The story of Musical Saracura, the group that helped Rio Grande do Sul rock take flight

In those distant days when the world was experiencing the feverish disco era reaching its death throes and, on the other hand, was still assimilating the revolution resulting from the emergence of punk, the urban youth of Porto Alegre, with genuine interest and enthusiasm, witnessed the birth of their first (and feverish) pop phenomenon with regional features. In 1978, Conjunto Saracura, Musical Saracura or simply Saracura , was rehearsing its takeoff in the capital of Rio Grande do Sul. Its short but accurate flight took it low in sound directions, flying over the domains of the most distinct sound genres. Intertwining nativism, xote, tango and other milongas, Saracura forged a particular and referential language for young-adult music from Rio Grande do Sul.

Saracura ("the bird of all wetlands" in Tupi-Guarani) had as crew members the musicians Nico Nicolaiewsky , Sílvio Marques, Flavio Coiro Dias "Chaminé" and Fernando Pezão (taking the place on drums that had initially belonged to Maria Cristina Raimundo, "Gata"). The quartet also enlisted allies such as Cláudio Levitan , Mário Barbará and Zé Flávio. A success among the public of Porto Alegre, it did not take long for Saracura to also conquer the rest of Rio Grande do Sul.

Lyricist and guitarist Silvio Marques credits Cláudio Levitan and his anarchic theatrical show Em Palpos de Aranha as a decisive inspiration for Saracura. "Two other artists who were fundamental in this genesis were Nelson Coelho de Castro (who gave them two songs for the repertoire in their shows) and Bebeto Alves , from his group Utopia", Marques emphasizes.

For Nelson Coelho de Castro, the sum of the personalities of each of the members of Saracura resulted in a meeting that he defines as "always beautiful to see and feel". The group also had, says the composer, a magical epiphany and an innovative repertoire. "Saracura was an amalgam: the registers and timbres of Silvio and Nico's voices, the pulsating rhythm of both Gata and Pezão, and the swing of Chaminé's characteristic bass, who, when playing his instrument with the tip of one foot slightly in front of his body, seemed to indicate to us where the music should go. And how it went through our hearts!", says Nelson.

Saracura's sonic flight, however, landed on the ears of more than just Rio Grande do Sul residents. Recalling the soundtrack that was present in his teenage years, Rio de Janeiro journalist Pedro Só says that since 1982 he has been a self-confessed fan of Saracura (which he first came into contact with through a cassette tape recorded by his older sister). "The song I like the most is Nada mais . It's a beautiful song, whose level could easily be found on an Angela Ro Ro album, for example."

Biographer of the duo Kleiton and Kledir, journalist Emilio Pacheco sees Saracura's multifaceted artistic character as the reason for its genius. "They had two singers at the forefront, Nico on piano and Sílvio on guitar, and veteran bassist Chaminé also did solo vocals. Their songs ranged from gaucho to humor, romantic themes and bolder lyrics, in a rich combination," he explains. It was pop, gaudério, a bit of everything, an overdose of talent and creativity. In Emílio's opinion, the album they left us was just a small sample of what they were capable of doing. "Those who saw them at the shows will never forget them. They left a lasting impression. But those who didn't see them at the time, missed them."

The regional pop conjured up by Saracura in the brief twenty-five minutes comprised of the eight tracks of their only self-titled album was enough for the group to become one of the main architects of a language whose musical, poetic and sound characteristics fully reached and deeply inspired composers of the so-called "rock gaúcho" such as, among others, Thedy Corrêa, Frank Jorge and Humberto Gessinger.

Despite such influence, however, Silvio Marques claims that Saracura had absolutely nothing to do with rock and even less in common with Almôndegas (contrary, in both cases, to what is commonly seen being propagated in the press). "I never saw a single rock record at Nico's house and vice-versa."

The collection of award-winning songs from Saracura 's grooves was produced by flautist Ayres Potthoff. Released independently and with a print run of five thousand copies, the LP hit record stores in late 1982. It is a tiny "phonographic testament" left by the group. The songbook, in fact, contains more than 60 scattered phonographic recordings that were never officially released. Some songs immortalized on the LP gained popularity spontaneously, without necessarily being played on the most commercial radio stations. Others became known to the public during the quartet's popular concerts. These are the cases of two songs written by Cláudio Levitan: the ballad Nada mais and the satirical Tango da mãe ("Every self-respecting boy / Speaks ill of his mother / Says he's doing well / While the old woman is doing badly").

