Gilberto Gil

Early life (1942–1963)

Gil was born in Salvador and spent much of his childhood in Ituaçu. Ituaçu was a small town of fewer than a thousand people, located in the sertão, or countryside, of Bahia. His father, José Gil Moreira, was a doctor; his mother, Claudina Passos Gil Moreira, an elementary school teacher. As a young boy, he attended a Marist Brothers school. Gil remained in Ituaçu until he was nine years old, returning to Salvador for secondary school.

Gil's interest in music was precocious: "When I was only two or two and a half", he recalled, "I told my mother I was going to become a musician or president of my country". He grew up listening to the forró music of his native northeast, Early on, he began to play the drums and the trumpet, through listening to Bob Nelson on the radio. Gil's mother was the "chief supporter" in his musical ambitions; she bought him an accordion and, when he was ten years old, sent him to music school in Salvador which he attended for four years.

During his years in Salvador, Gil encountered the music of songwriter Dorival Caymmi, who he says represented to him the "beach-oriented" samba music of Salvador. Gonzaga and Caymmi were Gil's formative influences. While in Salvador, Gil was introduced to many other styles of music, including American big band jazz and tango. In 1950 Gil moved back to Salvador with his family. It was there, while in high school, that he joined his first band, Os Desafinados ("The Out of Tunes"), in which he played accordion and vibraphone and sang. Os Desafinados was influenced by American rock and roll musicians like Elvis Presley, as well as singing groups from Rio de Janeiro. The band was active for two to three years. Soon afterwards, inspired by Brazilian musician João Gilberto, he settled on the guitar as his primary instrument and began to play bossa nova.

Musical career (1963–present)

Gil met guitarist and singer Caetano Veloso at the Universidade Federal da Bahia (Federal University of Bahia) in 1963. The two began collaborating and performing together, releasing a single and EP. Gil describes Tropicália: ou Panis et Circenses as the birth of the tropicália movement.

Early on in the 1960s, Gil earned income primarily from selling bananas in a shopping mall and composing jingles for television advertisements; he was also briefly employed by the Brazilian division of Unilever, Gessy-Lever. He moved to São Paulo in 1965 and had a hit single when his song "Louvação" (which later appeared on the album of the same name) was released by Elis Regina. His first hit as a solo artist was the 1969 song "Aquele Abraço". Gil also performed on several television programs throughout the 1960s, which often included other "tropicalistas", members of the Tropicalismo movement.

Imprisonment and exile

In October 1968, Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso performed at Sucata club in Rio de Janeiro, with Hélio Oiticica's poem-flag Seja marginal, seja herói displayed on stage. The journalist of RecordTV propagated a story that Caetano and Gil had sung the Brazilian National Anthem in subversive parody. The two musicians were arrested without trial 27 December 1968—shortly after the military state had passed on 13 December Institutional Act Number Five, which suspended habeas corpus.

In February 1969 Gil and Veloso were arrested by the Brazilian military government, brought from São Paulo to Rio de Janeiro, and spent three months in prison and another four under house arrest, During his prison sentence, Gil began to meditate, follow a macrobiotic diet, and read about Eastern philosophy. Thereafter, Gil and Veloso were exiled to London, England after being offered to leave Brazil. The two played a last Brazilian concert together in Salvador in July 1969, and travelled to Portugal, Paris, and London. Gil was involved in the organisation of the 1971 Glastonbury Free Festival and was exposed to reggae while living in London; he recalls listening to Bob Marley (whose songs he later covered), Jimmy Cliff, and Burning Spear. He was heavily influenced by and involved with the city's rock scene as well, performing with Yes, Pink Floyd, and the Incredible String Band. However, he also performed solo, recording Gilberto Gil (Nêga) while in London. In addition to involvement in the reggae and rock scenes, Gil attended performances by jazz artists, including Miles Davis and Sun Ra.

When he went back to Bahia in 1972, Gil focused on his musical career and environmental advocacy work. He released Expresso 2222 the same year, from which two popular singles were released. Gil toured the United States and recorded an English-language album as well, continuing to release a steady stream of albums throughout the 1970s, including Realce and Refazenda. In the early 1970s Gil participated in a resurgence of the Afro-Brazilian afoxé tradition in Carnaval, joining the Filhos de Gandhi ("Sons of Gandhi") performance group, which only allowed black Brazilians to join. Gil also recorded a song titled "Patuscada de Gandhi" written about the Filhos de Gandhi that appeared on his 1977 album Refavela. Greater attention was paid to afoxé groups in Carnaval because of the publicity that Gil had provided to them through his involvement; the groups increased in size as well. In the late 1970s he left Brazil for Africa and visited Senegal, Ivory Coast, and Nigeria. He also worked with Jimmy Cliff and released a cover of "No Woman, No Cry" with him in 1980, a number one hit that introduced reggae to Brazil.

In 1996, Gil contributed "Refazenda" to the AIDS-Benefit Album Red Hot + Rio produced by the Red Hot Organization.

