Gilberto Gil
Paramount
Theater
Oakland, CA
October 25, 2012
Gilberto
Gil: Brazilian Music Ambassador
Contributing Senior Correspondent: Jana L.
Contributing Senior Correspondent: Jana L.
There
is little doubt that we will all be hearing a lot about Brazilian music in the
coming years. The next World Cup and
summer Olympics will be held in Brazil in 2014 and 2016, respectively. And there is little doubt that Gilberto Gil
will be at the forefront of musical ambassadors playing and explaining popular
Brazilian music to the world. Few
Brazilian musicians have had a longer, more distinguished career than Gilberto
Gil and few are as beloved. In fact if
there was any lull during his performance at the Paramount on October 25, it was when
he was too intent to explain the origins of different types of Brazilian
music. As soon as the audience was
dancing in the aisles, he felt compelled to stop the show for several minutes
to explain ‘forro’ music. However, Gil is an effective ambassador for the musical roots of
the country he loves deeply.
Thursday night
was the year anniversary of the Occupy Oakland movement and a small march of
several hundred people was proceeding down Telegraph Ave in Oakland a block
from the Paramount. There were dozens of
police in riot gear staging nearby which is an unsettling sight while on our
way to a Tropicalia party. But, it was
all forgotten soon enough once inside the majestic Art Deco triumph that is the
Paramount Theater. I could do an entire
blog entry on the stunning design of the Paramount Theater and all the naked
art deco.
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| The Lobby of the Paramount Theater |
Gilberto Gil’s
performance was open, sincere and joyful and not just limited to his funky-cool street dancing. His energy and joy
for performing was clear, he didn’t seem satisfied unless everyone was
dancing. His younger bandmates seemed
unable to keep up with GG’s bubbling energy.
He frequently reached out to the audience from the edge of the stage
inviting his fans to join in the party.
At times, it seemed like he was trying to embrace the audience in a big
hug. There was also many
expat Brazilians in the audience that became part of the show. They danced in their seats and in the aisles
and sang along with sometimes too much enthusiasm.
His setlist was a blend
of old and new but it was difficult to tell if he was singing a popular song
from the 1960's or one he recorded a few days ago. Some of the rhythms
were frenetic and the songs blended together when performed back to back. Although
the emphasis was on his party tunes, his heartfelt voice sounded best during
ballads. One of the most popular songs was
"Esperando Na Janela." Another crowd favorite was "Ultimo Pau de Arara." One of the highlights of
the nights had to be GG’s excellent Bob Marley covers. He played great reggae/samba blends of “Three
Little Birds” and “No Woman No Cry.” GG is
an old-school performer that believes in giving his all in every performance
and that’s what he did at the Paramount. 