Thursday 20 December 2012

The American BEETLES in Brazil & Argentina

Beatlemania started in England in 1963; it reached the USA around January 1964, but it took a bit longer to get to the South American shores. Circa 1963 & 1964, Latin America was in the midst of a different 'invasion', that of the modern Italian pop music that took hold of the charts in Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Peru and other places.

Finally by mid-1964, the Beatles were getting their first hit in Brazil with 'I want to hold your hand'. São Paulo's TV Record had the means to sign foreign acts to perform at their theatre on Rua da Consolação. They, obviously, would not have the resources to sign the Fab 4... so they settled to 2nd (or 3rd) best: The American Beetles.

The American Beetles were a combo of 4 young American males from Florida put together in a hurry with the sole intention of cashing in on the phenomenal success of The Beatles, that literally 'invaded' the USA in early January 1964 with a completely new sound and a new approach to rock'n'roll - that had been growing into an old fart lately after having been diluted in its energy by white teen heart throbs that knew nothing of what rock was really about.

The American Beetles were a complete sell-out since its inception. But let us not be too harsh on the American fellows. After all they only wanted to be part of a revolution started in Liverpool by the Fab 4 and make a little money themselves. They were really glad to be signed up by those crazy Latin managers who wanted to bring them to South America and show what Beatlemania was like. 

Well, here are a few articles about the passage of the American Beetles in Brazil and Argentina. 

The American Beetles were banned at two radio stations in Buenos Aires, Argentina 

In Buenos Aires the American Beetles were banned from peforming on Radio Splendid and (ironically) Radio Libertad (Radio Freedom) by a certain Commission on Decency because they were 'sexually ambiguous' (see the text in Spanish below). Argentina had had a military coup de etat against Democracy in 1962, and was on its way to have another military putsch in 1966. Latin America was entering a new Dark Ages that lasted until the 1980s.  

Even though the American Beetles suffered censorship in Buenos Aires, they appeared on a TV show that survives until today:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCb-zVUwQhk

In June 1964, just a few weeks before the American Beetles flew down to South American they appeared on Dick Clark's 'American Band-stand' and sang Chuck Berry's 'School days'. Check it out:  

listen to American Beetles singing 'You did it to me': http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMuhOIPMDU8


Beatles de araque tomam de assalto o Brazil e Argentina.

Quatro americanos de Miami, eles tinham um conjunto chamado The Ardels. Depois de romperem relações com o seu barbeiro por 6 meses, transformaram-se nos American Beetles, e por pouco não provocaram um incêndio no Paramount Theater, no Brooklyn, onde tiveram sua estréia. Bill Ande é o bonitão do grupo, réplica do inglês John Vernon (sic). Victor Gray, papel carbono de Ringo Star, é o cômico. Tom Condra - que não tira as botas nem para dormir - e o baterista David Hieronymuos completam o grupo. Tem todos 22 anos, e um de seus sucessos, 'Don't be unkind' (Não seja indelicada), foi um dos pontos altos de suas recentes apresentações em São Paulo e na TV Rio, na Guanabara. 

texto de Helga Sydow; fotos de Zygmunt Haar;  revista Fatos & Fotos.   

The Beetles Americanos EP released in Argentina; the titles are in Spanish but they only sang in English.

até a revista Melodias entrou na 'onda' dos American Beetles e os colocou na capa. 


The American Beetles were so bad, Revista do Radio's editor Anselmo Domingos wrote an editorial almost calling them  names. Revista do Radio, 5 September 1965.

The American Beetles en Argentina


The American Beetles caused a commotion in Argentina where conservative right-wing groups tried to block them from appearing on radio & TV. They banned them from 2 radio shows on Radio Splendid and the ironically named Radio Libertad (Radio Freedom). Tom & Vic are led by men in trench coat but no fear, they were friendly and only a little curious to see guys wearing long hair with bangs - 'flequillos' in Spanish.

The following is a report by an Argenine weekly ASI journalist - who went to the offices of the Management Comission of Commercial Broadcasting Radio & TV to interview a certain Ms Nélida Baigorria who tried to explain the procedures such a Comission arrived at in the banning of The American Beetles performance on being broadcast by LR4 Radio Splendid and Radio Libertad on Tuesday 14 July 1964.

She talks a lot of fascist jargon in a very uninteresting way. She hints the American Beetles are an aberration of sexual misconduct, judges their music as 'unartistic' - God knows from what guide lines the young teacher - yes, the lady is apparently an elementary-school teacher - bases her judgements on. Probably based on Hitlerjugend's doctrines.

It is no wonder Argentina was still reeling from a military putsch in 1962, where elected President Arturo Frondizi was toppled, Congress was dismised and a Dictatorship installed. A rigged election was set up in 1963, in which another Arturo (Ilia) was chosen but deposed by a new military coup in 1966. As one can see, fascism was the main political force in Argentina since 1955.

Now, for those who can read Spanish is a transcription of the rambling nonsense uttered by Ms. Nélida Baigorria to the ASI newspaper man as to what is 'real art and proper sexual behaviour' and what is 'deviation' by the notorious American rock band. She hints there is a world-wide movement where dissolution will be imposed on countries like Argentina and which the American Beetles are the beach-head.  
article published by weekly Argentine ASI in its 24 July 1964 issue.

Los Beetles han vuelto a ser noticia. Otra vez fueron motivo de escándalo. La Comisión Administradora  de Emisoras Comerciales de Radio y TV, prohibió su actuación en radioemisoras de su jurisdicción.

La situación surgió el martes 14 de julio 1964, al anunciarse la actuacción de ese cuarteto de flequillos (franjas) norteamericanos por la onda de LR4 Radio Splendid, emisora que iba a irradiar a la presentación de los cantantes yanquis en una audición en 'duplex' con Radio Libertad.

