Caetano Veloso in London 1971

Caetano Veloso & his wife Dedé at Congonhas Airport in Sao Paulo on  15 September 1967. No one in his right mind would think 2 years later - 28 December 1969, Caetano would be abducted by a Brazilian Dictatorship para-military group and kept prisoner in military barracks in Rio de Janeiro & Bahia before being expelled from the country by the corrupt military clique.

9 December 1967 - Caetano Veloso weds Dedé in December 1967 in what was the wedding of the year...

Caetano in better times...

a gloomy Caetano Veloso on the cover of his album recorded in London.

Intervalo 6 June 1971 - columnist Mauro Ivan.

After returning to London, in July 1971, Caetano gave his 1^st solo concert in the city on Thursday, 15 July 1971. The concert was to help promote his 1^st London album, with the performance taking place in ‘the modest and cramped hall of the British Council Student’s Centre’ (The Guardian, 17 July 1971), at 11 Portland Place, just north of Oxford Circus. Here's the transcription of Intervalo's article:

Os ingressos para o show de Caetano Veloso em Londres, realizado na noite de quinta-feira  15 Julho 1971, no auditório do British Council Students' Centre, em 11 Portland Place, ao norte de Oxford Circus se esgotaram na terça-feira. Mais de 600 pessoas, predominantemente brasileiros, tomaram o local de assalto e aplaudiram entusiasticamente o artista durante a apresentação de 2 horas. 

A estreia destinava-se, declaradamente, a promover o LP recentemente lançado na Inglaterra e no Brasil. Mas Caetano cantou de tudo. Abriu a audição com ‘In the hot sun of a Christmas day’, seguindo-se ‘Shoot me dead’, ‘Asa branca’, ‘London, London’, ‘Maria Bethania’, ‘A little more blue’ e ‘If you hold a stone’. Isso misturado com numerous mais antigos de seu repertorio como ‘Triste Bahia’, ‘Cinema Olimpia’ e ‘De manhã’, e a apresentação de 2 novas canções que deverão figurar na gravação de seu próximo disco: ‘You don’t know me’ e ‘It’s a long way’. 

Depois de 2 horas, com um breve intervalo, a plateia ainda queria mais músicas, mas o show teve que ser encerrado, pois os funcionários do British Council Students’ Centre estavam impacientes – aproximava-se a hora do ultimo trem metropolitano para os que queriam ir p’ra casa.

O acompanhamento de Macalé, ao violão, foi o ponto alto do conjunto de Caetano. Moacyr Albuquerque também esteve bem no contrabaixo, e Aureo de Souza incumbiu-se da bateria e percussão. Caetano apresentou-se muito informalmente, vestindo uma camisa no. 10 do Clube de Regatas do Flamengo – aquela com que comparecera à estreia de Gilberto Gil, em março 1971. Vestia ainda uma calça de brim, tipo bombacha e calçava um tamanco Dr. Scholl. Acompanhou-se frequentemente ao violão, e estabeleceu logo grande comunicação com o público. Na parte final de ‘Maria Bethania’ fez uma longa improvisação marcada por prolongadas ‘mastigações’ e ‘gemedeiras’.

'Asa branca' de Luiz Gonzaga esteve muito presente nas intercalações que fez durante os diversos números. Essa mistura musical, acompanhando acordes semelhantes e fundindo canções aparentemente distantes, foi uma das características do show, e pelo seu caráter inesperado provocou reação muito favorável da assistência. Por exemplo, cantando ‘O que é que a baiana tem?' de Dorival Caymmi, ele encontrou uma ponte para algumas linhas de ‘El manicero’; durante ‘You don’t know me’, saiu-se com um trecho de ‘Eu quero é rosetar’ (Não me importa que a mula manque, o que eu quero é rosetar...) marcha de 1947 de Haroldo Lobo com Jorge Veiga, outro de ‘Canto de Ossanha’... e assim por diante.

Enquanto cantava, diante de um considerável grupo de brasileiros, Caetano pareceu, às vezes, emocionado, com muitas recordações musicais forçando passagem por entre as suas novas composições. Quando cantou ‘If you hold a stone’ (versão de ‘Marinheiro só’), foi alvejado com flores por um grupo de jovens brasileiros das primeiras filas do auditório. Antes de encerrar o show, devolveu algumas flores para a plateia. Depois, sentou-se pacientemente no palco, bateu papo com as pessoas presentes e autografou 30 de seus LPs, vendidos na hora.

