Customer Reviews

Prenda Minha: Caetano

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Caetano Veloso is one of the world's best balladist. He and Gilberto Gil started the Tropicalismo movement in the 60's. Born in Bahia, he fell under the influence of
Bossa Nova's co-founder Joao Gilberto. He integrates Pop and Bossa Nova with his poetic lyrics. His is brother to Maria Bethania, another impressive singer. Prenda minha has sold more than a million CD's in Brazil alone. The main attraction is the Megahit "Sozinho" (by Peninha). This is a lovely song or as Caetano himself expresses: "esa cancao e tao bonitinha". My other two favorite songs are "Terra" and "Drao" (by Gilberto Gil). In this DVD, besides the music, Catenao's performance is incredible. The quality of the sound is great (5.1 surround). But the camera "tricks" are very distracting. As early as the second song, the "zoom in and out" and rapid camera movements become unbearable. Nevertheless, despite the poor camera work, Caetano's performance deserves a 5 star review due to the greatness of the music, artistic performance and unique voice by Caetano.

I first encountered Caetano Veloso peforming in Pedro Almodovar's film Hable con Ella (Talk to Her). His appealing voice and stringed arrangement drew me to seek out a concert DVD, and this one is what I found. Caetano is a tremendously inventive and versatile showman and musician. This DVD is a pure concert from beginning to end, no distracting interruptions for interviews, behind the scenes tidbits, etc. Excellent sound quality; the applause of the audience is audible but does not intrude. This will sound great in your home theater. The songs range from quiet solos to hard-driving, fully orchestrated jazz samba numbers. His show provides a tremendously creative blend of folkloric samba rhythyms, modern Miles Davis style jazz, poetry, sculpture, literature, love, hate, war... well, it is hard to describe, but it is dazzling and very appealing. Fortunately the DVD has subtitles in several languages including English because the lyrics are great... a major element of the show's success. The big failure in this video is the cheapo pseudo-psychedelic camera tricks that permeate the film. I am talking about "techniques" like rapidly focusing and and unfocusing the shot, rapid-fire zoom in, zoom out, intentionally jiggling the camera for an earthquake effect, speeding up the action to simulate the silent film Keystone Kops effect, turning the camera sideways... everything annoying the cameraman could think of to do. On the more upbeat numbers this idiocy becomes nauseating and you have to look away to avoid seasickness. Though this serious flaw is most unfortunate, I still do not recommend that you skip the DVD and get the CD version for music only. If you do that, you will miss the very substantial visual element of the performance... for example Caetano's charming duet with his son Moreno, singing a song Moreno wrote for his father's birthday entitled How Beautiful Can a Being Be? Very beautiful indeed as even the atrocious camera tricks can't completely ruin.

My wife saw this video and got a big crush on Caetano. Then she found out that he is older than her father. How can a man have such charisma?

I saw Caetano Veloso in Chicago in the summer of '99. That is the tour this DVD is taken from. It is the first DVD I purchased and I immediately grabbed it off the shelf when I saw it. I wanted my wife to experience the concert she had to miss a couple of summers ago. It also brought back several highlights I had forgotten from the concert. Let me tell you, if you love art, poetry, music or have a passion for life, get this video. I was very pleased to have subtitles so that I could catch the translations as Caetano sung them. I have listened to his music for several years, but often without a translation. What I found is that his music is even more beautiful than I ever knew.

Buy it without hesitation. Though, the camera work is a little "fast" in a couple of places, as I have read in other reviews, I don't feel as though it warrants less than a "five". Afterall, a diamond among rocks is no less a diamond for its flaw.

A Brazilian Master Presenting his Superb Art: Caetano Veloso, turning 60 next year and not hiding his grey strands of hair is energetic and youthful as ever in this wonderful concert playing many of his beautiful songs. Prenda Minha is driven by an impressing rythm section comprising a group of young Brazilian drummers, which gives for another paste than the more orchestral string sound of the 1994 Fina Estampa concert.

A guest appearance by his son Moreno, some introductory excerpt readings from his book and some of his Tropicalia hits played acoustic (guitar and voice only) make the 90+ minutes go by much too fast, the three extra songs (2 videos / one live)are consumed as quickly. The intellectual wording of his songs can be read as subtitles in Spanish, French or English (my option) which is a great way to experience the music and the text at the same time.

The sound is great and the set and the camerawork very stylish. Only in a few songs the picture moves too hectic for me, who prefers fast music to speak for itself. Were it not for these 3 songs with a pulsating zooming camera view, I would have given 5 stars.

Anyone who enjoys Brazilian Music enjoys Caetano. For those who don't speak Portuguese they may missed some of the meanings of his songs...BUT...this video is so 'visually sweet' no language skills are needed. The sound and spirit of the performers will come thru loud and clear.

The technical aspects of this presentation, such as the camera work, are superb. Each song is treated with a different cinematographic technique, approaching Caetano from unusual perspectives and providing a dynamic panorama of his artistry. The fact that Caetano is on stage yet an audience is never visible seems a bit strange, but who needs an audience in order to enjoy this performance? My favorite number is Terra, for the relaxed bliss with which Caetano performs this powerful song. His guitar solos near the middle section of the show are also very charming. Overall, this has to be one of the best music DVDs in my collection.