Los que sintorizaron la noche del 14 de julio Radio Splendid, a las 20,30 hora anunciada para la actuación de los Beetles, no pudieron satisfacer sus deseos de escuchar a los norteamericanos.

Qué habia sucedido? Esa fue la pregunta que se hicieron numerosos oyentes de citada emisora.

La respuesta se conoció muy pronto. Los Beetles no pudieron actuar por imperdirselo una resolución adoptada en la tarde de ese dia por la Comisión Administradora de Emisoras Comerciales de Radio y Televisión.

Equivoco sexual

El organismo que direge las radios oficiales fue terminante en su disposición y en los términos que ella contienen. Sin medias tintas se enumeran los motivos que obligaron a impedir la presentación del conjunto norteamericano. Los calificativos que se emplean para fundamentar la medida son bien concretos, como si con ellos se intentara desde el vamos a superar cualquier objeción contra la actitud de la Comisión.

Para que nuestros lectores sepan cuales fueron esos fundamentos y esos calificativos estimamos interesante darles a conocer el contenido textual de esa resolución.

'Esta Comisión - comienza diciendo el documento dirigido por el organismo administrador a la Dirección de la radio - se ha visto ingratamente sorprendida por la noticia aparecida en los periódicos, anunciando la actuación del conjunto The Beetles, en Radio Splendid'. 

'Ha sido profusamente expuesto el criterio de la Comisión en el sentido de procurar elevar y jerarquizar la programación artistica de las emisoras administradas, subrayándose enfáticamente el deseo de promover valores que hagan a nuestra esencia nacional o de notoria jerarquía internacional'. 

'La presentación del aludido conjunto, QUE CARECE EN ABSOLUTO DE VALOR ARTÍSTICO Y DE CUYA NOTORIEDAD SE AMPARA EXCLUSIVAMENTE EN UN LAMENTABLE REMEDO DE EQUIVOCO SEXUAL, parece una burla a todas las afirmaciones expuestas en el sentido de supeditar cualquier interés comercial por ingente que fuese a los fines éticos y artístico-culturales de nuestro pueblo'. 

Defensa de la Moral

'Tenemos la seguridad que el criterio de esa Dirección General se indentifica con el nuestro. De ahí nuestra profunda extrañeza por la circunstancia que señalamos'.

'Por ello, estimaremos quiera estudiar las posibilidades de cancelar futuras actuaciones del conjunto de referencia y en lo sucesivo procure ajustar la programación artística a los lineamientos generales expuestos'.

Para conocer más detalles de esta medida que marca rumbos dentro de la radiofonia argentina, pedimos una entrevista con la profesora Nélida Baigorria.

Nos recebió en la sed de la Comisión, que funciona en Cerrito 941. La señorita Baigorria es, a pesar de su juventud, una mujer de valores destacados en el campo parlamentario y de relevantes cualidades como educadora.

Con amplitud se mostró dispuesta a responder nuestros interrogantes, a la vez que fijólos lineamientos principales de la labor que desarrolla y proyecta el organismo a su cargo.

Comienza señalandonos que 'la actitud adoptada en este caso por la Comisión responde total y absolutamente a los objetivos que tienen fijados el organismo'.

'Es nuestra obligación, dijo, cuidar la moral del pueblo y formación espiritual que pueden ser distorsionadas por representaciones del tipo de la que hemos prohibido'. 

'Nos soprendió el Anuncio'

La señorita Baigorra nos señala que la Comisión se enteró del debut de los Beetles a través de los anuncios en los diarios. 'Como ustedes comprenderán, nos dice, nosotros no podemos estar en la intimidad de las programaciones. Dejamos libertad de acción a los directivos de las radios. Estimamos que ellos saben ajustarse a nuestro pensamiento. Por eso nos sorprendió el anuncio y dispusimos la suspensión del programa. Además hemos dispuesto una investigación para determinar responsabilidades'.

- Ustedes conocian las características de ese conjunto norteamericano, le preguntamos, o procedieron asi por el escándalo que precedió su actuación en nuestro medio?

- 'Nosotros, nos responde, sabiamos perfectamente cuales eran sus calidades artísticas, - si se puede llamar arte a lo que hacen -, y por eso adoptamos esta medida. Por saber como eran no podíamos permitir que se presentaran en una emisora del Estado. Tengan en cuenta que el Estado tiene la obligación de cuidar de la salud fisica y moral del pueblo y por tal motivo consentierse'.

La actitud asumida or la Comisión tiene vigencia dentro de los medios de difusión radiales y televisivos oficiales, pero no alcanza a la misma actividad en el campo privado. Por eso, las posibilidades actuales de 'preservar la moral y la salud espiritual del pueblo 'en ese terreno'.

- 'Desgraciadamente, contes, en la actualidad no hay ningún instrumento legal que nos posibilite intervenir en casos como éste. Sin embargo, se está trabajando en la regiamentación del CONART - el Consejo Nacional de Radio y Televisión - y dentro del articulado de ese reglamento, se darán los medios para defender a los oyentes y telespectadores de este tipo de manifestaciones pseudoartistica.

- 'En nombre de nínguna libertad, afirmó decidamente la señorita Baigorria, puede pretenderse defender a quienes corrompen la conciencia de un pueblo'.

Más adelante, la señorita Baigorria nos señala que 'los Beetles son instrumentos de un plan perfectamente estructurado de las fuerzas disolventes que se mueven en el mundo. No actúan solamente en nuestro país, sino que están en todas partes. Su designio es el de distorsionar el sentir nacional y pervertir las costumbres más puras de las comunidades'.

Pedimos a nuestra entrevistada,m que nos dé su opinión como  educadora y qeu nos dia si los Beetles son el reflejo de una generación.

