Dori Caymmi’s “Poesia Musicada” CD Review

I listened to the Dori Caymmi album “Poesia Musicada” for the 1st time after a long and stressed day at the office.

On the way home, I was thinking of having a nice glass of red wine when I get home and take off my shoes. I remembered I had “Poesia Musicada” pending to listen for a review, and it was the best thing I did that evening.

“Poesia Musicada” is exactly that; a collection of poems written by Paulo Cesar Pinheiro, and converted into music by his friend Dori Caymmi, a 2-time Grammy Award winner (Best Lain Song and Best Latin Samba Recording). The Brazilians had teamed up before, but this time Dori used Paulo’s poems instead of his song lyrics.

For the 69 year old Brazilian singer, guitarist, songwriter, and arranger, “Poesia Musicada” represents his 15th recording, not counting the many other recordings in which he has collaborated. However, I must confess this is the 1st time I listened to a Dori Caymmi album. The album was release in November 2012 and was produced and arranged by Dori Caymmi.

What I Liked About “Poesia Musicada”

• Relaxing Brazilian music: this is a relaxing Brazilian music album, featuring Dori’s guitar and smooth arrangements. It almost seem like a collection of love short stories, as only 3 of the album’s 13 songs are over 4 minutes long.

• Nice love songs: the main theme of “Poesia Musicada” is love, based on Paulo Cesar Pinheiro’s poems. As Helena Campiolini Leal writes in the album liner notes, “(the songs) describe stories of many different kinds of love, but nevertheless, love.” There are songs for passionate love, for the love of a man’s art, love for those who are gone, and even the love for creating an ideal way of life.

• Kept it simple: the stories are beautiful, and although I can’t make all of the lyrics, I do get the essence of the story being told. But you don’t have to understand the lyrics to enjoy the music. Dori sings with so much feeling, that his voice blends with the music to create a relaxing ambiance. The music is not complicated, anchored mostly on Dori’s guitar, with the support of a bass in almost all songs, and the occasional addition of a flute, accordion, cellos, percussion, or a 2nd guitar as necessary for the song at hand.

Here’s a video of Dori Caymmi with Paulo Cesar Pinheiro in “Saudade de Amor”

Suggestions to Dori Caymmi on “Poesia Musicada”

• As you know, I normally try to find something that I either didn’t like or thought could have been done differently. I do this to try to keep the review as objective as possible. I can’t find anything of that kind with this album. The only thing that I’ll point out is that some songs tend to be a bit melancholic, and that is because they were meant to be (example, “Velho do Mar” which is about the love felt for those who are gone).

My Recommendation for “Poesia Musicada”

I enjoyed “Poesia Musicada” very much, perhaps because the 1st time I listened to it I was looking for exactly that kind of easy listening Brazilian music. Dori’s thick voice relays the emotions in the poems wonderfully, and music is very well done with only a few instruments, always led by Dori Caymmi’s acoustic guitar. This is beautiful music to listen and relax to. This is a fantastic CD to listen after a hard day of work, or after completing to file your taxes!

You can find “Poesia Musicada” at CD Baby, iTunes, or other music stores. You can go to Dori Caymmi’s website HERE.