Ed Motta

At the end of the 80´s Ed Motta burst upon the music scene as a major singer and one of Conexão Japeri´s composers and producers. He was an instant success on the carioca show circuit and his 1988 debut album, "Conexão Japeri" (Warner), confirmed it. Songs like "Manuel", "Vamos dançar", "Baixo Rio" and "Um love" became big hits. The songs were marked by lavish musicality and introduced strong soul and funk components into the pop-rock scene that was the rage in Brazil at the time. It was soon clear that at age 16, Ed Motta had arrived and was making plans to soar much higher.

Two decades later, not even the most optimistic of optimists could have foreseen he would get this far. Today he is a singer and composer, plays several instruments, makes arrangements and produces music in many different countries. In his own style, while remaining loyal to funk-soul, he mixes influences that vary from jazz to popular Brazilian music, from Hollywood film soundtracks to rock, from classical music to American standards, from bossa nova to reggae. The result of this melting pot of references has already been recognized all over the world and acknowledged in recent tours across Europe, Japan, the United States and South America. Inside studios or on stage, Ed has also played with names such as Roy Ayers, Chucho Valdés, Jean-Paul "Bluey" Maunick (leader of Incógnito), Ryuichi Sakamoto, Paul Griffin, Bernard Purdie, Bo Diddley, Ed Lincoln, Miltinho, Mondo Grosso, Marcos Valle, João Donato, Dom Salvador, among many others.

Besides music and the stage, Ed has always kept up an online column in "Veja" magazine and presents the weekly radio show "Empoeirado" (on Monday nights, at 8 PM), when he plays rarities from his vast collection of rare vinyl records on São Paulo´s Rádio Eldorado FM (that can also be heard on his site).

Ed's newest album AOR has been one of the most intricate records he's ever made. In his own words:

"The mixing rate, for instance, was of one week per song. On most records, especially in Brazil, one day is set aside for each song. I used to work with 2, 3 days. One of the greatest talents that I’ve ever encountered in sound engineering, MarioLeo, was the technician in charge. A shining sound is what you want in AOR culture, just like an extremely low bass is in a reggae recording. In the world of pop music, politeness is wrongly taken for coldness, mannerism. In AOR, technical perfection is a virtue, as in jazz and classical music. I am very lucky to have had great musicians by my side, each one’s signature and accent is indispensable so that my arrangements can take on the life and shape I imagine for them. All of them are outstanding musicians, with personality and their own sound and style. And I got lucky: Chico Pinheiro, the bluesy leader of Incognito took part, as well as legendary guitarist David T.Walker, who has recorded just about everything and a little more of North-American music from the 70’s to the present day. The lyrics of my songs were written by artists who I greatly respect: Chico Amaral (who also plays sax on the record), Adriana Calcanhotto, the Brazilian AOR diva, Rita Lee, comics artist, Edna Lopes and the great Argentine artist Dante Spinetta, who takes part in the song Latido, also using spoken word.

Before listening to this record, the modus vivendi and the AOR imaginary would put on a Hawaiian shirt à la Magnum PI, slip on a pair of loafers with no socks like in Miami Vice, get inside a convertible car and drive by coconut trees at sunset. Drive through Rio de Janeiro, Los Angeles, Miami, Hawaii. Aloha! "