- 'De ninguna manera, responde con presteza. Ese conjunto sólo puede ser ejemplo de un estado social. Esa nueva ola, vacía y sin futuro. Representan un brete (problem) incalificable que apareció y que desaparecerá drásticamente. Son una lacra (scar)'.

Nos agrega luego que: 'la verdadera juventud está buscando nuevos y mejores caminos, instruyéndose y capacitándose para lograr un porvenir auspicioso que es fruto de su esfuerzo'.

Al despedirnos, la señorita Baigorria nos asegura que habrá un mayor contralor en todo aquéllo que la radio y la televisión ofrece al público.

- 'Hemos logrado ya - indica -, pasar de la desorganización efectiva. Estamos dando los últimos toques al ordenamiento prespuestario. Al mismo tiempo, encaramos un efectivo mejoramiento en el nivel cultural de nuestros programas. Pretendemos que la radio y televisión, no sólo constituyan medios de distracción, sino que actúen en función pedagógica. Por eso, no permitiremos, como no lo permitimos ahora, que se pretenda desviar nuestro rumbo'.

Cuando, finalizamos nuestra entrevista, hicimos la última pregunta a la señorita Baigorria: Han tenido ustedes, alguna manifestación de protesta de Radio Libertad o de los patrocinadores del programa, con motivo de la resolución que adoptaram?

- 'Si, senõres. Al conocerse nuestra determinación, habló a la Comisión un caballero que dijo ser representante de Radio Libertad. Habló con mi secretaria. No se dio a conocer y se comportó, además, en forma sumamente grosera'. 

Equivoco sexual?


A Uruguayan newspaper trying to explain the 'swindle': The Beetles are not The Beatles... 


How the fake Beatles conned South America

In 1964, South American fans eagerly awaited the arrival of the Fab Four – but four Americans named Tom, Vic, Bill and Dave turned up instead. It’s a bizarre story of a con gone wrong, writes Ed Prideaux.

By Ed Prideaux,
24 April 2020.

Early in 1964, as Beatlemania swept the world, newspaper headlines announced that The Beatles would be travelling to South America later that year. Millions awaited their arrival with bated breath – and in July, when four young moptops descended into Buenos Aires Airport, it seemed that teenage dreams were about to come true.

The Beatles were actually nowhere near Argentina at the time. The British group – who split 50 years ago this month – were back home in London, on a rare rest stop between concerts and recording. But with or without their knowledge, four young guys from Florida named Tom, Vic, Bill and Dave had taken their place.

There had been a terrible mix-up.

Previously a bar band called The Ardells, the quartet were now 'The American Beetles', or sometimes just 'The Beetles' for short. "When The Beatles got to be famous," their manager Bob Yorey recalls in The Day The Beatles Came To Argentina, a 2017 documentary directed by Fernando Pérez, "I said, 'You know what? They’re the English Beatles. I’m gonna make up a group…'

We wore our hair the same, we dressed the same, we wore suits. It was pretty good – Bill Ande, guitar player with the American Beetles.

"I got these four guys and I said, 'Listen. Grow your hair and we’re gonna call you ‘The American Beetles'.’" They duly obliged. "We wore our hair the same, we dressed the same, we wore suits. It was pretty good", Bill Ande, their lead guitarist, tells BBC Culture, over the phone. Both a joke and a timely cash-grab, the group’s rebrand had won them big crowds and fresh attention from promoters back home. 

An impresario named Rudy Duclós spotted them in a Miami club. He was from Argentina, he explained, and he was keen to book them on a tour of South America. Yet in selling the group to promoters and venues, Duclós hadn’t quite mentioned the 'American Beetles' part. He’d pitched them as the real thing. Contracts were signed, the press was primed, and teenagers anxiously awaited their arrival. The Beatles were coming.

Carlos Santino was a child in 1964. "I remember the moment when they announced that The Beatles [would] come to Argentina because of my cousin", Santino recalls in the Pérez documentary. "She was going nuts".

In Peru, headlines in La Crónica and La Prensa declared that 'The Famous Beatles Would Come in May' and that 'Channel 4 is finalising the contract'.

Duclós soon conned the band a spot on Argentinian TV. "I was working at the video room, and we couldn't believe it ourselves that The Beatles would be coming here. Alejandro Romay [the media mogul]… claimed to have secured a fabulous deal", recalled Roberto Monfort, an employee of Channel 9 at the time.

'Between indignation and laughter'

Competition for The American Beetles had been so hot, in fact, that both Channel 13 and Channel 9 in Argentina had booked them for the same night, and a mediation was arranged on the band's arrival at Buenos Aires Airport. While Channel 9 held the upper hand through an enforceable contract, Channel 13's close ties to local authorities soon afforded them the winning ticket. But not for long. Alejandro Romay, Channel 9’s slick-haired chairman, had little time for such details. He called Karadajian, a star in a contemporary wrestling show called Titanes in el Ring (Titans in the Ring), and asked him to bring his "heavyweights" for an "unorthodox" solution. "The bouncers went right over to the five boys, and they practically hung them over their shoulders", Romay explained in a 1998 interview with Zoo TV.

When they went on air – the people realised that they were not the real Beatles, but the fake Beatles
"Everybody was chasing them: the police, the people from Channel 13, the judge", Romay added. "... Already in Palermo [a neighbourhood in Buenos Aires], I had the trucks and everything set up. We got there, "went to a hotel [in] the suburbs in San Telmo that nobody knew about and we locked them up."

More than 50 years later, though, details can get a little hazy. For all the swiftness of Romay's "unorthodox" capture, it seems that Channel 13 temporarily stole at least one member back. Bill Ande tells BBC Culture that "when we got off the plane, they took us to a TV station", where "[our] drummer was kidnapped by a different station and they went through a whole thing to get him back".

