Gilberto Gil

see the topography. And the other thing is I was asking whether they had daylight savings time in Rio de Janeiro where they turned the clocks forward, and my driver said, oh, of course we have that. It ended in February. I was too stupid to realize everything's reversed. They had summer. Now we're going to falls behind the right. I'm here in our head, here on a beautiful fall day in the hills of Rio de Janeiro, where Gilbert though has an office complex in a studio, and it very much

reminds me of a fall day in Los Angeles. Certain moods, certain lights, certain smell and it has me in a mood. And I'm learning so much and we're gonna learn some more. From Joberto so Gilberto. When did you decide you wanted to make music for a living? I was very young. Uh. My mother used to tell me a story about when I was two of age, two years of age, and and she asked me what I was going to be when a growing up, and I responded to the answered a musician. And then she took that in mind, and

then she was always watching me. And then when at the age of nine she sent me to a music school. Okay, but you're an age too. What did your father do for a living, and what do you do for work? There was a doctor? What what kind of doctor? He was a physician? Okay, So in America that's a North America because we're in America here too, North America, a doctor is a upper middle class profession and the same thing here is good. There was enough money growing up, etcetera. Yeah,

he was. He was an upper middle class, uh person. And by the standards, by Baya Brazilian bayas standards. Then in ninety nine when when when he graduated and and and then he went to the to the countryside in Baia to know to start we start his profession. Don't forget I'm an American So I'm ignorant if I'm in real audition. Earrow, where is Bahia? Bahia? Same Atlantic coast

north going north? So if if if you consider the whole Atlantic Brazilian coast going from thousand to to Amazon, right is in the middle, Okay, and how far is it from Rio de Janeiro to thousand and two point five thousand kilometers kilometers? So that's point six and that's like twelve miles. That's far it's and it's Bahia's huge. Yeah, that's what people don't realize. You look at a map, most of South America is Brazil. It's the same size as the continental United States. So it was by here

in a big city. It's they initial the founding city of Brazil. You know, when the Portuguese arrived in in fifteen hundred, they they spotted an interesting place to have the boats and everything to you know, the bay right Salvador is a bay like Guadabada here in Rio, it's also a bay. So it's a beautiful bay where the Portuguese arrived and then installed themselves there and they started

the city. And then that's the city of Salvador, the capital at a capital of the state of Baia and then the historical uh city you know, was the first one, you know, so it predates rial yeah game before Okay, so you're two years old. Did your parents play a lot of music in the house. No, not at all. You just woke up one days I'm gonna be a musician. It came from the radio, from okay, from from from listening to the radio. The radio was the only thing we have. The funny thing is, for those of us

at a certain age, radio is still the thing. I remember living in Connecticut and you get a transistor radio and you put it under your pillow and you listen to the baseball game and then the Beatles hit and you listen to music, music and football here in Brazil exactly in it to sue the little village in in the countryside where my my father went with. Okay, so how many children in your family? To me and the girl?

And are you the oldest of the oldest the one year it is your sister still alive, she's she's alive, and the parents gun but your their mothers sister. What is her life like now? She's quiet, you know, at home because she couldn't work anymore, and everything. And but she went to school with me, and then she she did the high school, and then she she did the university. She she graduated. She was a dentist. Really. Yeah, so when your how old? Your mother sent you to music

school when I was nine? Okay, Now, usually in America and EA, it's about sending your kids to take piano lessons. Okay. Then in my case was accordion. Okay, but you had to learn how to read music. Yes, so you learn that. Yes, you still know how to read music, not necessarily because I gave up, abandoned to to to have the tuitions, you know, for for playing accordion and everything. It was necessary to have theoretical knowledge about music and everything and everything,

and I took it. And then my first four or five years with music was playing learning how to play accordion, and then knowing a little the the theory, no musical theory. Then later when I gave up the accordion to to take the guitar, I then I thought myself, you know, okay, without why the accordion because it was very um how to say, a very remarkable uh instrument In terms of

our culture. We lived in a region where the Great, Great great master of music, you know in pop music was a guy named Luis Gonzaga and and his instrument was accordion. So everything we were listening in, you know, in the radio and in the houses and yeah, yeah, he was big. He was the big star. He was the Did you ever go to see him perform? Yeah, And that was an inspiration for me. That was exactly who I I decided to take the accordion. After I went I went to an open air concert that he

gave him in Salvador by yea. And then I said when I got home, I said to my to my my people, I want to play with the instrument he's playing. And then my mother said, okay, I'm I'm gonna stay to school. This is if you were of a certain age or a baby boomer and you're in your sixties. A lot of people started picking up the guitar when they saw the Beatles. Okay, so you're playing the accordion. Do you ever have doubts and say, I'm not really,

