Sol Negro
1997 studio album by Virginia Rodrigues
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sol Negro is the debut album by the Brazilian musician Virginia Rodrigues.[3][4] It was released in 1997.[5] The album peaked at No. 7 on Billboard's World Albums chart.[6]
| Sol Negro | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1997 | |||
| Label | Natasha[1] Hannibal[2] | |||
| Producer | Caetano Veloso, Celso Fonseca | |||
| Virginia Rodrigues chronology | ||||
| ||||
Production
The album was produced by Caetano Veloso and Celso Fonseca; Veloso had "discovered" the singer at a rehearsal.[3][7] Djavan, Milton Nascimento, and Gilberto Gil contributed to the album.[8][9] The berimbau was used on several tracks.[10] A few songs are tributes to Rodrigues's Candomblé religion.[11]
Rodrigues sang a cappella on "Verônica".[12] "Manhã de Carnaval" is a cover of the Luiz Bonfá song; "Noite de Temporal" is a cover of the Dorival Caymmi song.[13][14] "Adeus Batucada" was made famous by Carmen Miranda.[15]
Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [16] |
| Robert Christgau | B−[17] |
| Edmonton Journal |  [13] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [18] |
| MusicHound World: The Essential Album Guide | [19] |
JazzTimes wrote that "Rodrigues’s contralto voice is otherwordly, spiritual, exquisite."[12] Robert Christgau noted that she "never stretches her rich, Ella-like highs into a scat—though the few midtempo numbers have a nice jazzy lilt ... her instincts are exceedingly solemn."[17] Rolling Stone stated: "The ancient and the modern, the secular and the sacred seamlessly mingle in this document of Brazilian musical forms."[20]
Miami New Times deemed the album "a simultaneously somber and uplifting cycle of songs focused on the African experience in Brazil."[21] The New York Times concluded that "the record is both modern and roots-conscious in the best ways that Brazilians know how to be: it swings from Roman Catholic church music to carnaval sambas, ancient Afro-Brazilian drum patterns to sophisticated wind-and-string arrangements, all sculpted with delicate care."[22] The Chicago Tribune considered Sol Negro to be the eighth best album of 1998.[23]
AllMusic wrote that Rodrigues's "first major recording succeeds in juxtaposing her ability to carry both lilting Brazilian rhythms and slow harmonious melodies.[16]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Negrume da Noite" | |
| 2. | "Lua, Lua, Lua, Lua" | |
| 3. | "Adeus Batucada" | |
| 4. | "Manhã de Carnaval" | |
| 5. | "Verônica" | |
| 6. | "Noite de Temporal" | |
| 7. | "Terra Seca" | |
| 8. | "Nobreza" | |
| 9. | "Sol Negro" | |
| 10. | "Querubim" | |
| 11. | "Israfel" |