moreira: percussion, drums (9), vocals (5, 7); Diana Purim: vocals (1-2, 4), backing vocals (4); Mikka Mutti: keyboards (1, 9); Fábio Hess: bass (1); Léo Costa: drums (1-2); Grecco Buratto: guitar, backing vocals (2); Bryan Velasco: piano, keyboards (2); Andre de Santanna: bass (2); Alberto Lopes: percussion (2); Gibi dos Santos: percussion (2); Krishna Booker: percussion (2, 9), backing vocals (9); Caro Pierotto: backing vocals (2); Maria Joana: backing vocals (2); Emina Shimanuki: (2); Kana Shimunaki: backing vocals (2); Mari Nobre: backing vocals (2); Niura Band: backing vocals (2); Davi Sartori: electric piano (3); Thiago Duarte: bass (3); Endrigo Bettega: drums (3-4); Stéphane San Juan: drums (4); José Neto: guitar (5, 7-8); Frank Martin: keyboards (5); Gary Brown: bass (5); Celso Alberti: drums (5, 8), percussion (7); Café da Silva: bata (5); Filó Machado: acoustic guitar, backing vocals (6); Vitor Pinheiro: backing vocals (6); Claudia Villela: vocals (7); Marcio Lomiramda: keyboards (8); Stéphane San Juan: drums (8); Fabio Nascimento: acoustic guitar (9); Todd M. Simon: flugelhorn (9); Léo Nobre: bass (9); Filipe Castro: percussion (9).

Album information

Title: If You Will | Year Released: 2022 | Record Label: Strut Records

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