In 1998 the live version of his album Quanta won Gil the Grammy Award for Best World Music Album. In 2005 he won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary World Music Album for Eletracústico. In May 2005 he was awarded the Polar Music Prize by Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden in Stockholm, the prize's first Latin American recipient. On 16 October of the same year he received the Légion d'honneur from the government of France, coinciding with the Année du Brésil en France ("Brazil's Year in France").

In 2010 he released the album Fé Na Festa, a record devoted to forró, a style of music from Brazil's northeast. His tour to promote this album received some negative feedback from fans who were expecting to hear a set featuring his hits. In 2013, Gilberto Gil plays his own role as a singer and promoter of cultural diversity in a long feature documentary shot around the southern hemisphere by Swiss filmmaker Pierre-Yves Borgeaud, Viramundo: a musical journey with Gilberto Gil, distributed worldwide. The film also inaugurates the T.I.D.E. experiment for pan-European and multi-support releases.

His album OK OK OK was ranked as the 4th best Brazilian album of 2018 by the Brazilian edition of Rolling Stone magazine and among the 25 best Brazilian albums of the second half of 2018 by the São Paulo Association of Art Critics.

Political career (1987–present)

Gil describes his attitude towards politics thus: "I'd rather see my position in the government as that of an administrator or manager. But politics is a necessary ingredient." His political career began in 1987, when he was elected to a local post in Bahia and became the Salvador secretary of culture. In 1988, he was elected to the city council and subsequently became city commissioner for environmental protection. However, he left the office after one term and declined to run for the National Congress of Brazil. During this period, Gil founded the environmental protection organization Onda Azul ("Blue Wave"), which worked to protect Brazilian waters.

When President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva took office in January 2003, he chose Gil as Brazil's new Minister of Culture, the second black person to serve in the country's cabinet. The appointment was controversial among political and artistic figures and the Brazilian press; a remark Gil made about difficulties with his salary received particular criticism. Gil had not been a member of Lula's Workers' Party and had not participated in creating its cultural program. In 2003, he gave a concert in the UN General Assembly in honour of the victims of the bombing of the UN headquarters in Baghdad. In that concert, he played together with Secretary General Kofi Annan.

As Minister, he sponsored a program called Culture Points, which gave grants to provide music technology and education to people living in poor areas of the country's cities. Gil asserted that "You've now got young people who are becoming designers, who are making it into media and being used more and more by television and samba schools and revitalizing degraded neighborhoods. It's a different vision of the role of government, a new role." Gil also expressed interest in a program to establish an Internet repository of freely downloadable Brazilian music. In November 2007 Gil announced his intention to resign from his post due to a vocal cord polyp. Lula rejected Gil's first two attempts to resign, but accepted a further request in July 2008. Lula said on this occasion that Gil was "going back to being a great artist, going back to giving priority to what is most important" to him.

Personal life

Gil has been married four times. He had two daughters Nara and Marilia, with first wife Belina Aguiar. He was then married to famous singer Nana Caymmi, they had no children. His third wife was Sandra Gadelha with whom he had three children: Pedro, Preta and Maria. Sandra inspired one of his most beloved songs Drão, she was with him during the very hard times of Brazilian dictatorship and they both were exiled. His fourth wife is Flora Giordano. The couple has three children: Bem, Isabella and Jose. His first son Pedro Gil, Egotrip's drummer – died in a car accident in 1990. Preta Gil, an actress and singer, is his daughter with Sandra Gadelha.

Gil's religious beliefs have changed significantly over his lifetime. Originally, he was a Christian, but was later influenced by Eastern philosophy and religion, and, later, explored African spirituality. He is an agnostic. He practices yoga and is a vegetarian.

Gil has been open about the fact that he has smoked marijuana for much of his life. He has said he believes "that drugs should be treated like pharmaceuticals, legalized, although under the same regulations and monitoring as medicines".

In 2018, a species of caecilian amphibian, Rhinatrema gilbertogili, was named after Gil to honor his musical career and contributions to environmental protection projects. Like Gil, the caecilian is native to Brazil.

In 2023, Gil revealed that he had also been in relationships with men, stating "We are all bisexual".

Musical style and influences

Gil is a tenor, but he sings in the baritone or falsetto register, with lyrics and/or scat syllables. His lyrics are on subjects that range from philosophy to religion, folktales, and word play. Gil's musical style incorporates a broad range of influences. The first music he was exposed to included The Beatles and street performers in various metropolitan areas of Bahia. During his first years as a musician, Gil performed primarily in a blend of traditional Brazilian styles with two-step rhythms, such as baião and samba.