'Kidnappings' and TV wrestlers aside, the band soon made it to Channel 9 in one piece. They were the main act booked on a programme called The Laughter Festival, and an excited assembly of wide-eyed teenagers filed neatly into the stands. The American Beetles waited behind the camera, guitars and sticks at the ready, as the host issued his opening proclamation. Carlos Santino’s cousin was, again, "going nuts". Then the camera turned towards the band. "When she saw it wasn’t Paul McCartney who was coming out from behind the curtain, she started to cry inconsolably" he said. Roberto Monfort, the Channel 9 employee who had been amazed at the first announcement, recalls that disillusionment set in fast. "When they went on air, yes – the people realised that they were not the real Beatles, but the fake Beatles."

"Between indignation and laughter" is how he summarised much of the night’s reception. "There were some people who were having fun. But others were waiting for the real Beatles, and they felt defrauded."

"No, people went crazy! They bought it!", the boss Romay claimed in the Zoo TV interview. Oddly enough, Romay himself was swept by a change of heart before the broadcast aired. "I want no part in this lie to the people. I’ll take a plane and go to Punta del Este [a beach resort]", Romay remembered telling staff. "I don’t want to know a thing about what’s going on." At the same time, though, his new-found conscience hadn’t stopped him reaping the rewards. "We had 63 rating points with The Beetles. I think it was the highest peak in the [channel’s] history."

Counterculture backlash

A country had been conned. But while their Channel 9 appearance had avoided outright hostility, The American Beetles’ later concerts were a different story altogether. "I remember in some of the soccer auditoriums, you had a few guys throwing coins", says Bob, the band’s manager. "Mostly everybody really liked our music and what we were doing. It was usually a certain element of people – jealous guys, you know", remembers Bill. "Sometimes they’d throw coins. Maybe rocks. We’d do a concert and have to get the hell out!"

The South American press were less forgiving. 'They have hair in their vocal cords! They sing bad, but they act worse!' went one headline. 'The Beetles showed that all the talent they have is in their hair!' screamed another. Crónica called the tour 'a farce far greater than their disputed male presence', and devoted column inches throughout the month to their attacks. The American Beetles were 'antimelodic', 'howling songwriters', and drew comparisons to los pelucones, the wig-wearing conservatives of 19th-Century Chile. As for their singing, reporters claimed bluntly, '…they are awful'.

The state media criticism was so intense that the band gained about the same quantity of coverage as The Beatles themselves by the end of 1964.

The press response was about far more than music, though, and more than likely reflected the continent’s troubled political situation. Argentina and Brazil particularly were governed by right-wing juntas intent on total control. All aspects of public life – from music and politics to education – were purged and monitored for liberal influence. Buenos Aires’ Radio Freedom banned The American Beetles’ music for being "sexually ambiguous" – as described by The Administrative Commission, an Orwellian state organ that regulated the press. The state media criticism was so intense, in fact, that the band gained about the same quantity of coverage as The Beatles themselves by the end of 1964.

In Spain – likewise caught up in fascism, under Franco – The American Beetles even formed the scapegoat for an episode of false state propaganda. Pueblo, a conservative newspaper, wrote salaciously of a frenzied outburst of vandalism following the band’s performance in Madrid, with young crowds apparently driven to a deranged violence by the music. Yet their lead guitarist has no recollection of any such events having occurred.

Tensions were rumbling. For every song they censored, a counterculture was growing apace beneath autocrats’ noses. And since the real band never came, for a new breed of longhairs The American Beetles would hold a strangely powerful significance. They inspired competitors to make their own Beatle-posing bands. One Argentine group, Los Buhos, made headlines that summer. With a name translating as The Owls, the group’s membership consisted of the parodic Juan, Yusti, Jorge and Rango, and claimed to Antena magazine that they were "more Beatles than The Beetles".

Most crucially, a TV performance in Uruguay inspired the formation of a genuinely nation-shifting band. Led by frontman Hugh Fattoruso, Los Shakers were a vanguard in the later 'Uruguayan Invasion' in Argentina, a movement that helped to birth the country’s revolutionary rock nacional music scene.

"The first time we saw guys with long hair making music was The American Beetles on TV", Fattoruso said in a 1993 interview with Página 30 magazine. "A week after seeing these guys, news arrives in Montevideo that there is a group like this in England, and that women go crazy and the cities stop when they talk about them on the radio." Like thousands of others, Fattoruso and his brothers soon watched A Hard Day’s Night at the cinema, and their lives were changed forever.

'A scam with mixed returns'

Even to this day, The Beatles hold a potent spell over much of Latin America, with Beatle engagement on YouTube in Argentina, Mexico and Uruguay as high as in the UK. You might wonder, then, why the real Beatles never made an appearance. As well as housing some of their most enthusiastic fans, Latin America’s American Beetles’ ruse had created a clear imperative to dull the confusion. The Beatles machine had already made important moves in this direction anyway. The label issued an emergency press release to confirm the falsity of The Beetles’ persona; merchandise was upgraded to emphasise their English roots; signs, movie posters and album covers were recast. And when scores of money could be made, too, why not just make the trip?

In a word: poverty. In 1964, South American markets formed but a fraction of those in the US, Australia and Europe. Peru, one of the stop-offs for The American Beetles, had an economy the size of the UK’s in the aftermath of World War One. The average Brazilian had an annual income 13 times less than the average American. Venues, promoters and agents simply couldn’t afford The Beatles’ fee, and the result was a shortage of supply that The American Beetles were more than willing to fill.

The American Beetles isn’t just a story of poverty, though. It’s also a story of deception. It’s a band formed with jokey – if not slightly grifting – intentions, only to be sucked into a scam with mixed returns. But whatever the lessons of The American Beetles, one thing is for sure: they were a silly rock 'n' roll band taking a chance. And once the tour concluded, the presence of both 'American' and 'Beetles' in their name made getting any radio airplay a challenge. DJs apparently prioritised British groups, and the explicit parodic element made it hard to take them seriously as recorded artists.