I don't really like this? He little, Yes, I I because especially because of the of the the way the school you know went for me, I mean, with a lot of of of of exercise, and theoretical uh lessons and things and things, and in the repertoire that that was not necessarily you know what I wanted. I had to play many classical pieces and and and you know

European classical pieces and and everything and that. Okay, I liked it because I like music, but it was not my not the cup of tea, you know, not not my cup of tea. And then when Jon Hubert too that you of course you know who he is. He started the Bostonenva playing guitar thing. You know, that was a staunching that was absolutely no amazing and and and and what year did Bosonova started in Britain And then I took the guitar myself. When did Bosanova become a

big sound in Brazil? Fifty nine sixty okay, so it's like a year too late in the United States. Yeah, did it hit there when they went to the Carnegie Hall, famous legendary moment. Wh it was bossa nova an interestant success in Brazil? You mean now, no, INFT nine, No,

that was starting. That was the first record that was released, you know, Jean Hubert to singing by me, Tristez, South Daddy and Joe being Joe don't you Bean's song, and then that became very popular, and then the following no records and things became very big, and so and so and so, and then Bosanova became uh uh uh something you know, big in Brazil and not only here but then the world. So you literally Bossonova hits you to say I'm done with you accordion guitar. That's that was okay,

But meanwhile you're continuing to go to school. Yes, yes, because it was project. The family project was that I would become a doctor, right right, like an a nice Jewish boy. First first my father wanted me to be a physician like himself. And then I said no, no, no, no, no no, no, Papa, impossible. And then uh they were starting uh new uh school of Administration Business and Public Administration. And then I said, I go, I go for that.

And then I went to the university to do business administration and you got a degree, got a degree for yours later. And then because of that degree, I went to I came to some powow in Real to work as as a trainee for the unilivery International company. You know, okay that as a as a business at that time, do you still believe you're going to be a professional musician.

I wanted. I wanted very much. I kept that desire inside inside, and of course I was looking for the opportunities to, you know, doing Okay, at what point in your success did your parents accept that you were a successful musician and be proud of you after the second third year? Because I stayed as a as a as a as a businessman. This is po and for two years and then I started going places, knowing people, meeting musicians and everything, producing my stuff at home and everything.

And then I I had I was ready to to start. Right then I I wrote to my father. I phoned it, but I think I wrote him because he he had no telephone at home in in the in the little city where he lived in Baya. Then I wrote him a letter saying, Papa, now I'm going to do my dream. I'm going to go to for my dream. I'm going to be a musician and everything. I know it's hard, but anyway, I'm gonna try. And then he was a

little skeptical, but then came one first hit. One first a song I have to ask you, and then she and then both him and my mother accepted. She has accepted already because she was the one that had put the accordion and the guitar in my hands. You know, he was a little more, you know, reticent, but reticent. When you quit your job and you want to be a musician, do you ask your mother for money? Yes? What does he say? He said, you see you see

I was telling you it's it's it's risky. You're not you're you're not able to you know, toget a living anything. I said, yeah, Papa, but I'm gonna try. Can you help me? And he said, okay, I'll help you. But he did he put a time limit on it. Did he say, I'll help you for two years then back to you the level? No, no, no, no no, he said, make a good news of this money that I'm sending you.

You know, provide your your your needs, you know, provide you you're you're living, get well with your family, and give you your trying go for you try with music. If it doesn't succeed, we we we're good at see you're listening to Gilbert. Though Jill, who was excommunicated from his own country, went to London in the early seventies, was influenced by reggae, came back to Brazil, had a huge hit with a cover of No Woman, No Club.

