GLOBAL MUSIC PULSE
(1,027 words - Issue Date: October 25 l997)
BY DAVID SINCLAIR
JAPAN/BRAZIL: "Multicultural pop fusion" is not a phrase that
exactly trips off the tongue but
it's a convenient tag for an almost unclassifiable album
featuring leading musical talents from
Brazil, the U.S., and Japan. Titled 'The Bridge', the
genre-busting set features players like Daniel
Jobim (grandson of bossa nova pioneer Antonio Carlos Jobim)
Michael Sembello best known for
his song "Maniac" from the movie "Flashdance", and Toshi Kubota, a singer/songwriter
who is one of the biggest stars in Japanese pop. The album
which was recently released in Japan
by indie label iNOKS Records and in the U.S. by the
Unencumbered label (with distribution by
Alliance Entertainment), has so far shipped 60,000 copies in
Japan and 10.000 in the U.S. Jobim
is now working on getting the album released in Brazil, and a
European release is also planned.
Other members of the band that came together for "The Bridge"
were Brazilian
songwriter/producer Edu Falco and songwriter/drummer Vinnie
Colaiuta. Sembello says the
project has been a unique experience. "I'm actually working
myself into these other cultures.' he
says. "Toshi Kubota is sitting down and teaching me to sing
in Japanese. and l'm teaching
him how to sing in English. I learned to sing in Portuguese
through Daniel and Edu. It really is an
interaction." STEVE McCLURE