All The Colors In Gilberto Gil's Black Music

He never denied his blackness, on the contrary, he always sang his African, Bahian, and Afro-Brazilian roots. Candomblé, curly hair, food, religions, and customs that give identity to the black people in Brazil are and have always been part of his musical repertoire.

According to Carlos Rennó, editor of the recently released book "Todas As Letras", in a new expanded edition, Gil's oeuvre has about 30 songs that deal with the theme.
Discover some of them throughout this exhibition.

Since his first compositions it is possible to recognize these references, with several citations to religions of African matrix, such as Emoriô, Babá Alapalá and one of the most famous of that period, Filhos de Gandhy, a tribute that became an anthem for the afoxé bloco of the same name.

In the song " Tradição", recorded on the album Realce, but composed in 1973, Gil already seeks to give, in his own words, "an aristocratizing sense to a time and space (Bahia, 1950s) of my social history."

But it is Refavela, his 1977 album, that is Gil's most African work. Inspired by his trip to Nigeria to participate in the 2nd Festac - World Festival of Black Art and Culture, in 1977

Another very explicit one is Sarará Miolo, composed in 1976, but recorded in Nightingale (1978) and in Realce (1979). In this song, the idea that "being black is cool" is stronger and wins the sympathy of the public - of all colors - that always sings along proudly in the concerts: 

Others that keep bringing the subject of negritude and ancestry are: "Balafon" (the name of a type of instrument, an African marimba); Logunedé (a tribute to Gil's orixá); Axé, Babá (an afoxé to Oxalá) and "Saci-pererê" (recorded by Banda Black Rio).

Banda Um, from the album Um Banda Um, Serafim , from the album Parabolicamará, and Bahia de todas as Contas are also from this ancestral-religious repertoire.

In 1984 we have Quilombo, o Eldorado Negro, composed for the soundtrack of the film Quilombo, by director Cacá Diegues, with totally clear lyrics. The whole soundtrack, in fact, is an ode to Africanity, to candomblé, and to the history of the struggle for freedom of the Quilombo dos Palmares.

Among the 17 songs, all done in partnership with Wally Salomão, Quilombo, o Eldorado Negro talks about Zumbi dos Palmares, a symbol of black resistance against slavery, whose death date, November 20, ended up being chosen as Black Consciousness Day.

And the following year another masterpiece: Oração pela libertação da África do Sul, which is on the 1985 album Dia dorim noite neon, made to fulfill a request from physicist Mário Schenberg.

Jubiabá, also a commission, this time for the film of the same name, brings up the issue of the black diaspora, the slavery in all of the Americas, portrayed in Jorge Amado's book, which was made into a film by director Nelson Pereira dos Santos in 1986.

In 1989 two songs address the subject and both are in the repertoire of the LP O Eterno Deus Mu Dança: "De Bob Dylan a Bob Marley, um samba-provocação" and "Réquiem para Mãe Menininha do Gantois".

In the 90's, there are at least five songs in this repertoire: Buda Nagô, from 91, made for Dorival Caymmi, Haiti, made with his partner Caetano Veloso, in 93; Guerra Santa (about religious intolerance to religions of African matrix) from the CD Quanta; the already mentioned Zumbi...

...and La Lune de Gorée (also from Quanta), with lyrics by Capinan, which refers specifically to the anchorage of ships where slaves were shipped to the colonizing countries. Emblematic and beautiful.

Pronto pra preto, from 2009, was also made for a festival, the Back to Black, a welcome song for the meeting.

Among the more recent ones, there is As camélias do quilombo do Leblon, from 2015, lyrics by Caetano Veloso and music by Gil, recorded on the album "Dois amigos, um século de música". Gil says he only collaborated on the lyrics with a few words or so.

Just as he also says that he did not participate as much in the song Afro-futurist (2019), made in partnership with his grandson Francisco Gil. This goes to show that the proud African DNA, of its history and ancestry, is dispersed in the family and can bring many new songs.