Will be back in a moment. Hey, it's Bob and I host the Bob Left Sets podcast on tune in. Each week I welcome innovators from the worlds of music, tech and media to join me in the tune In studios. From Shirley Manson, lead singer of the band Garbage, to Nathan Hubbard, the former CEO of Ticketmaster and stealth innovator in the ticketing space. We discussed their backgrounds as a means to understand how and why they became successful, leaving

an impact on the world as we know it. Check out the Bob Left Sets podcast on tune in and now back to more with the Gilbert though Jill on the Bob Left Sets podcast. So you quit your job at you and the lever before you were successful at music. So how long after you quit didn't start to work? Two to three years between two What was the key to making it work? It was the success of a song in a context that we had then in in a big, big television network, you know, presenting artists, new

artists doing new songs. You know and everything, and one of those songs became very You wrote the song. I wrote the song, and I performed the song. You were on the televisions. How did you get on the television show? I was asking too. So you didn't have a manager, You were just doing it yourself. I was. I was when I when I was in in in the union leaver job, and as I told you, I started going

places and seeing people for meeting musicians. Some of those musicians, some of those artists were already you know, big so sussful, and one of them, at least Regina, a big, big singer, a female singer, very important. I was sent to her house someday to show her some some songs because she was she was going to record the next songs, you know. And then she said, okay, I will take you to my to my show, to my television show, and so she did. Okay, it worked out that. I have to ask.

You got your degree in business administration. Did it help you at all in your music career? I think so, especially in terms of the running the administration ing of my career, because at first, in some Paolo I took somebody as an agent too to take care of my I of myself and of my bookings and and things, you know, and my my my relating to the media

and so and so and so. But then with the experience I had, not that necessarily the experience, but with the knowledge you know, that had about business and everything that had acquired at the university, I told myself, can I I think I can go by myself, you know, running my my own thing. And then I did and I started my own small company. And it's been so like that, you know. Okay, so for fifty years, you never had a manager, you know, yeah you're the manager. Wow,

But you had did you? In terms of a booking age, of course, I have a have a group. I have it. Of course you're not doing a team. I had my wife for instance, that takes care of the whole you know, office thing and never but but I the last word is my word. And in terms of booking gigs, you also do that in the house, yes, yes, yes, our

our our office. It's a it's a compound that that includes the running of the career, the booking of the career, the the the relating with the press and and everything. The studio where we are now here also where I rehearse our record and everything. It's been like that for for a long time because most musicians from that era can tell stories of getting ripped off by management accountants. I guess if you're ripped off, you don't have to

plang yourself, not necessarily my case. My case was more of a of a of a natural you know, personal impulse, no need, a personal desire to to to to to to give chance to the studies that I had done at the university. So like that, you go on the television show and you perform your song. What happens after that? After that I started to be you know, popular, and the record that came from that, So you made a deal with a record deal with a record company. I

that big success was recorded. Other songs also were recorded, and I did my first album. You know, my first first album was what year? N fifty six? Noh, pardon nineteen sixty Yeah, I think it terms that makes sense in terms of switching from accordion to guitar. So you make your first album and it's successful immediately in assess, yeah, and some not not not huge success, but successful sufficiently to you know, to keep a career to to you know,

why do you say, why do you think it was successful? Novelty? You know, the elements, the new elements that we brought in in that song. You know, the subject of this song, that the sounds that we provided with the guitars and and and with with with the the arrangements, you know, and also the singing was a different way of singing it,

you know, but it was it was a novelty. You know. Well, that's very interesting because that's the whey it was in the old day, whereas everything sounds just like everything else today. Um so is that your personality? Are you always testing limits and trying to change things and not be like everybody else? To a certain yeah, to a certain extent, yes,

I I was not. I had the feeling that you know, in this life, in this in this living time, we have to contribute as much as we can, you know, with with with things, with with provocations and with you know, uh, it's delationing different elements, you know, in in especially if if you talk about culture and about music, it's something

very you know, moving all the time. So whenever one guy or one girl has that kind of feeling that, you know, contribution may be given, maybe possible from from their work, they go in for for it, and that was exactly what happened. I said, okay, Um, I sing a little differently, I play a little differently. I have some new ideas about you know, subjects for for for new songs and that kind of thing. And then I I I, I said, okay. And now at some point in this story they put you in jail. What year

do they put you in jail? Then in nineteen sixty eight the system, the political Okay, before we get to sixty eight. What happens between sixty two and sixty eight just more and more success a more and more success, okay, and to the point that we we started a movement, me and Kitanolso and God cost Uh and some other artists.

