Eliane Elias
Dreamer

THE REVIEW

In Eliane Elias’s life, there is a synthesis between two recurring places that correspond to two lifestyles and two very different ways of thinking: Brazil with its tradition and its saudade and the United States, which represents the more unconventional and “rebellious” aspect of this talented pianist and singer.

Eliane’s Brazil shines through in everything: from her “paulistana” origins (which means a resident of São Paulo), to the rhythm that makes her sway on the piano while she plays, to bossa nova, to her connection with the great classics of the Brazilian repertoire, which she started playing at just seventeen, accompanying Vinicius De Moraes and Toquinho on a famous tour in the 70s.
America is the other half of her artistic education: her New York beginnings in her early twenties, collaborations with great jazz musicians such as Randy Brecker (her husband for a while), Michael Brecker, Steve Gadd, Eddie Gomez, Mike Mainieri, musicians largely linked by the shared adventure of “Steps Ahead”, the legendary jazz-fusion group that Eliane Elias is a more or less stable part of, which formed by chance and then became an absolute reference in terms of quality and originality.

In this “Dreamer”, the quieter side of a woman approaching fifty emerges, who tackles a repertoire themed around the different types of love, as she herself says, moving from pieces sung in Portuguese (“Fotografia”, “Samba de verão”, “Vivo sonhando”) to more or less well-known standards played in every which way, such as “Baubles, Bangles and Beads” (a piece loved by Ella Fitzgerald) and “A House Is Not A Home” by Burt Bacharach, who, although never forgotten as a songwriter, has recently come back into vogue, thanks also to interpretations by other artists like the Italian Chiara Civello.
The musicians on this CD are all of a high caliber as usual. Aside from the mainstays of the rhythm section (the bassist-collaborator-friend Marc Johnson and the drummer Paulo Braga), there are some long-time friends, from Mike Mainieri to Michael Brecker. The guitar is handled by Oscar Castro-Neves and the strings that appear on some tracks are arranged with great sophistication by Rob Mathes.

My favorite track is “Doralice”, a cheerful and carefree showcase by Dorival Caymmi, in which Eliane recreates a historic solo by Stan Getz, which she transcribed for fun when she was young, as she mentions in an interview. In short, a record for people who want to dream while letting themselves be lulled by high-quality music.