Why is This Country Dancing?: A One-Man Samba to the Beat of Brazil

by John Kirch

Details the major aspect of Brazilian popular music and its relation to the formation of national identity in Brazil including a wealth of in-depth musical history about such sub-genres as choro, bahia, bossa nova, axe music, Brazilian jazz, and a retrospective on leading musicians. There are extensive portraits on great singers, composers like Antonio Carlos Jobim ("Girl from Ipanema"), and Americans such as Lyle Mays, Herbie Mann who have long been associated with Brazil's music.

Genres: Brazil

328 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1993

Reviews

[Mycala · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't find this book quite as interesting as the first one I read by him, Music in Every Room, and I didn't find it quite as amusing. Nevertheless it's a good book, I like his writing style, and I loved that each chapter had a playlist. It was really cool to have music to read along with and I learned about some musicians I hadn't heard of before.