Friday, October 15, 2021

Agustin Pereyra Lucena Quartet - La Rana (October 15, 2021 Far Out Recordings)

Far Out Recordings proudly presents Argentinian guitarist Agustín Pereyra Lucena’s 1980 album La Rana. Recorded in Oslo, La Rana features Agustín’s stunning takes on compositions by Ivan Lins, Antonio Carlos Jobim and Agustín’s friend and musical hero Baden Powell. In addition to these, and a number of Agustín’s own compositions including the fifteen-minute masterpiece “Encuentro De Sombras”, the album’s title track is an idiosyncratic version of Joao Donato’s “A Rã” (Eng: The Frog/ Esp: La Rana) from his 1973 album Quem É Quem.

Forming the rest of the quartet are two fellow Argentinians who were also Agustin’s bandmates from the group Candeias: bassist and multi-instrumentalist Guillermo Reuter and flautist Ruben Izarrualde; with Norweigan drummer Finn Sletten on drums and percussion.

Throughout La Rana we hear not only Agustín’s fabled guitar playing, which ascended him to share stages with the likes of Vinicius de Moraes, Dorival Cayymi, Toquinho, Maria Bethania, Chico Buarque and Quarteto Em Cy, but also his talent as a vocalist. He also provided the heartening illustration for the cover art, which perfectly fits the cordial, inviting tone of the music. Inspired in equal measure by South American rhythms and Norweigan glaciers, mountains and waterfalls, La Rana is filled with the warmth, humility and sincerity of a man seizing a joyful moment in life through music.
1. 3 Horas Da Manha
2. Samba Do Aviao
3. Tema Medieval
4. Despues De Las Seis
5. Tema Barroco
6. La Rana
7. Pra Que Chorar
8. Encuentro De Sombras

Bass, Piano, Vocals, Percussion – Guillermo Reuter
Drums, Vocals, Percussion – Finn Sletten
Engineer [Recording Assistant] – Arvid Esperø
Engineer [Recording], Mixed By – Haakon Manheim
Flute, Vocals, Percussion – Ruben Izarrualde
Guitar, Vocals, Percussion, Mixed By, Producer – Agustin Pereyra

Arranged By – Agustin Pereyra Quartet* (tracks: 1-7), Guillermo Reuter (tracks: 8)

Mixed By – Guillermo Reuter
Recorded At – Ny York Studio, Oslo
Mixed At – Ny York Studio, Oslo