Singer Renata Lu is a bit of a mystery figure... She only made a few albums in the 1970s and sang backup on many more, but for whatever reasons never seemed to make it into the MPB upper echelons. Here's a (very!) quick look at her work... (PS - anyone with more info, please feel free to contact me and let me know... thanks!)
Renata Lu "Renata Lu" (Continental, 1971)
Renata Lu "Sandalia Da Prata" (Continental, 1971)
Nonato Buzar "Nonato Buzar E O Pais Tropical Via Paris" (EMI, 1975)
(Produced by Talmo Scaranari & Oseas Lopes)
An interesting mix of cheerful, disco-y pop, summery samba-rock and plain old brega MPB... Although songwriter Nonato Buzar arranged the music, and sings at the start of the album alongside a loose, flowery female chorus, on the second side of the disc he more or less gives the record over to Renata Lu, who emerges from the chorus and takes on the lead vocals. This disc was a little too glitzy for my tastes... I imagine, though, that folks in the acid jazz scene might do flip-flops of joy over it... It's a good, strong example of the genre, and very much of its time, and one of the few chances to hear Ms. Lu really cut loose as a solo artist.
Renata Lu "To Voltando" (America, 1979) (LP)