In this album, beyond the beautiful and pleasant songs, we can also detect an adequate sample of the diversity and details about Tropicalism and Brasilian Popular Music.
This concert can show us just a little part of the work developed by this musician, which came from a small city of the state of Bahia, in the northeast of Brazil, and became one of the most creative musicians in the world.
Since the beginning of his career he had start writing songs with political connotation and because of it, in the 60s, he was exiled to London, where he got some influence from other rhythms and became even better than he already was (if it could be possible).
Caetano is a complete artist who's always changing and improving his qualities, with boldness and intelligence. With an unmistakable tone of voice he has the gift of transforming a simple pop song into a classic. With his simple elegance, he may be out of the spotlight from time to time, but he's always catapulted back, sometimes because of his songs and compositions, others because of a movie or a new play and perhaps becasuse of a book.
Needless to say I'm a Caetano's fan, but I think it's perfectly understandable because of the diverse sort of rhythms and variety of languages he composes in.
If you don't know anything about Brazilian music, I recommend you to listen one of his songs and you could be sure you'll hear one of the best examples of MPB (Popular Brazilian Music).
If you want to get more information and know what really happened in the Brazilian politics in the dictatorship era, and how it influenced our culture, changing MPB history, you will also enjoy Tropical Truth, which is a polemical autobiography by the master of the creativity, rhythm and poetry.

Having listened to Caetano Veloso many more years ago than I'd like to pin point I decided to give him another listen in the digital age. After seeing this performance I had to clean off some of my old LP's by Caetano Veloso and listen to his magic again, and again. This artist, who continues to evolve couldn't have chosen a better format to display his art. Contrary to some reviewers opinions I found the camera work to be very good and well crafted.The musical performance is top notch. There is something very soothing about his voice that translates without understanding the lyrics. Veloso is a perfect example of the expression that music is the universal language. I cannot speak much to the content of the songs , their meaning etc. but I can vouch for the fact that it is beautiful, exquisitely beautiful. The set design for the performance is one that fits the music perfectly, creating a modern, slightly abstract, dreamy, relaxed, musical ambience. I think there was plenty of thought put into the set design even though it seems relatively simple. A very touching and important part of the performance is when Caetano brings his son on stage. Seeing the both of them, each relinquishing the role of lead, each acting as one, leaves you with the feeling that you have just witnessed something very special. When they finish their duo you are left with the assurance that the Veloso name is in good hands. In spite of his age, Caetano Veloso is lithe and wiry, moving his body gracefully to create a hipnotic memorable performance. The voice of Caetano is one of the those easily recognizable, even if you have only heard him a few times; it has a lasting impression that you won't forget. Velosos's guitar work is a tasty treat that compliments his voice and will soothe your soul especially in troubling times. If you like the soft sounds of Brazilian samba than you will love this DVD by a veteran performer who hasn't lost a step and continues to get better with age. If you are new to Brazilian music be sure to check this DVD out since Caetano Veloso is synonymous with lasting musical integrity that is Brazilian music. There is no need to understand Portuguese because the music transcends language. Recommended for fans of Brazilian music without language barriers.

I fell in love with the music from Brazil thru the notes of Gilberto Gil and Antonio Carlos Jobim. I felt that what they did was perfection, and nothing could be done to improve it. How sadly mistaken I was!. A new generation pops up every year, and Caetano Veloso holds the flag as the premier singer-songwrite-arranger-musician extraordinaire!
This Concert sends chills down my spine right at the start, when the drummers take the stage and start with a very unusual intro to Minha voz, minha vida. My brain was not ready for all the wonderful noises that came then... I recommend this DVD to anyone with a fine taste for modern brazilian music. Much better if you have the latest state of the art equipment to play it with... you won't be dissapointed.

Enorme, bordeando la perfección, intenso, Caetano nos trae una vez más un exquisito bocado de "musicas" brasileiras. Hay de todo aquí: desde las producciones dulces como "Odara" (con mas batuque que en el original) hasta el retorno de temas politicos como "Terra", pasando por el homenaje al antiguo parceiro Chico Buarque en "Carolina" y terminando con (¿es esto posible?) una versión en tiempo de salsa de la versión que Willie Colón grabó del original "Mel" cantado por Maria Bethania. Está el infaltable tributo a Tom Jobim ("Meditacao") y la incursión en el video clip; "Os livros" es, sencillamente, maravilhosa: se pasea "sem lemco e sem documento" por el mundo del clip como si le fuera familiar desde siempre.

La cámara exacerba lo que ya se ensayó exitosamente en "Un caballero de fina estampa" (que ya se consigue en DVD, así como "Circulado de Fulo"): la persecusión cargada de sentido, la interacción de artista y espectador ausente. Grande entre grandes, he aqui, una vez más, Caetano Veloso.