On the other hand, Flor received a good number of radio plays while playing at Continental. Written by singer and poet Mário Barbará, the hit Xote da amizade became, over time, the most remembered song in Saracura's songbook. As for the solos that weave together the melody of Bolero lero, guitarist Zé Flávio sought inspiration in the riffs of Mexican Carlos Santana. Also by Barbará, his verses profess something fatalistic: "Our case is all wrong / There is no point of union anymore."

With a baroque-psychedelic sound, the track Toda moça received guitar arrangements created by Bebeco Garcia, who in the year following the release of Saracura would start the band Garotos da Rua. Xote de Jaguarão , in turn, features a duo of the group with Kledir Ramil. Cláudio Levitan also appears on the album with Marcou bobeira , whose interpretation of its verses suggests a 'kick in the ass': "Marcou bobeira, it's over / In play you make mistakes / And in love you get scared / And you walk away / For me it's enough / You're over".

During the Saracura sessions, the group actually recorded ten tracks in total. Two of them were left off the LP: Outubro (a poem by Nei Duclós set to music by Silvio Marques) and the banned Alfredo (written by Chaminé). Outubro was banned by the author himself, while Alfredo was vetoed by the censors because its lyrics featured a transsexual as the main character.

Saracura was re-released in 1983 by the Continental label. The re-release allowed the group to promote the album on radio and television programs in the center of the country. In the days leading up to the start of the recording sessions for their only LP in Porto Alegre, the band members even showed some songs to the PolyGram label, which rejected the album on the grounds that it "did not fit the standards of Brazilian music at the time."

Are you one of those who understands that music has the power to heal some of life's wounds? That it cures the ills that eventually compromise our physical, mental and spiritual health? I am! There was a band, or group, as you wish, whose name and musical proposal did something that did a lot for me in this regard, whether it was restoring, recovering, reinvigorating and also inspiring my musical work — as well as some susceptible and sensitive minds not only to sound waves but also to artistic expressions, whose incredible talent for composing original works (and interpreting, arranging and tying together as many possible elements as possible to become an artistic unit of extreme greatness) can be seen with the naked eye. If it were just by analogy with the bird found in various areas of South America — with a very characteristic "song" heard in the forest and in swampy areas — we could already imagine the incredible willingness to fulfill its life vocalizing and taking care of its colorful feathers with pride. Colorful like the spelling of the name that appears on the only and eponymous album released by Saracura.

A group that catalyzed innovative ideas, performance, and a musical/theatrical source that we perceive and sometimes translate as "ahead of its time", which would inspire many other artists and leave cultural marks, even acquiring legendary status. They masterfully materialized a search for a contemporary, urban, spontaneous, regional, South American, but Brazilian South that, more than 40 years later, is still the search of many artisans who come together in a collective called Sul Universal (look it up), for example. And shortly before them, and contemporary to them, and after them, groups/artists such as Pentagrama, Almôndegas, Raul Ellwanger, Bebeto Alves, Kleiton & Kledir, Vitor Ramil, Tambo do Bando, also had as a characteristic the South-Brazilian-global amalgam. But Saracura had a musical-scenic-satirical-mocking-poetic bias, which would continue with some of its members and would bear fruit in the Porto Alegre rock scene of the 1980s/90s.

If Brian Eno once said that those who bought the Velvet Underground's first album (a sales failure) formed a band, I dare say that we have a similar situation here. Yes, besides the coincidence that both bands have a member named Nico, many people who came across Saracura's album and/or went to one of their memorable shows often testify that they became musicians because of Saracura. A single phonographic record capable of leaving indelible marks from the end of the 1970s until the early years of the abolitionist 1980s. Musical-aesthetic content at a local level that turned the heads of the southerners and caught the eyes of connoisseurs and prospectors of artists outside the mainstream, all over Brazil. Just as the Velvet Underground basically sang New York, and acquired cult status as a global contemporary musical art, who knows, maybe one day, in the far reaches of the world, Saracura's singing and avant-garde flight will echo in international ears, healing, curing and inspiring more people to make music with originality, and be a subject worthy of appreciation for audiences willing to let themselves be carried away by xotes de revesgueio, tango, bolero-lero-lero-lero-leeero and ballads composed and performed by talented and legendary musicians from the end of South America?

The minimal rock element in Saracura's musical work is due to the musically versatile Flavio Coiro Dias. Affectionately known by the nickname 'Chaminé', the skilled bassist who passed away in 2004 also ventured into the crossroads of blues (he is the one who famously said: "Rock tried to kill me, and failed. But the blues almost got there!") with the Fat Blues Chaminé Band. Much earlier, in 1964, the bassist brought together the Beatles and Jovem Guarda, giving life to the short-lived Brasa 4. Soon after, joining forces with guitarist Beto Roncaferro, the group became Bestial Project. Accepting an invitation from Cláudio Vera Cruz, he later joined the group Succo.

