Caju & Castanha Discography -- Slipcue.Com Brazilian Music Guide

The Pernambucan duo of Caju & Castanha ("Cashew" and "Nut") were great champions of the Northeastern regional style known as coco de embolada, in which vocal pairs improvise call-and-response lyrics at a fast clip, not unlike the rap battles of years to come. The group was first formed by brothers Jose Albertino da Silva and Jose Roberto da Silva, who hailed from the coastal city of Jaboatao Dos Guararapes, Pernambuco. They made their media debut in 1975 as young boys when they appeared in a documentary film called Nordeste: Cordel, Repente, Cançao, and had one of their songs appear on the soundtrack. A few years later they moved to Sao Paulo to pursue their musical career, and began to record their first albums. Jose Albertino (Caju) passed away in 2001, later replaced by his nephew, Ricardo Alves da Silva, who became known as Cajuzinho, or "little cashew." The group continued to gain in popularity, and has earned for multiple Latin Grammy nominations, along with other industry awards. Here's a quick look at their career...

Discography

Caju & Castanha "As Melhores De Caju & Castanha" (EMI/Copacabana, 2005)
An groovy set from this long-lived duo hailing from Pernambuco, in the Northeast... The sound is quite stripped down, just plain vocals and percussion on most tracks, with a simplicity and pureness that makes it quite striking. At first I thought it sounded like Bahian samba de roda, but then I realized the vocals were quite different -- whereas the samba de roda singers tend to chant rhythmically and repetitively, the cajueiros seem to be constantly improvising and dance around the rhythm, building little micro-melodies. A few tracks include a forro-style accordion. Anyway, this is kinda different-sounding, and kind of addictive. The liner notes on this particular collection are a bit vague, but I think this disc includes recordings with Ricardo Alves da Silva, who was the original "Caju," later to be replaced by another, younger singer.