Inspired by the Bossa Nova and Samba of Brazil, in particular Rio de Janeiro, where people love to live, laugh and make music.
“Great Rhythms and smooth moves is what Paul Donat has musically given us in this CD. Turn the volume up just a bit and relax to some great music that will bring Brazil right to your house."
Leon Reyes KVMR Radio 89.5 Fm Nevada City/Sacramento Ca Host: Leon's Jazz In A Box
“The CD is awesome!…Congrats on a great recording!”
Jaymz Bee, Host of Jazz in the City
JAZZ.FM91 Radio Toronto
“I only wish we received more music like this…”
Ron Burd, Music Director
CIUT-FM Radio Toronto
Featuring sax, trumpet, vocals, piano, bass, drums and percussion in an ongoing interplay that recreates the moods of a vacation in Rio! From the light and lively opener "Postcard" to the crazy jungle adventure "Coo Coo", before you sail off into the sunset with "Ipanema Reprise". In between you get the title track "Rio Bossa", a Bossa strut that takes you to the Rio sidewalks for fun and unforgettable sights.
The Tracks:
1. Postcard - Wish you were here! Sweet samba with scatting vocals, guitar, soprano sax, percussion and bass. Uplifting and light hearted fun that's worth writing home about.
2. Rio Bossa - Taking a stroll along the Rio Sidewalks. The sights are amazing! The sax and the trumpet interplay behind drums, piano and bass create an energetic rhythm that carries you along with it.
3. Ipanema Breeze - A breath of fresh air on a hot Rio day. Sweet saxophone and acoustic guitar in intimate interplay. Imagine sitting back on a hot afternoon and watching the world go by...
4. The Beat Of Brazil - To great friends... Tenor sax and trumpet take the lead with piano, bass and drums in tow. In my travels I met many people that became my friends. This is dedicated to them.
5. Breakfast Samba - A morning ride into the sunrise... The song heats up with an energetic sax and drumset improvisation that leads into a vocal scat duet with guitar, bass and percussion. Great music for driving along a scenic route.
6. Quiet Night - A time for romance... A beautiful ballad featuring flugelhorn and sax with bowed bass, piano and quiet percussion. Very soft and romantic.
7. Coo Coo - A crazy jungle adventure... Starting with jungle sounds and developing into a full-tilt off-kilter stomp with sax and trumpet, bass, piano, drums and lots of percussion.
8. Ipanema Reprise - Sailing off into the sunset... This classic Bossa Nova features the sax and flugelhorn with lush accompaniment by piano, bass and drumset.
Featuring: Paul Donat (bass, guitar, vocals), Mike Murley (saxes), Kevin Turcotte (trumpet, flugelhorn), Gordon Sheard (piano), Alan Hetherington (drums, percussion), Skip Beckwith (bass), Claire Shaw (vocals), Anil Sharma (drums), Tom Roach (percussion)
Liner notes:
My Brazilian adventure began in Montreal in 1984. I was young and restless, had a guitar, a university Jazz diploma and nothing to lose. I was ready. For what? Even I didn't know, but I found out when I had the opportunity to travel to Brazil to learn the mysterious ways of the Samba. I had heard some Samba before but I couldn't really describe the beat; they didn't teach us that in Jazz School. I knew Bossa Nova came from Brazil and there were several "Bossa" songs that became famous. I couldn't explain what a Bossa Nova was either, but I was sure keen on finding out.
Cut to Rio de Janeiro 1988. After three plus years that included stays in San Francisco, Mexico, Guatemala and Denmark, I was now performing in a top RIO Nightclub for four nights a week in the after hours. The featured performers that appeared before us were a Who's Who of the Brazilian music scene - Jorge Ben, Bebel Gilberto, Djavan, João Bosco, Carlos Lyra, Luiz Eça and Nana Caymmi to name a few. Talk about inspiration. That music - so rich, lush and exciting. And the language, Portuguese - so lyrical, sensual and inviting.
Brazil was just emerging from a long period under a military regime. There was a new sense of hope in the air. People were talking about how things used to be and their aspirations for a better future. But old regimes die hard and over the years things never got much better economically, politically or socially. In fact they got worse. But you can't keep the Brazilian spirit down and their music is a lasting testament to that (not to mention Carnival and Soccer!). Out of sheer chaos can come sweet bliss and the pulsing rhythmic affirmation of life.
The house gig in the RIO Nightclub lasted into 1991. I had performed with many of the city's top Jazz players. All of them had their stories and shared them in the long late night/early morning hours. I began to see how musical influences can reach their way around the globe. I knew about Bossa Nova exploding in Brazil in 1958 with Antonio Carlos Jobim's "Chega de Saudade" sung by João Gilberto. Meanwhile, in the U.S. a Jazz revolution was brewing with groups led by Art Blakey and Horace Silver in New York and Chet Baker in L.A. The Brazilians were paying attention to American Jazz, in particular young pianist Sergio Mendes who formed his own Jazz trios, emulating his heroes Stan Kenton and Horace Silver. There were a few Americans that journeyed down to Brazil to discover a rich hotbed of inspiration. One such American was Charlie Byrd, who made saxophonist Stan Getz aware of the new rhythm. Soon after, Getz' instrumental version of Jobim's "Desafinado" became the first Bossa Nova hit in the U.S. in 1962. It is from these cross-cultural collaborations that I draw my inspiration.
Ever since those heady days of the RIO Nightlife I have been creating Jazz music that for some reason comes out sounding distinctly Brazilian. Anyone who's been there will tell you it's infectious. I truly hope you enjoy this collection of music which I had so much fun making.
Paul Donat
Toronto 2007
BIO
Paul Donat has traveled and performed in Montreal, Vancouver, San Francisco, Mexico, Guatemala, Denmark and Brazil with Danish composer Maria Petersen. Their eight year association culminated in two and a half years in a Rio nightclub where they performed with invited Brazilian guest musicians for four nights a week. Paul was totally immersed in Brazilian music and culture. He developed a passion for Bossa Nova, Samba and Brazilian Popular Music, and dedicated himself to learning these styles on guitar and composing.
Paul returned to Canada in 1992 to fulfill a long time desire to play acoustic bass. He studied while completing his B.A. Music degree and performed in "jazznsamba", where he was able to explore the Bossa Nova repertoire on guitar and the Jazz repertoire on bass. The group toured Canada twice and produced two CDs. Meanwhile, a gig in 1997 with comedian Steve Allen (host of the original Tonight Show) and pianist Paul Smith (who backed Ella Fitzgerald for many years) was also a highlight.
Paul moved to Toronto in 1999 and has been actively involved in the music scene, having performed with Brazilian MPB groups "Sambacana", "Sounds of Wave", "Na Miuda" and with Marcelo Neves. He has toured extensively with guitarist Robert Michaels and performs regularly with the Jorge Miguel Flamenco Company and J.V. Dixon & Rhythm Changes. "Rio Bossa" is his debut album as leader and composer.
Read more...