Search - Joyce, Banda Maluca :: Just a Little Bit Crazy

JUST HITTING HER STRIDE...?

Larry L. Looney | Austin, Texas USA | 11/04/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Joyce's albums just keep getting better and better - most performers, after 30 years or more in the business, begin to show some signs (quite naturally) of fading a bit in their energy level or creativity. Joyce appears to just continue to get stronger - and her penchant for innovation shows no signs of letting up. This is quite simply one of her best efforts yet.Joined on this recording by Norwegian keyboard great Bugge Wesseltoft, Joyce is also accompanied by some of the fine musicians her fans have come to know and love: the ever-present, incredibly talented and tasteful Tutty Moreno on drums; Teco Cardoso on flutes and saxes; Nailor Proveta on alto clarinet and sax; and a welcome return by Rodolfo Stroetter on acoustic and electric bass. Robertinho Silva completes the ensemble with deft touches on various percussives. Their playing fits together like the pieces of a puzzle - like elements of a painting that cry out to be together, making a whole that is truly `greater than the sum of the parts'.All of the tunes here were written or co-written by Joyce, with three notable exceptions: Stroetter's `Galope' (which he dedicates to Tutty Moreno), Paul Mirsaki's `L'etang' - and a version of Lennon & McCartney's `A hard day's night' that will absolutely take your breath away. Joyce's compositional abilities continue to mature and grow - and that's a wonderful thing. It shows that she still loves her work with all of her heart and soul, and she pours every bit of herself into doing it. Her phrasing is perfect and completely natural - nothing comes across as forced or cloying. That aspect alone makes her music a joy to experience - and coupled with her sense of melody, rhythm, and an innate ability and need to `push the envelope', she keeps her listeners both entertained and delighted with the roads down which she leads them.There are slow tunes here as well as upbeat ones - the mix of rhythms, tempos and moods is perfectly arranged. The band performs with feeling and precision - but never so much precision that makes them sound like a machine. This is music of humanity. There are two instrumentals included - both composed by Joyce - and they are incredible. `For Hall' is her tribute to guitar legend Jim Hall, of whom she says `...one of my greatest guitar inspirations'; `Pause, bitte' is dedicated to the WDR Big Band, from Köln. Her wordless vocals on this tune are simply amazing - what an arrangement!This is a perfect album for aficionados of Brazilian music - or for newcomers. It's a recording not to be without - HIGHLY recommended."

Remarkable Brazilian Music

Hamilton W. Dos Santos | São Paulo, SP Brasil | 07/17/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"'Joyce & Just a Little Crazy Band' is a truly remarkable CD, full of highly sensitive lyrics and songs expressing all the divertity of Brazil as well as the Brazilian music.

All those who like samba, bossa nova, instrumental music, Brazilian regional music an culture will be amazed by this album, even though it is not limited to the Brazilian music and culture (There is McCartney as well).

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