They changed their name again to The Razor’s Edge and cut a single for Pow! Records in 1966. Success eluded them, however, and the band would go their separate ways by the end of the decade. Following the recent deaths of Tom Condra and Dave Hieronymus, the band’s drummer and rhythm guitarist, it’s up to Bill Ande, Vic Gray and their manager Bob Yorey to carry the legacy.

But for thousands of now-elderly Beatlemaniacos, The American Beetles will hold an enduring – and no doubt bizarre – place in their hearts.

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The American Beetles arrive in Buenos Aires in 1964
The American Beetles' extended-play released in Argentina by Disc Jockey, an independent label after their notorious 1964 South American tour. 
'Los Beetles americanos' E.P. liner notes are a lot of nonsense and misinformation. 

Carlos Guillermo Cimadevilla wrote on Facebook in October 2021: The American Beetles' Argentine release on Disc Jockey que era una discográfica pequeña creada por el DJ Rodriguez Luque y por lo visto se animaron a editar un disco de este grupo de Miami con ese nombre apócrifo The Beetles que se lo inventaron para traerlos a la Argentina, un verdadero fraude al público argentino creo que producido por Alejandro Romay

Tal vez el grupo no era malo pero se prestaron a este engaño que no se creyó nadie. Me acuerdo haberlos visto en la tele el mismo dia que los presentaron, no habian empezado a tocar y me di cuenta que no eran los verdaderos Beatles. No se que habran hecho en Buenos Aires ni cuanto tiempo habran permanecido aquí. Habran al menos gañado algo de plata con esta parodia? Se presentaron en vivo en algun lado? Estes muchachos ya deben andar por los 80 años, que historia tan curiosa.

Thursday 6 December 2012

BABY FACE, a short-lived rock magazine 1962

'Baby Face' was an attempt by São Paulo musician and TV personality Theotonio Pavão and his teen-age son Albert Pavão to compete with Rio de Janeiro's 'Revista do Rock' (Rock Magazine). There was a market for such a publication but due to Mr. Pavão's inexperience in the publishing field the magazine made in São Paulo had only 3 issues: August, September and October 1962

As one can see 'Baby Face' had a beautiful lay-out and it would have been  really good if it had had a longer span of life. The three issues were dedicated to 3 foreign acts even though Brazilian rock had its own native idols like Celly Campello, Carlos Gonzaga, Sergio Murilo, Tony Campello and others.



'Baby Face' # 1 com Elvis Presley - Agosto 1962.


# 2 da Baby Face com Neil Sedaka  - Setembro 1962.


3o. e último número de 'Baby Face' com Paul Anka na capa - Outubro 1962.


Devido ao grande sucesso da Revista do Rock, lançada em Agosto de 1960, e com alta vendagem em bancas de revistas espalhadas pelo Brasil, houve um tentativa em São Paulo, em 1962, de se fazer uma revista voltada para o mesmo público. 

Theotonio Pavão, músico e agente cultural, aproveitando a ajuda de seu filho Carlos Alberto Pavão Netto, mais conhecido entre a moçada como Albert Pavão, lançaram o 1o. número de 'BABY FACE' em Agosto de 1962, exatamente 2 anos após a Revista do Rock, de Jeanette Adib ter sido lançada no Rio de Janeiro.

Aí vai a 'ficha tecnica' da revista BABY FACE, que teve uma vida curta de apenas três números:  Agosto, Setembro e Outubro de 1962. 

BABY FACE

Redação e Administração:
Rua Diogo Vaz, 251 - Tel: 37-4864

Diretor Responsável: Theotonio Pavão
Redator Chefe: Carlos Alberto Pavão Netto

Colaboradores:
Persio Porto - Antonia Maria Pavão - Juvenal Fernandes - Maria Thereza Rizzo - Sonia Mária Cápua - Francisco Florencio da Silva - Rossini Pinto - Marly Miller (EUA) - David Daoud - (Argentina) - Antonio Carlos Gomes e todos os nossos leitores.






Friday 30 November 2012

REVISTA DO ROCK - Rio de Janeiro 1960


Brazilian rock had its first mouthpiece in 'Revista do Rock', a monthly magazine devised by  journalist and song-writer Jeanette Adib. It was composed and printed in Rio de Janeiro. Its first issue released in August 1960 had Elvis Presley on the cover.

Miss Adib had been in the music-reporting-business since the early 1950s, having worked for women's rag 'Jornal das Moças', then moved on to illustrated weekly magazine 'Revista da Semana' where she wrote leading articles about show business people like Elvira Pagã who claimed Elvis Presley had 'copied her style'; Chico Alves and the aftermath of his death; Noël Rosa's former partners' lack of inspiration after his death; Cauby Peixoto and the campaign of innuendos about his sexuality promoted by certain reactionary quarters around the nation; Leny Eversong's triumph in Las Vegas, USA; Angela Maria's desire to become a nun and Maysa's estrangement from her ex-husband. 

Jeanette also worked with 'Club dos ritmos' a lyrics-only magazine in 1956 and a did a column 'Vendo e ouvindo' (Seeing and listening) at 'Rio Magazine'. 

Circa 1957, Miss Adib landed a job with powerhouse 'Revista do Radio'. She was to manage one of their off-shoot 'Vamos Cantar', the leading lyrics-only magazine in the country. 

In 1957, owner-director Anselmo Domingos asked Miss Adib to do a special issue of 'Vamos Cantar' featuring only rock'n'roll lyrics. They were surprised how quickly it sold out at news-stands all over Brazil. Adib immediately realized there was a strong market for a teenager-oriented publication that had been completely overlooked by the experts in the field. 

