Outubro (Blue)

Far Out Recordings present a reissue of Azymuth's Outubro, originally released in 1980. Following on from their seminal album Light As A Feather (1979), Outubro ("October") began Azymuth's run of prolific output for Milestone Records throughout the decade. Typifying the consummate craftsmanship of the three members's performances - each with such distinct personality and together so perfectly balanced - their perfectionist attitude to sound is maintained across the production on the album, beautifully coloring the expressionist fusion of samba rhythm, jazz progression, funk attitude and psychedelic electronics. The album hosts a wonderful mix of tempos and styles, from Alex Malheiros's earth-shaking slap-bass on "Dear Limmertz", which was to become a hit on London's underground disco and jazz-dance club scenes alike, to the late maestro Jose Roberto Bertrami's genial melodic Rhodes excursions on the vocoder laden, samba-jazz masterpiece "Un Amigo", while Ivan "Mamao" Conti's signature swing on "Maracana" exemplifies the root of Azymuth's "samba doidoi" ("crazy samba") philosophy. The two cover versions on the album consist of the title track, which was originally penned by Milton Nascimento, and Chick Corea's "500 Miles High", both of which magically re-imagine the originals and further demonstrate the immense virtuosity of this cult recording. This reissue was mixed and mastered from the original tapes.