Gal Costa
(born Maria da Graça Costa Penna Burgos
on September 26, 1945 in Salvador, Bahia) is a Brazilian singer of popular music.
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Early life
Gal Costa was born on September 26, 1945 on Barra, one of the most traditional neighbourhoods of Salvador, to Mariah Costa Penna (d.
1993) and Arnaldo Burgos (d.
1960). During her pregnancy, Mariah spent hours concentrated listening to
classical music, as in a ritual, with the intention that her child would become interested in music. Gal never met her father, who died when she was 15 years old.
When she was 10, Gal befriended sisters Sandra and Andréia Gadelha, future wives of
singer-songwriters
Gilberto Gil and
Caetano Veloso, respectively. At 14, she first listened to
João Gilberto's "
Chega de Saudade" on the radio and became interested on
Bossa Nova. She then went to work as a clerk on Salvador's main record store to get closer to music. At 18, she is introduced to Caetano Veloso by Andréa Gadelha, engaging with him in a deep friendship that still lasts.
Career
Costa debuted her professional career on the night of
August 22,
1964 on the concert
Nós, por exemplo
, where she performed alongside Veloso, Gil,
Maria Bethânia and
Tom Zé, among others. The concert inaugurated the Vila Velha Theatre on her hometown. On the same year, she also performed on
Nova Bossa Velha, Velha Bossa Nova
, at the same place and with the same singing partners. She then left Salvador to live in the house of her cousin Nívea on
Rio de Janeiro, following the footsteps of Bethânia, whose concert
Opinião
had become a huge hit on the town.
Costa's first professional recording happened on Bethânia's debut album, released on
1965. It was the duet "Sol Negro", written by Bethânia's brother, Caetano Veloso. She then released her first singles through
RCA Records, "Eu vim da Bahia", written by Gil, and "Sim, foi você", written by Veloso. On the following year, Costa met Gilberto personally and participated on TV Rio's 1st International Music Festival performing "Minha Senhora", written by Gil and
Torquato Neto. It failed to captivate the Festival's audience.
Costa's first album
Domingo
was released on
1967 through
Philips Records. It was also Veloso's debut. Costa stayed on the label, which later became
Polygram, until
1983. One song released from this album, "Coração Vagabundo", became a huge hit. On the same year, Costa also performed two songs on the 2nd International Music Festival, which was then hosted by
Rede Globo. They were "Bom Dia", written by Gil and
Nana Caymmi and "Dadá Maria", written by Renato Teixeira. The latter was performed with Sílvio César on the Festival and with Teixeira on the recording.
In
1968, Costa became a part of the
Tropicalismo movement. She recorded four songs on
Tropicália: ou Panis et Circenses
. They were "Mamãe coragem", written by Veoloso and Torquato Neto, "Parque industrial", by Tom Zé, "Enquanto seu lobo não vem", by Veloso, and "Baby", also by Veloso. The latter became Costa's first nationwide solo hit, becoming a classic of
Brazilian popular music. On the same year, she participated on the 3rd International Music Festival, performing "Gabriela Mais Bela", written by
Roberto and
Erasmo Carlos. In November, she participated on
Rede Record's 4th Music Festival, performing the song "Divino Maravilhoso", by Gil and Veloso. The song also became a nationwide hit and a classic song of popular music.
On
1969, Costa released her eponymous solo debut album, which included "Baby" and "Divino Maravilhoso". The album is considered a Tropicalismo classic, balanced between Brazilian stylizations and North American psychedelic influences. It also featured Costa's third and fourth solo hits,
Jorge Ben Jor's "Que pena (Ele já não gosta mais de mim)" and Veloso's "Não identificado", respectively. On the same year, she recorded her second solo album, titled
Gal
, and featuring the hits "Meu nome é Gal", by Roberto and Erasmo Carlos, and "Cinema Olympia", by Veloso. The album served as the basis for the repertoire of the concert
Gal!
.
Her next album,
Legal
, was not as out-there as its predecessor, and a live album the following year again balanced smooth Brazilian sounds with heavy rock. In 1973, the cover of Costa's album
Índia
was censored due to her wearing a risqué red
bikini. Costa has recorded songs composed by a number of Brazil's most popular songwriters such as
Tom Jobim, Ben, and
Erasmo Carlos. In 1982 the single "Festa Do Interior" from the double album
Fantasia
became her biggest ever hit, going multi-platinum by the end of the year. Costa appeared in the 1995 film
The Mandarin
(
O Mandarim
) as the singer
Carmen Miranda. She has recorded songs in Portuguese, Spanish and English.
Discography
- 1965: Maria da Graça
(EP)
- 1967: Domingo
- 1969: Gal Costa
- 1969: Gal
- 1970: Legal
- 1971: Gal a Todo Vapor
(live)
- 1973: Índia
- 1974: Cantar
- 1975: Gal Canta Caymmi
- 1977: Caras e Bocas
- 1978: Água Viva
- 1979: Gal Tropical
- 1980: Aquarela do Brasil
- 1981: Fantasia
- 1982: Minha Voz
- 1983: Baby Gal
- 1983: Trilha Sonora do Filme 'Gabriela
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- 1984: Profana
- 1985: Bem Bom
- 1987: Lua de Mel Como o Diabo Gosta
- 1990: Plural
- 1992: Gal
- 1994: O Sorriso do Gato de Alice
- 1995: Mina D'Água do Meu Canto
- 1997: Acústico MTv
(live)
- 1998: Aquele Frevo Axé
- 1999: Gal Costa Canta Tom Jobim Ao Vivo
(live)
- 2001: Gal de Tantos Amores
- 2002: Gal Bossa Tropical
- 2004: Todas as Coisas e Eu
- 2005: Hoje
- 2006: Gal Costa Live at the Blue Note
- 2006: Gal Costa Ao Vivo
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Filmography
- 1995: O Mandarim
as Carmen Miranda