Jeanette Adib saw a pot of gold at the end of the rock'n'roll rainbow and started working on the idea of herself launching a lyrics-magazine in which rock'n'roll would have a prominent place. First, though Miss Adib had to prove she could manage a magazine of her own so she made up 'Eu Canto', a lyrics-only magazine. 'Eu canto' became the new-kid-in-the-block by late 1958, competing with the likes of 'Vamos Cantar', 'Canta Moçada', 'A modinha popular', 'Melodias' etc.

'Eu canto' was such a smash that Miss Adib launched a second magazine in August 1960: 'Revista do Rock' catered for teen-agers & teeny-boppers and would last for more than a decade. 
Celly Campello & Sergio Murilo as the Queen and King of Brazilian Rock on the cover of Revista do Rock - February 1962.

In the early 1960s, Brazil had two main cultural poles represented in the cities of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo. Rio had been Brazil's capital for 200 years until 21st April 1960, when it was abandoned in favour of Brasilia. But Rio still kept a superior cultural infrastracture throughout the 1960s.

Rio and Sao Paulo had different radio stations, different hit parades and sometimes what played in one city didn't play in the other. Sergio Murilo, had been a child performer and still as a teen ager he covered an Argentine rock tune for Columbia called 'Marcianita' which went up to #1 in 1960. He followed it up with 'Broto legal', a cover of Arlene Fontana's 1959 hit 'I'm in love' and soon was considered Rio de Janeiro's 'King of rock'. Rio's 'queen of rock' could be either Sonia Delfino or Celia Vilela

São Paulo was a different milieu... Carlos Gonzaga, who was Black and older than the average heart-throb was actually the best-selling rock'n'roll singer making him a natural 'King of rock'. But that never really happened due to his being Black. Gonzaga was never crowned as King of Rock, full stop.
 Celly Campello on the cover of Revista do Rock  no.9 - April 1961.

Now, in São Paulo there was no doubt who the real rock queen was: Celly Campello, the one and only Celly hailed from a white middle-class family of Italian descent who lived in Taubaté-SP. She had a perfect pitch and could swing to boot. Celly was a natural and there would never be anyone like her. She retired at the 'mature' age of 20 years in April 1962, and married an engineer who worked for Petrobras, the Brazilian national petrol company. 
from left to right.: Lucio AlvesArmando Louzada, Célia Villela, Jeanette Adib and Ademilde Fonseca'Jornal das Moças', 5 April 1956.
Jeanette Adib at Radio Nacional (left); Miss Adb inserts her ballot for the Revista do Radio's Best of 1957 competition.

Jeanette Adib as a song-writer 

'Dê o fora' (Roberto Carlos-Jeanette Adib) recorded by Wanderlea in her 1964 EP for CBS 56154.

'Ouvindo o ring-a-ding' (Hey Ring-a-ding) (Eddie Curtis) originally recorded by Connie Francis on 9 January 1962 - adapted in Portuguese by Jeanette Adib - included in Meire Pavão's 1965 album 'A Rainha da Juventude' released by Chantecler CMG-2333.

'Eu não ligo, baby' (Ain't that better, baby?) (Cathy Lynn-Phil Medley) originally recorded by Connie Francis on 4 January 1962 - adapted in Portuguese by Jeanette Adib - included in Meire Pavão's 1965 album 'A Rainha da Juventude' released by Chantecler CMG-2333.

'A loucura das garotas' (Paulo Sette-Jeanette Adib) by Cyro Aguiar in 1966 for Continental Discos (CS-33-405)

'Receita para me conquistar' (Jeanette Adib-Aluizio) by Cyro Aguiar in his 1967 LP 'Inspiração' - Continental PPL-12.312. 

Revista do Rock #5 with Paul Anka on the cover plus Neil Sedaka and Elvis Presley inside.
Elvis, Sergio Murilo e Johnny Restivo, constantes personagens do Revista do Rock.

Revista do Rock no.10, May 1961; even though Philadelphia rock teen-idols never quite made it in Brazil, Miss Adib's 'Revista do Rock' always made room to show Fabian's good-looking face on its cover and pages.
Carlos Imperial, Neil Sedaka & RCA man Ramalho Neto.
Fernando Costa, Rio's local rock sensation;  Maureen O'Cannon's 'Oh, Johnny'.
'Revista do Rock' # 6, January 1961 with a heavily re-touched photo of Brenda Lee on the cover. 'RR' was really badly printed kids still hurried up to buy it at newsstands around the country. 
Issue # 10 showing The Platters singing at TV Tupi in Rio de Janeiro in 1957; plus Sergio Murilo & Sônia Delfino - the King & Queen of Rock of Rio de Janeiro. São Paulo had different royalties.
# 13 - August 1961 - Connie Francis.
Johnny Restivo # 4, November 1960Brenda Lee # 6, January 1961.
Frankie Avalon # 7, February 1961.
Sergio Murilo as seen by 'Revista do Rock' no. 7.
RR deves into Italian rock.
Celly Campello # 9,  April 1961.
Carlos Gonzaga holds his Chico Viola award... Elvis, the Pelvis in blue... 

