DONA ONETE Feitiço Caboclo CD

One of the best releases of 2014" Cerys Matthews, BBC Radio 6 Music

“I have the impression that everything happens at the right time. I’m not really one to rush. My life is like a river, and the current takes me. If it comes to a port, I stay for a bit, and then I just carry on my way.” Dona Onete.

A vibrant blend of Paraense folklore, carimbo, boi bumba, Caribbean salsa, brega and samba, all rooted in the cultures of the Brazilian interior, 'Feitico Cabloco' is the phenomenal debut album from Amazonian septuagenarian songstress Dona Onete that, over 60 years in the making, almost never happened...

Sat on the banks of the Amazonian river in the small town of Igarape Miri as an 11 year old, singing sambas, quadrilhas and boi bumbas to the river dolphins, Dona Onete could have scarcely imagined she’d be seeing the worldwide release of her debut album so many years later.

Whilst not pursuing music as a career when growing up, Onete’s heart remained invested in it. Becoming an expert in the rhythms, dances and traditions of the Amazon through her university studies, she’d go on to become Municipal Secretary of Culture of her hometown Igapare- Miri. Completely enveloped by Amazonian culture and with her latent talents as a singer, Onete began to compose music for herself. Amassing a collection of over 300 original songs throughout her years, it wasn’t until she retired that her musical career took off.

Moving to the quiet area of Pedreira in Belem to while away the rest of her days with her husband, Dona inadvertently moved onto a street where popular Brazilian band Coletivo Radio Cipo lived. The band, hearing Onete perform at a local carimbo party, initially thought they were listening to a much younger singer, due to Onete’s vivacious and flirtatious flair, along with her penchant for a cheeky lyric or two. But when they caught sight of her, they were astounded. Knowing they’d stumbled upon someone truly special, the band instantly invited her to sing on their forthcoming album.

Onete took some convincing but eventually relented, a decision that would lead to her recording as an artist in her own right and see her audience of river dolphins on the banks of the Amazon transform into the people of the cities of Brazil, and now the world.

 

1. Feitiço caboclo 03:55
2. Carimbó chamegado 04:09
3. Homenagem aos orixás 03:10
4. Jamburana 04:27
5. Moreno morenado 03:53
6. Balanço crioulo 03:59
7. Poder da sedução 03:32
8. Boi guitarreiro 04:59
9. Rio de lágrimas 03:39
10. Lua namoradeira 04:04
11. Meu louco desejo 03:39