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Connectbrazil:
Several years have passed since the recording of 'A Love Affair:
The Music of Ivan Lins', but one Grammy reporter recently observed
that this was the recording which really brought your music to
the attention of the American public. Can you explain how you
got involved with the album?
Ivan
Lins: I wasn't directly involved. That was Jason Miles'
project and he was expecting an opportunity to do this project,
especially after Miles Davis' death. Jason is a great fan of my
music and he decided that if Miles couldn't do it, I would like
to do something with the music under his own name. Finally he
got my number. We met three or four different times. He went to
my show in Los Angeles, and we met in New York at the Blue Note.
He
told me about then that he was planning on doing something with
my music. Finally, I think, about two years ago, he started the
project when he found a record company that made it possible.
He got a deal and a budget to do it.
So
he called me up just to tell me that he had chosen some titles
and to ask if it was good for me. I said, 'it's okay Jason, you
can do the songs you want.' He said he would use the songs he
prefers, but he asked me to send one brand new song, and I sent
the song that Sting recorded, 'She Walks This Earth'. He was always
telling me who was going to sing and keeping me posted occasionally,
and when he was finishing the whole project, he asked me 'Ivan,
could you come to New York and sing one of the songs,' and I did,
on 'Somos Todo Iquais Nesta Notite'.
And
he asked me to put some keyboards on three tracks. Just to have
my touch. And I agreed and it's nice. It's really nice. But the
project is totally Jason Miles and what he was thinking about
my music. And I like it very much because it has some performances
that were unexpected for me, more pop oriented. Usually, my music
is recorded by jazz musicians and is very jazz oriented, not so
pop.
But,
it surprised me. Sting and Vanessa Williams were huge surprises
for me. And I love it, because it's a chance to have more pop
people hear my music.
Connectbrazil:
What does Miles Davis have to do with all of this?
Ivan
Lins: It was (then Warner Brothers president) Tommy
LiPuma.. Tommy sent to Miles all my stuff, because Miles was looking
for different music and he sent my music. Tommy is a great fan
of my music too. I met Tommy a long time ago through Quincy Jones
when we were working at Warner Brothers. Tommy sent my stuff to
Miles and two days after, Miles called Tommy and said 'I need
to talk to this man. You sent me incredible music. I want to talk
to this Ivan Lins. How can I talk to him?' Tommy contacted Stewart
Levine, who was my producer, and he contacted me and said 'Ivan,
Miles wants to talk to you. He's in love with your music, but
he wants to talk personally.' I got scared. (laughs) The funny
story is I asked a friend to listen to me talking, because I don't
speak good English and I was afraid of the slang. The Miles Davis
slang. I was afraid I wasn't going to understand what he was saying,
so maybe I was going to need translation.
So
I asked a friend to listen to the conversation. And it was really
funny, because it was really fast and he went directly to the
point. He said, (in a Miles Davis gravelly voice) 'oh man, your
music is excellent. I love your music, man. I listening to your
cd's and the songs are really great, but too many notes man, too
many notes in the arrangements.' He told me (in MD's voice again)
'I'm going to record 28 songs.' (laughs) I'm thinking 'wow, 28
songs.' One month later, Jason Miles, who was Miles' programmer,
one month later, he confirmed. He called me and said, 'oh, Ivan,
I'm Jason Miles. I met you in Los Angeles in Larry Williams' house.
I don't know if you remember me, but I'm working with Miles and
he wants to record 28 songs and I want to just say I'm a fan of
your music. ' Three months later, Miles died.
Connectbrazil:
Congratulation your Grammy nomination for the song 'Chameleon'.
Ivan
Lins: Thank you. I think that was Grover Washington
Jr.'s last recording before he died unexpectedly.
Connectbrazil:
Did you know Grover?
Ivan
Lins: I used t open shows for him at concerts. I opened
shows for him in San Diego and Denver. We met after I did my show.
Before he went on, he came to my dressing room and we talked a
little. He said 'oh man, I'm a big fan of your music.' He was
a nice man. Very nice and very kind and very sweet and an amazing
show. His show was like wow, with nice musicians.
Connectbrazil:
You know I love that song. I love Batacoto's version.
Ivan
Lins: Yeah. That was the first recording of it.
Connectbrazil:
Then there's that nice version by Dionne Warwick, on her 'Aquarela
do Brasil' CD.
Ivan
Lins: Dionne Warwick? No, I don't know that version.
Connectbrazil:
Are there other Ivan Lins tribute albums in the United States
that you like?
Ivan
Lins: I think it's happened twice, no three times.
The first one was Mark Murphy, and it's an amazing album (laughs.)
Oh man, he's a really wonderful singer. And that album is really
amazing. I was really honored when I heard it, I was like 'wow.'