In addition to having played in the bands of Hermes Aquino and Solon Fishbone, he was also part of groups such as Irmãos Brothers, JJ& Co and Mutuca e Os Animais. A great composer, Chaminé is the author of songs such as Mogadon , Rock do briceiro and Plim Plim (As Pinta São Tudo Uns Cocô) . The musician passed away leaving unreleased a series of his songs, which were supposed to be part of his unfinished solo album. A close friend and partner of Chaminé, the musician and producer Egisto Dal Santo in 2019 brought three songs by the bassist to the repertoire of his album 4 Magníficos : Mogadon , Alfredo and O medicina .

In the pages of the book Gauleses Irredutíveis , musician Léo Henkin (who participated in Saracura as a guest guitarist) tells a story that portrays Chaminé's fun spirit. The context is Saracura's last tour through the interior of the state and a show in Uruguaiana organized by the nuns of that city. "The show took place in a gymnasium, and it was the nuns who advertised, put up posters and even organized the stage. One of these nuns went back and forth, putting banners on the walls and decorating. At some point, the nun climbed a monstrous ladder and Chaminé, more there than here, in the end, stood under the ladder looking at her panties and making the sign of the cross. And all the guys in the band burst out laughing."

Flavio Coiro released Top Fat in 1987 with his Fat Blues Chaminé Band. On the album, released on cassette, the bassist ventured into particular versions of blues, soul and rock'n'roll standards. The repertoire included songs such as Don't let the sun catch you cryin' (Gerry & The Pacemakers), You've lost that loving feeling (Righteous Brothers), Whipping post (Allman Brothers Band) and I'm the slime (Frank Zappa).

Nico Nicolaiewsky became known throughout Brazil as the accordionist Maestro Pletskaya in the musical comedy Tangos & Tragédias . In the show created in 1984, after the dissolution of Saracura, Nico was joined by Hique Gomez, who played the violinist Kraunus Sang. In Tangos & Tragédias the characters are two citizens of an imaginary country called Sbórnia ("a peculiar island that broke away from the continent after successive nuclear explosions, wandering the seas of the world").

Hique Gomez reveals that he attended Nico's first shows and those of the band Bobo da Corte, of which Chaminé was also a member. He praises both of them as great artists from the beginning. "A combination of primordial transformative forces in the sound alchemy promoted by Saracura." Something that he compares to the recently released film about Bob Dylan's career, where there is a sequence in which he introduces a band with guitars with a rock feel. "That's exactly what happened in Saracura's appearances at Califórnia da Canção in Uruguaiana. They introduced a contemporary way of thinking into folk music," he analyzes.

In 2013, Nico Nicolaiewsky put on the show Música de Camelô , in which he sang "super popular" songs by himself on the piano, in his own words. The repertoire included songs ranging from Ai Se Eu Te Pego , by Michel Teló, and Tô Nem Aí , by singer Luka, to the music from the Japanese cartoon Pokémon and Tchê Tchê Rerê by singer Gusttavo Lima, suggestions from his daughter Nina. Regarding the cultural content of the show, Nico commented: "Prejudices exist and it's delightful to see someone get shocked in the middle of a song, when they realize they're enjoying a song they thought they hated."

Produced by John Ulhoa from the band Pato Fu, Onde Está o Amor? is the most pop album in Nico Nicolaiewsky's discography. The 12 songs in the repertoire are about love in its different manifestations. On the album released in 2008 by the Belamusica label, Nico presents songs of his own authorship such as Advertência , Te amei tanto and Ser feliz . Onde Está o Amor? also features partnerships with Antônio Villeroy, Cláudio Levitan and Fernando Pezão. The romantic Bombas de beijo and Volta menina reveal influences ranging from Roberto Carlos to the Swedish group ABBA.

* Cristiano Bastos is a journalist and author of Julio Reny – Stories of love and death (Azorianos Award for Best Book in 2015), Júpiter Maçã: The effervescent life and work, Nelson Gonçalves: The king of bohemia, New meat to grind and Irreducible Gaulses – Stories & Attitudes of Rio Grande do Sul Rock. He also published, in 2023, the work of journalism and graphic arts 100 great albums of Rio Grande do Sul rock: influences and trends (Nova Carne Livros).