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Tom & Joy Reinvent Brazilian Jobim With a French Zest |
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Written by Andy Reynolds
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Wednesday, 12 October 2005 |
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 Slip in "Antigua" by Parisian duo Tom (Thomas Naim) and Joy (Joyce Hozé-Liwer) and be immersed in a beautifully fragrant cocktail - equal parts bossa nova, afrobeat, and jazz with a splash of French chanson.
The duo, accompanied by a band of five musicians (drummer, bassist, keyboardist, sax player and trumpeter) have delivered a sophisticated, multilingual (French, Portuguese, Spanish, English) album of songs which evoke soothing, welcome images of balmy beaches, Parisian cafés, and breezy summer Sunday afternoons zipping around town on a scooter.
"Antigua" opens-and appropriately sets the mood-with the intoxicatingly sweet "Meditation," originally written by Antonio Carlos Jobim and later adapted and sung by Claudine Longet in the late Sixties. Moving on to the Portuguese "Imagina," the album begins to unfold, revealing one subtly exotic song after the next.
The title song, "Antigua" features legendary Afrobeat drummer Tony Allan (formerly of Fela), just one of many African musicians on the Parisian scene. (A remix by Bob Sinclar can be heard on the previously released Yellow/Tommy Boy CD, "Africanism III" by the Africanism Allstars.)
Afro-rhythms also surface in "Jamaica" and "Kadia." "Be Mine," "Out of My Mind" hover between jazz and pop funk while the duo's love for the heaven that is unfettered bossa nova is frankly in evidence on "Esquece," "Celebridade," and "Lluvia," a song written and sung in Spanish, which could be the perfect ending to any Pedro Almodovar film.
Tom & Joy clearly love-live for-a particularly sunny spectrum of music as evidenced in the various musical arrangements throughout "Antigua": strings and harmonica on "Esquece" a brass section on "Outro Mundo"; muted trumpet with a very "Saint-Germain-des-Prés" sound on "Broadway." "Antigua," is a modern, cosmopolitan album, rich in variety, influence, musicianship and personality.
Though perfect for a James Bond-glam equatorial sunset cocktail party on an Ipaneman terrace, "Antigua" is equally as effective in pushing back the noise of the subway, ennui of a long commute or mellowing the cares of the day. En-Joy!
"Antigua" is the third album to be released via the Yellow Productions Recording (France)/Tommy Boy Entertainment (NYC) deal. Previously released are "Africanism III" by the Africanism Allstars and the radiant "Brasil" by Salomé de Bahia. Yellow Productions is owned by Parisian jet-set DJ and producer Bob Sinclar. "Love Generation," the first single from his early 2006 Yellow Productions/Tommy Boy solo album is out now.
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