Célia Vilela wears a blonde wig alongside her sister Marlene; Sergio Murilo's smiling face...
Sergio Murillo & Ronnie Cord at Teatro Record in March 1961
Paul Anka's at his parents' Sunday dinner...
Luiz de Carvalho & Ronnie Cord; Neil Sedaka & a Brazilian fan...
George Freedman reads RR and plays the guitar; Sonia Delfino's glossy...
Cliff Richard, Bill Haley, Cleide Alves & Ronnie Cord, Tony Campello # 11, June 1961.
Neil Sedaka 12, July 1961.
 Sergio Murilo # 14, September 1961.
Brenda Lee # 16, November 1961; Neil Sedaka # 17, December 1961
 Ricky Nelson # 18, January 1962; Sergio Murilo, February 1962.
Celly Campello & Sergio Murilo, February 1962. Renato & seus Blue Caps would have to wait another 3 years until the advent of The Beatles to get noticed by the public. 
Paul Anka # 20, March 1962Johnny Restivo, Celly Campello & Ronnie Cord, July 1962.
Chubby Checker # 27,  October 1962.
Suplemento de Revista do Rock  # 8, May 1962.
Miss & Mister Rock do Brazil competition. Here are the names and photos of 19 hopeful youngester who wanted to become Mr. or Miss Brazilian Rock:

1. Waldemar Ferreira da Costa; 2. Gelson Assis Dutra (alfaiate); 3. Roberto Alves da Silva; 4. Lucia Marcia Ribeiro dos Santos (Colégio Santa Teresa); 5. Ellen Farinazo; 6. Peter Fricke (estudante de contabilidade); 7. Renato Purchel (Niteroi); 8. Jose Fernando Barroca (torneiro); 9. Delcio Meirelles; 10. Accacio Paulino (tintureiro); 11. Marcio Tadeu Pires Afonso (auxiliar-de-justiça); 12. Silas Marques Peres; 13. Jorge Ney Lepesten; 14. Carmelina Ruz; 15. Idicéia Rodrigues Barbosa (estudante contabilidade); 16. Robson Ananias (dactilografo); 17. Sonia Regina Fonseca; 18. Mairanka (?); 19. João Alfredo Neto (Sorocaba).
Neil Sedaka # 30, January 1963.
Connie Francis, March 1963; Celly Campello on the back cover. 

Histórico da  Revista do Rock

O número 1 da Revista do Rock é de Agosto de 1960 com Elvis Presley na capa. Sendo mensal , a RR foi publicada de Agosto de 1960 a Novembro de 1965.

A partir do número 52 já aparecem na capa Agnaldo Rayol e Rosemary. A fase inicial é a mais interessante, pois as fotos que saiam dos cantores brasileiros eram da fase inicial do rock.

Publicação Mensal da Editora Rio Branco Ltda.

Diretora: Jeanette Adib

Redação: José Adib – (chefe) – Saldanha Marinho – Carlota – Van Gold – Carlos de Souza - Tesourinha

Redação: Avenida Rio Branco, 185/5º.andar – grupo 520 – Rio – Tel: 42-0319

Distribuidor exclusivo para todo o Brasil: Fernando Chinaglia – Rua Teodoro da Silva, 907 – Rio de Janeiro

Venda avulsa: Cr$ 20,00; Assinaturas: Semestral – Cr$ 180,00 – Anual – Cr$ 360,00

Tony Campello, Demétrius, Cleide Alves, Ronnie Cord, Carlos Gonzaga  nunca mereceram uma capa somente deles. Talvez tenha saído em alguma RR que eu não tenha. Mas como teclei acima, as que me faltam são já da época da JG. A fase inicial alguns cantores brasileiros apareceram na capa com outros cantores brasileiros e estrangeiros. Já Roberto Carlos merece uma capa, mas aí já está na época da JG.

Concordo que a coleção é um tesouro e eu também cortei vários retratos para fazer um álbum. É uma revista muito difícil de se encontrar em sebos.  A Revista do Rock era uma revista carioca, com distribuição para todo o Brasil, haja vista seu irmão comprou alguns números.

Considerações sobre a Revista do Rock e as várias fases do rock no Brasil 


A Revista do Rock pegou a parte do rock que nós, da 2a. geração do rock, mais gostamos.

Eu considero meu irmão Fernando, nascido em 1946 como da 1a. geração do rock, e nós, que nascemos no finalzinho dos anos 40 (eu em 1949) ou até 1952, como da 2a. geração do rock.

Meu irmão Osvaldo, que nasceu em 1953, eu já considero da 3a. geração do rock, pois ele já foi fã da Jovem Guarda, ao passo que nós, da 1a. e 2a. geração não fomos fãs da JG.

Que tal essa minha 'definição'?  Tirei agora da minha cabeça, mas faz todo sentido do mundo.

Conversava eu com um amiga sobre meu relacionamento com os fãs de várias correntes musicais. Eu disse a ela:  'Eu percebo que um cara é mais jovem do que eu quando ele gosta de Jovem Guarda!'  Se fulano/fulana gosta de JG é porque tinha menos de 14 anos em 1965.

Apesar da Revista do Rock ter terminado em Novembro de 1965, justamente quando a chamada Jovem Guarda começava seu 'reinado', ela foi 'ressuscitada' em meados da década de 70. O tamanho diminuiu e ficou como se fosse uma Vigu (Violão & Guitarra) ou uma revista Intervalo.

Elton John na capa da 'Revista do Rock' numero 6, de 1975, depois de ficar 10 anos sem publicação; a contra-capa ainda era azul e ainda trazia o Bill Halley, que nessa altura já não tinha boa saúde, vindo a falecer de ataque cardíaco em 9 Fevereiro 1981 em sua casa em Harlingen, Texas.

As reportagens dentro são: Black Sabbath; daí há letras de músicas de George Harrison (Ding dong), 'Fruto proibido' (Rita Lee), 'Soldier Boy' (Elvis) etc. Há 4 paginas só de Janis Joplin.  No centro da revista, há uma pagina dupla com foto do Elton John e mais 2 paginas com ele também.

A ficha técnica da revista:

Revista do Rock - no. 6 - Rio, 1975

J. ADIB EDITORA

colaboradores:

Luiz Pôrto, Márcia Santos, Fernando Mota, M.S. Mussa, Roberto Gouveia, Heraldo Costa.

correspondência geral: Caixa Postal 15014 - Lapa ZC-06
Rio de Janeiro-RJ 20.000

Na capa interior há foto de um número especial só com Beatles, tudo em azul, como nos velhos tempos.
Revista do Rock em 1964; ano 5 de existência; Paul Anka (old) & Rita Pavone (new). 