The second one was Kenia. It was produced by, at that time, her
husband Jay Ashby, the trombone player. Now he's working with
Paul Simon. That's a nice album too, really nice. It's not very
well known, because it was on a small label. Almost at the same
time, Terrence Blanchard. He invited me to sing and play some
songs.
Connectbrazil:
That was a great album, "The Heart Speaks."
Ivan
Lins: Yes. It was also nominated for a Grammy. That's
my favorite.
Connectbrazil:
Ivan, when did you live in the United States?
Ivan Lins: I lived in Los Angeles, in the Valley, in Woodland
Hills, in 1992, just for one year. I was supposed to stay longer
but I was missing my hometown, my family and everybody. I went
back, because, I don't know.
Connectbrazil:
Because you missed Brazil?
Ivan
Lins: Yes.
Connectbrazil:
What is your hometown?
Ivan
Lins: My hometown is Rio.
Connectbrazil:
When you were in the United States, did you try to get into the
pop music scene at all?
Ivan
Lins: No, I was into more jazz, orchestral and film
music. Sometimes I listened to some of the pop music, but I'm
not aware of the new people doing pop music in the United States,
I really don't know. Even in Brazil. I concentrate more of Brazilian
music and jazz and orchestral music.
Connectbrazil:
But aren't you considered a hero in Brazilian popular music?
Ivan
Lins: Uh, not really. I have a really huge audience.
I've put in more than 30 years of a career here and I'm doing
very well here, but I'm not a huge seller. I'm not a great seller.
I usually sell around 80,000, sometimes I might reach 100,000,
but it's not very common. And that's okay for me. At the beginning
of my career, for the first ten years, I was very strong here.
But now, you know, music changes. Pop music now is more simple
music. Musically, it's not as good as it was. But, for me, it's
okay. Every year I have a tour and I can survive. I can't complain.
Connectbrazil:
One of our favortive 'live' albums is with you, Chucho
Valdes and Irakere.
Ivan
Lins: Oh boy, that was something really wonderful.
That was an experience. It was my first time in Cuba. In Cuba,
they are very musical people. It's very impressive. Everybody
in the country can play percussion. It's amazing. And to play
with them and for that audience was really an experience. Very
musical. They understood everything. And the funniest thing, because
at that concert, we recorded live, and after that concert, I went
to a island to rest a little bit for three or four days. And I
received a call from a promoter in Havana, asking me to cancel
my last day of resting, to go to Havana, to play for free in the
National Theatre, because the students and common people couldn't
go to the concert that I recorded live.
It
was very expensive or something, I don't know, and they couldn't
see me. So I went back to Havana and I did a concert for 3500
people, totally sold out. Just me and the piano, because Chucho,
with the band, was in Europe at that time. He finished my recording
and they flew up to Europe for a jazz festival. And I played by
myself, with a piano and a cello, played by my guitar and cello
player. It was the most beautiful experience of my life. And they
recorded it live, but I don't know what happened with the tape.
And the theatre, the National Theatre of Havana, is amazing.
Connectbrazil:
It's a beautiful album. It sounds like it's a touring band and
that you'd been rehearsing for eons. Was there much rehearsal
involved?
Ivan
Lins: (laughs) We had just one rehearsal. We just rehearsed
once. And the funny thing is they don't have too many places to
rehearse, so we rehearsed on the top of a football stadium. It
was an athletic stadium where people were doing exercises and
training, and we were on the top, and it was covered, because
the sun was really hot at that time, and we rehearsed, and it
was weird, and so we improvised.
Havana
is crazy. They don't have too much equipment, so they improvise
everything. We had just one rehearsal. I brought some lead sheets
for the musicians and for the horns and I was like 'okay, let's
try one,' and they just played, and they read, and they understand
music so well by ear. The second time we played any song, they
were playing spectacularly. Oh boy, it was so wonderful. We could've
recorded the rehearsals, it was that spectacular. (laughs.) They
are great musicians. They are amazing. Chucho is an expert at
playing that piano. It's unbelievable.
Connectbrazil:
My last round of questioning involves Velas, the record
company. Are you still involved?
Ivan
Lins: No, no, I'm not. I was having problems, uh, a
conflict with being an artist and being the owner of a record
company. I was having a conflict, because in certain ways, some
artists were complaining, you know, 'we want that, we want this.'
As an artist, I used to have the same problems with the record
company (laughs.) So, what could I tell them?
We're
a small company, or you know the economic problems in Brazil and
a company directed towards good music is not a huge market, so
we have to control every cent and invest money and all that. So
I decided I just wanted to do music and I can be more useful out
of Velas rather than inside of it. And I left it with my partner,
Vitor (Martins.) We're still writing music, but he's taking care
of the company, and I'm no longer a collaborator.
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