As one of the pioneers of tropicália, influences from genres such as rock and punk have been pervasive in his recordings, as they have been in those of other stars of the period, including Caetano Veloso and Tom Zé. Gil's interest in the blues-based music of rock pioneer Jimi Hendrix, in particular, has been described by Veloso as having "extremely important consequences for Brazilian music". Veloso also noted the influence of Brazilian guitarist and singer Jorge Ben on Gil's musical style, coupled with that of traditional music. After the height of tropicália in the 1960s, Gil became increasingly interested in black culture, particularly in the Jamaican musical genre of reggae. He described the genre as "a form of democratizing, internationalizing, speaking a new language, a Heideggerian form of passing along fundamental messages".

Visiting Lagos, Nigeria, in 1976 for the Festival of African Culture (FESTAC), Gil met fellow musicians Fela Kuti and Stevie Wonder. One of the most famous of these African-influenced records was the 1977 album Refavela, which included "No Norte da Saudade" (To the North of Sadness), a song heavily influenced by reggae. When Gil returned to Brazil after the visit, he focused on Afro-Brazilian culture, becoming a member of the Carnaval afoxé group Filhos de Gandhi.

Conversely, his 1980s musical repertoire presented an increased development of dance trends, such as disco and soul, as well as the previous incorporation of rock and punk. Gil has been criticized for a conflicting involvement in both authentic Brazilian music and the worldwide musical arena. He has had to walk a fine line, simultaneously remaining true to traditional Bahian styles and engaging with commercial markets. Listeners in Bahia have been much more accepting of his blend of music styles, while those in southeast Brazil felt at odds with it.

Discography

• 1967: Louvação
• 1968: Gilberto Gil (with Os Mutantes)
• 1968: Tropicália: ou Panis et Circencis (with Caetano Veloso, Gal Costa, Os Mutantes)
• 1969: Gilberto Gil (Cérebro Eletrônico)
• 1970: "Copacabana Mon Amour"
• 1971: Gilberto Gil (Nêga)
• 1972: Barra 69: Caetano e Gil Ao Vivo na Bahia
• 1972: Expresso 2222
• 1974: Gilberto Gil Ao Vivo
• 1975: "Gil e Jorge: Ogum Xangô" (with Jorge Ben)
• 1975: Refazenda
• 1976: Doces Bárbaros (with Gal Costa, Caetano Veloso and Maria Bethânia)
• 1977: Refavela
• 1978: Gilberto Gil Ao Vivo em Montreux
• 1978: Refestança (with Rita Lee)
• 1979: Nightingale
• 1979: Realce
• 1981: Brasil (João Gilberto album featuring Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil and Maria Bethânia)
• 1981: Luar (A Gente Precisa Ver o Luar)
• 1982: Um Banda Um
• 1983: Extra
• 1984: Quilombo (Trilha Sonora)
• 1984: Raça Humana
• 1985: Dia Dorim Noite Neon
• 1987: Gilberto Gil em Concerto
• 1987: Soy Loco por Ti America
• 1987: Trem Para As Estrelas (Trilha Sonora)
• 1988: Ao Vivo em Tóquio
• 1989: O Eterno Deus Mu Dança
• 1991: Parabolicamará
• 1994: Acoustic
• 1994: Tropicália 2 (with Caetano Veloso)
• 1995: Esoterico: Live in USA 1994
• 1995: Oriente: Live in Tokyo
• 1996: Em Concerto
• 1996: Luar
• 1997: Indigo Blue
• 1997: Quanta
• 1998: Ao Vivo em Tóquio
• 1998: O Sol de Oslo
• 1998: O Viramundo (Ao Vivo)
• 1998: Quanta Live
• 2000: Me, You, Them
• 2001: Gil & Milton (with Milton Nascimento)
• 2001: São João Vivo
• 2002: Kaya N'Gan Daya
• 2002: Z: 300 Anos de Zumbi
• 2004: Eletracústico
• 2005: Ao Vivo
• 2005: As Canções de Eu Tu Eles
• 2005: Soul of Brazil
• 2006: Gil Luminoso
• 2006: Rhythms of Bahia
• 2008: Banda Larga Cordel
• 2009: Bandadois
• 2010: Fé na Festa
• 2010: Fé na Festa ao vivo
• 2011: Gilberto + 10
• 2012: Especial Ivete Caetano Gilberto ao vivo
• 2013: Concerto de Cordas & Maquinas de Ritmo
• 2014: Gilbertos Samba
• 2015: Gilbertos Samba ao vivo
• 2016: Dois Amigos (with Caetano Veloso)
• 2017: Trinca de Ases (with Gal Costa and Nando Reis)
• 2018: OK OK OK
• 2022: Em Casa com os Gils

Awards, nominations, and positions

References

Sources

• Perrone, Charles A. Masters of Contemporary Brazilian Song: MPB 1965–1985. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1989. Chapter 3. Gilberto Gil: Guidance and Afro-Brazilliance.
• Di Carlo, Josnei (2020).Is there a theory of peripheral postmodernism? Tropicália and the art criticism of Mário Pedrosa in the 1960s .Revista do Instituto de Estudos Brasileiros, 1(76): 18-33.

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