REVISTA DO ROCK  e  RITA PAVONE   1964 - 1965 

Eu me tornei fã de Rita Pavone em Junho de 1964, quando da passagem do Vulcão Italiano pelo Brasil. Foi uma pequena revolução em minha vida, pois desde 1963, eu estava mais interessado em cinema do que música.

Tudo que saia na imprensa sobre Rita Pavone eu comprava. 'Revista do Rock' sempre publicava algo sobre a Pintadinha, principalmente comparando-a com Brenda Lee. Como eu também gostava da Brenda, nunca desgostei da comparação. Afinal ser comparada ao melhor é um elogio.

Me lembro que em Janeiro ou Fevereiro de 1965, a Revista do Rock  publicou 9 letras-de-músicas  em inglês, que Rita tinha gravado em 'The International Teen-Age Sensation', seu LP norte-americano lançado no Brasil em final de 1964. Foi como se eu tivesse recebido uma benção dos céus, diretamente, pois nunca conseguiria entender todas aquelas músicas.

Até hoje não sei como a Revista conseguiu aquelas letras. Só faltaram 3 letras: 'Big deal', 'I can't hold back the tears' e 'Too many'! Daí eu passei os 20 anos seguintes 'caçando' essas 3 letras que faltaram. Rita 'assassina' o inglês, e é quase impossível 'tirar' letra em inglês ouvindo suas gravações. Nas musicas lentas, até que Rita faz um bom serviço, mas nas musicas 'corridas' (uptempo) é um desastre.

Ao final de 30 anos, eu acabei 'tirando' essas 3 letras quase por 'sorte'. A última delas, 'I can't hold back the tears' consegui completar há 3 ou 4 anos, quando, finalmente percebi que o que a Rita pronunciava 'braing', na verdade deveria ser 'bring' (trazer)... BINGO... consegui completar a letra inteirinha.

Em 'Big deal' a Rita 'massacrava' a letra. Mas, assim mesmo eu consegui tirá-la, talvez por inferência, pois afinal, musica-pop é, geralmente, previsível. A não ser quando se usa muitos nomes próprios como em 'Kissin' Time'; mas essa eu consegui através da gravação de Bobby Rydell.

Veja você que a 'Revista do Rock' oferecia um produto altamente especializado e importantíssimo. Para mim assim o foi, e creio que o mesmo acontecia com fãs do Elvis Presley, Paul Anka, Neil Sedaka, Brenda Lee, Bobby Rydell e outros.

Gostaria de deixar aqui um pensamento de carinho para com Jeanette Adib que tantos sonhos proporcionou às nossas vidas adolescentes. Como fui feliz lendo, relendo, recortando, colando a 'Revista do Rock'.
Montagem feita pela seção de Arte da 'Revista do Rock' em 1964, mostrando Rita Pavone, recortada da capa de seu 1o. album de 1963 e Paul Anka numa foto de 1962. Por incrível que pareça, Anka & Pavone acabaram gravando dois duetos nos estúdios da RCA em Berlin em 1964. 'Revista do Radio' não era apenas uma revista, mas adivinhava o futuro também.
Letra de 'Hey mama' e foto dos irmãos Tony & Celly Campello em azul; Fã-clubes aproveitavam as páginas da Revista do Rock para anunciarem de graça seus endereços.
capa (cortada) da Revista do Rock de 1966.
Jeanette Adib - editora da Revista do Rock - recepciona Connie Francis, tendo ao lado o empresário carioca Abraão Medina.
Lyrics-magazine 'Eu canto' had this special rock'n'roll-lyrics-only edition in 1959 and it sold completely out just like 'Vamos Cantar' had done in 1957. Actually, Cauby Peixoto's photo came from Jeanette Adib's archives as she had written an article for 'Jornal das Moças' - a 1950s women's magazine that Miss Adib used to work for.
1959's Rock-special-edition of 'Eu canto' had the same lay-out 'Revista do Rock' would incarnate 6 months later. Jeanette Adib didn't have to do much thinking about the lay-out of the new magazine she planned to launch in August 1960: a lot of lyrics, a lot of pictures even if they were not the best quality around... and a few biographies of heart-throbs and cool dudes.
Celly Campello, Tony Campello, Neil Sedaka, Elvis Presley, Brenda Lee, Paul Anka, Sergio Murilo, Connie Francis, Frankie Lymon, Frankie Avalon & Fabian. Where is Carlos Gonzaga? 

Brazilian rock had many phases. First came those old acts like Nora Ney, Cauby Peixoto, Agostinho dos Santos that eventually sang fox-trots. When Bill Haley & His Comets went to #1 in Brazil, multinational labels like RCA Victor, Columbia, Odeon (EMI) drummed up their staff to sing anything related to the new craze so Nora Ney was told to record 'Rock around the clock' in English but it could not compete with the original product. Agostinho dos Santos went a step further and covered Bill Haley's 'See you later alligator' as 'Até lógo, jacaré'... then Cauby Peixoto recorded 'Rock em Copacabana' written by publicity man Miguel Gustavo which is considered the first Brazian rock'n'roll.


In 1958, guarania-singer Carlos Gonzaga covered Paul Anka's 'Diana', which went to Number One all over the country. By mid-1959, an unknown teenager from Taubaté-SP covered Neil Sedaka's 'Stupid cupid' which was the best selling single of the year. 

Three years later, in 1962, an instrumental guitar-band called The Jet Blacks took a cover of The Shadows' 'Apache' to #1 and changed the landscape... every young man wanted to buy a guitar and become a rock'n'roller.