Singer Claudia Telles was the daughter of bossa nova legend Sylvia Telles (and the niece of Sylvia's less well-known brother, Mario Telles). Claudia followed her music into a music career: initially cast as a teen pop singer in the '70s, she matured into an accomplished bossa nova and MPB specialist. Here's a quick look at her work...
Claudia Telles "Claudia Telles" (CBS, 1976)
(Arrangements by Lincoln Olivetti)
Yikes. While Claudia would later embrace her mother's penchant for classy bossa material, this teenage effort is pure, tacky '70s AOR, through a Brazilian "brega" filter. (There is some bossa nova on here, for example, a version on "Dindi" done up in tinkly, Carpenters-style arrangements -- utterly horrible!) It's all kind of Osmond-y, with disco-ish, keyboard-filled arrangements framing Telles' thin, teenage vocals (she must have been about eighteen years old when this was recorded, but sounds younger -- a bit like pre-teen Michael Jackson, actually.) It's a pity the session was so cheesy -- it would be cool to have a record of what her voice sounded like back then, but singing slightly earthier material. (I have to confess there are a lot of near-guilty pleasures on here, though: I actually kind of like "Aprenda A Amar" and "Caminhos Iguais." Oh, no! I am doomed, aren't I? Doomed to brega purgatory...)
Claudia Telles "Miragem" (CBS, 1978)
Claudia Telles "Eu Quero Ser Igual A Todo Mundo" (CBS, 1979)
Claudia Telles "Solidao Pra Que?" (RGE, 1988)
Claudia Telles "Por Causa De Voce: Dedicado A Sylvinha Telles" (DiscMedi, 1997)
A fairly swanky jazz-pop tribute to her mother, Sylvia Telles, one of the earliest and most important interpreters of the bossa nova compositions of Antonio Carlos Jobim. Claudia was the daughter of the glamorous Sylvinha, who was the queen of Brazilian pop in the pre-bossa 1950s. The two vocalists once performed together as a mother-daughter act, ala Miucha and Bebel Gilberto. Claudia eventually went solo in the mid-'70s, but here she gives a nod to her roots. This is a little slick for my tastes, but folks whose taste runs to the more lavish-sounding and modern end of Brazilian pop will probably love this album. Sylvinha herself "duets" on the album's opening number; her voice sounds remarkably pure and mellow, probably because the younger Ms. Telles is singing along to old recordings made back in the '50s... Hmmmmm....
Claudia Telles "Chega De Saudade - Tributo A Vinicius De Moraes" (CID, 1999)
Claudia Telles "Interpreta Nelson Cavaquinho E Cartola" (CID, 1999)
Claudia Telles "Sambas & Bossas" (CID, 2002)
Elegant, understated ballads drawing on material from several decades of Brazilian pop... Drummer Wilson Das Neves anchors the five-piece band, while heavyweight guest performers abound, including singers Johnny Alf, Tito Madi and old-school sambista Nelson Sargento. It's a sleek, swank affair, and fans of traditional jazz-flavored modern MPB will probably enjoy it quite a bit... (Although I have to confess there's something about Telles' vocal tone, her voice itself, that rubs me the wrong way... I recognize that this is a perfectly fine album, but it still grates on me a little...)
Claudia Telles "Tributo A Tom Jobim" (CID, 2005)
