Riachão

Riachão ranks among Brazil’s foremost historical sambistas, sharing that distinction with Batatinha, Walmir Lima, Ederaldo Gentil, Nélson Rufino, and Edil Pacheco as the finest exponents of Bahian samba. During the 1940s and 1950s he enjoyed success as a radio performer while also appearing in the films A Grande Feira, directed by Roberto Pires in 1961, and Pastores da Noite, directed by Marcel Camus in 1972. On the album Diplomacia he joined Batatinha, Ederaldo Gentil, Nélson Rufino, Walmir Lima, and Edil Pacheco to salute Batatinha with a rendition of “De Revólver, Não!” (Batatinha/Walmir Lima). The 2001 documentary Samba Riachão, directed by Jorge Alfredo and screened at the Film Festival of Brasília, honored Riachão in turn; Caetano Veloso—who scored a hit with “Cada Macaco no seu Galho”—along with Gilberto Gil, Dorival Caymmi, Tom Zé, and other admirers offered heartfelt tributes.

His distinctive songwriting style established him as the musical chronicler of old Salvador, Bahia’s capital, where he documented every notable event in the city’s life, among them the fire at Mercado Modelo (“Incêndio do Mercado Modelo”), using the rhythms of Bahian samba and plain, popular language. Further illustrations appear in “Retrato da Bahia,” “Bochechuda,” and “Papuda,” works that earned him the Gonzaga trophy. Born and raised in the Garcia neighborhood, he began attending local serenatas and batucadas at age nine and wrote his first samba at twelve. In 1944 Rádio Sociedade engaged him for a vocal trio on the Show Pindorama program; Antônio Maria introduced him as a solo singer with “Vida da Semana,” prompting Riachão, under Dorival Caymmi’s influence, to concentrate on samba. Following Caymmi, he became the next Bahian composer to place material in Rio during the 1950s when Jackson do Pandeiro recorded “Meu Patrão,” “Saia,” and “Judas Traidor.” Eraldo Oliveira later cut “A Nega Que Não Quer Nada,” Maria Inês recorded “Terra Santa,” and additional artists took up “Vamos Pular, Gente” and “Vá Mamar em Outro Lugar.”