A estreia de Caetano foi mais movimentada que a de Gilberto Gil. Isso explica-se em parte, considerando-se que julho é o apogeu da temporada turística, e muitos brasileiros que estavam passeando em Londres não quiseram perder a oportunidade de revê-lo. Aliás, a grande afluência de brasileiros chegou a dar a impressão de que Londres já oferece um bom mercado para outros artistas do Brasil. Além da flutuação da população de turistas brasileiros – em julho eles estavam desembarcando em Londres numa média superior a 500 por semana – a colônia brasileira permanente também vem crescendo muito ultimamente.

A próxima apresentação de Caetano está marcada para 22 Julho 1971, num festival de musica pop a realizar-se em York, no nordeste da Inglaterra.

article written O.P. do Valle for 'Intervalo' magazine  


Caetano had been exiled in London since mid-1969 after having been illegally incarcerated and tortured by the Military Dictatorship that ruled Brazil since April 1964.

Caetano's sister popular singer Maria Bethania begged the military authorities a special authorization for him to be able to be present in Salvador when their parents would celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary. This 'dispensation' was given half-heartedly by the government and Caetano arrived in Rio in early 1971 to be immediately arrested and taken (kidnapped would be a better word) by 3 military officers to a private apartment in Copacabana where he was grilled and threatened for 6 straight hours which showed that the regime was fragmented and not to be trusted even when they gave their word.

Caetano flew to Salvador where he stayed for a few days and flew back to London very frightened by the truculence of the regime.

Later in August 1971, Caetano flew in yet again to Brazil. This time he would take part in a special programme produced by TV Tupi in São Paulo with João Gilberto - who flew from New York for that purpose. This time he didn't have to go through the usual harrassment though which gave him hopes he would be able to return permanently some time in the future. The musical meeting with João Gilberto and Gal Costa was taped on 8 August 1971 and beamed on 29 September 1971.

Veloso flew back to London filled with hope and plans to come back and live in Brazil... and that's what he did in the 2nd week of 1972. This time would be for real. Caetano, his wife Dede and all the members of his band Transa arrived in Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday, 18 January 1972, in what turned out to be his definitive return to his country.

Brazil's leading contemporary folk-rock artist Caetano Veloso at Greater London Queen Elizabeth Hall on Tuesday, November 2nd, 1971; on the right: Caetano sings at TV Tupi on 8 August 1971 with João Gilberto and Gal Costa.

João Gilberto & Caetano Veloso in Sao Paulo 8 August 1971.

read more about his come-back-show at:

http://caetanoendetalle.blogspot.com.br/2016/09/1972-caetano-no-templo-do-caetanismo.html

Caetano Veloso was arrested in Sao Paulo, in the early hours of a Friday morning, 27 December 1968. He and Gilberto Gil were both transfered to an Army barracks in Rio de Janeiro and kept in different cells for 2 months. Then they were transfered again - now by plane - to Salvador where they were kept under house arrest for another 4 months.

The local military commander told them they would be expelled from the country. As they didn't have enough money to pay for their plane ticket the military authority allowed them to organize a last concert to glean funds at Salvador's Teatro Castro Alves that took place on Sunday, 20 July 1969, the same night Neil Armstrong would walk on the Moon for the first time.

read more at:

everything you've ever wanted to know about Caetano & Gil's stay in London:

https://theworldelsewhere.com/2015/10/18/london-london-brazils-caetano-veloso-and-gilberto-gil-in-exile-part-2/

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/jul/15/gilberto-gil-caetano-veloso-london

https://theworldelsewhere.com/2015/11/12/london-london-brazils-caetano-veloso-and-gilberto-gil-in-exile-part-3/

 25 April 1973 - After Caetano Veloso returned from his exile in London, UK, he had a series of clashes with his audience. This time he was booed by more than 6,000 people packed at the Tennis Club in Campinas-SP on 14 April 1973.  Caetano caused a negative reaction from the public due to his total lack of respect to them...

Intervalo 27 June 1971 - Chico Buarque comes out of his exile in Italy where he had fled after having been threatened by the Military Dictatorship covers Lucio Dalla's San Remo's entry 'Gesubambino' as 'Minha história'; soap-opera actor Paulo Figueiredo who supplement his earnings with week-end compering of debutant's balls tells his new methods of making his task a little more pleasant to himself and his audience.