A couple of nights ago on the most recent "Uta Con"（うたコン）broadcast on NHK, I got to see jazz pianist Hiroko Kokubu（国府弘子）for the first time on camera since she was collaborating with singer Hiromi Iwasaki（岩崎宏美）for an album. It was great to see her especially because I've had a couple of albums by the pianist for a few decades, including the one that you see above.
The ironic thing, though, is that even though some of Kokubu's albums are up on YouTube in their entirety, the one that I was really hoping to see up there, her 1991 "Light and Colour", isn't. Although it's tough to choose between the two albums that I have, if push comes to shove, I have to say that I prefer "Light and Colour" for its bossa jazz. Well, as it has been, although I did put up articles on the first two tracks of the album, "Moon Island" and "Pepino Beach", any aural examples have been restricted to excerpts through Amazon and Apple.
Happily, I have been given some hope. Just out of curiosity last night and the fact that I did see Kokubu on screen, I tried looking for "Light and Colour" again on YouTube and then even punched in the individual tracks. Strangely enough, I actually found one track which is Track 3 on the album "Passarada". When I punched in that title into Google Translate's Portuguese to English, I got the translation of "Flyby". Now, my trust in Google Translate isn't anywhere near 100% so if Marcos or anyone from Brazil could let me know if the translation is accurate, that would be much appreciated (October 23, 2022: A very kind person from Brazil has set me straight on the meaning if you check below in the Comments. Thank you very much!).
Anyways, it was good hearing "Passarada" again, and speaking of Kokubu's collaborations, I found out that this particular song was one such cooperative effort between the pianist who composed the tune and the famed Brazilian singer-songwriter Ivan Lins who came up with the lyrics for him to sing. "Passarada" is a mix of funk evoking downtown New York City and some elegant bossa jazz making me think of some resort bar in Rio de Janeiro. It's a song that would be a welcome addition to any stereo speakers on a Sunday morning over brunch. Y'know...I wouldn't mind if a few more full versions of those "Light and Colour" tracks would show up on YouTube, if they're not already there.
Hi, I'm brazilian, the translation for "passarada" is a flock of birds.
ReplyDeleteA very interesting coincidence happened, just yesterday Light and Colour got uploaded on youtube!
Ahh...thank you very much for correcting me on the translation for "passarada". I'll have to make the adjustments. It's great to hear that "Light and Colour" has finally been uploaded.
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