Quim Barreiros

Quim Barreiros stands among Portugal’s leading Pimba musicians, celebrated for his exuberant musical arrangements and risqué lyrics. He entered the world in 1947 in Vila Praia de Âncora and commenced accordion lessons at eight years old with Sr. Lomba. During his formative period he performed on both drums and accordion in dance ensembles, absorbing the popular and folkloric repertoires of Portugal and Brazil. In 1968 he enlisted in the Portuguese Air Force, serving several years with the Air Force Band before his discharge in 1974. His accumulated skill soon secured engagements at Portugal’s most prominent Fado venues and restaurants. Through collaborations and sessions with the country’s foremost guitarists and composers, he quickly gained recognition as an emerging figure of note. His recording output commenced in 1971, yielding nearly sixty releases throughout that decade alone. The 1980s proved far less productive, resulting in just six new albums, whereas the 1990s and 2000s saw him issuing multiple projects each year. Across his body of work Barreiros became known for deftly absorbing contemporary pop currents while maintaining lyrics of pronounced hedonism. Early on he integrated the prevailing dance idioms of pop, rock, and disco; in later years he incorporated reggaeton. Double entendre and references to the female form recur throughout his songs, as do motifs of drinking and an untroubled existence. His 2007 album Use Alcool—whose title translates as “use alcohol”—cut when he was sixty, attests to both his enduring career and steadfast allegiance to the celebratory ethos.