We start a movement that came to be called tropically a tropicalism, and that had, besides being musical, was also a cultural movement, UH enforcing the the the new possibilities of the new theater, of the new UH literature, you know, the new cinema and and and that kind of thing. So it was a huge movement and and of course it became something okay when the the detectorship took place, you know, the military guys, you know, seized power and

installed the very very repressive system. So they went for everything that would not be that wouldn't be you know, so before but going back to specifically what you're saying, this was a very turbulent time around the world. There were student protests in France, we had English music, we had race riots in the United States. To what degree were you influenced by that? For the topically small book,

of course, a lot a lot. Music was not just music the Beatles, I mean the importance of the Beatles, all the Stones or the Grateful Dad or whatever, you know, the Jeffersonette playing all those groups, you know, Bob Dealon and Jimmy Hendrix. I mean the influences of those artists

who are not just musical. They had a lot to do with with new visions and you know, new ways of considering society and and and in costumes and you know, different ways of living and supporting in somehow supporting the revolutionary movements in all in all directions, in different directions, you know. And that, of course, it was very influential on on ourselves. I mean, despite the fact that we had a military regime to protest against here, but I

mean the influence coming from outside. I mean the new spirit coming from from youth. You know, that's very well articulated. That's what people who didn't live through the era didn't know. If you wanted to know what was going on, you listen to the radio, you listen to the music. It told you everything about the culture. But to what degree were the Beatles, the Stones, Jefferson Airplane, Bob Dillon, to what degree were they successful in Brazil? Very success, very

because successful? Yeah here? And did they ever come any of those acts to play live? They were that at that time they were not sort of still coming to perform in Brazil. Know that that that that that the Bridge and American groups started coming here is something that came later, came exactly after I was excited in London.

In London, yes, I went to v to see many many counters concerts, and and I went to see I remember that they went to the lycee Um to see uh John Lennon and Yoko on or doing their performance, you know, for for for for Christmas in nine in nineteen seventy and I went to see Bob Dylan at the Isle of White. I went to see Jimmy Hendrix councils. I went just at the round House. I went to

see different places in London. So that experience of being directly influenced by bye bye bye, by contact who let's go back artists, that came after the accident, let's go back the government arrest you? Yeah, what do you think? Mm hmmm what I What I thought? Then? What I think? What I thought? Then? Wow? Was I was? I was so mad, you know on a side, and and so so scared on the other side. I mean I had a mixed mixed of of of of being scared and being mad. So did you think your career was over?

Do you think you might die? E? Whow? First they imprisoned us, No, they jailed us. Okay, before you did you know they were going to imprison you? I was expecting from the atmosphere, from the general atmosphere and the increasing of their you know, hardline process. You know, I had a feeling that some how things were going to be to be. Did you ever think of exiling yourself so you wouldn't get arrested? Not? Not then? Not yet. No.

I was keeping my my work here. I was saying, Okay, let us see how the situation developed, and then then they came one day, they came to our place and said, okay, you're gonna and they take you to jail with what we say in America, the general population with all the other criminals. No, No, we were political cold prisoners. Yeah, political prison in in in in headquarters, in the me headquarters. Really the government was a military government. So you're there.

How long before you're exiled? How long? How long were you in jail before you left the country? Three months? And during that three months months in jail after they they they they sent us to our places with in a situation of harm, imprisonment in Baia for six months, and then they said go out of the country. And then they so they said if you leave, okay, do

if you leave it, that's okay. What do we can't allow to you is to come back, you know, to your natural situation of being a performer and making trouble here and you know, talking to the public and that sort of thing, giving interviews in the press and that kind of thing that you cannot If you can go wherever I go, no problem. So you went to it. Were you happy with that necessity? Yes? Because I mean that was the way to get rid of the of the torch, you know, so you go to London. Yeah,

do you have any money? No? No, no, no money. The family here it was to collect was left to collect the rights, the music right that we had then you know I had some already at that time, and send us to to intend us in London. So the first let us say, the first year in London, I was living with you know, my my my money coming from Brazil, from our you know, when you go, when you go to London, you're a star in Brazil. Does anybody know who you are in London? Yeah? Okay, so doors,

doors start to open, Yeah, there's start open. So this is in sixty nine, July sixty nine, the day I I got to London. That's the very day the rolling stunts were doing the Hide Park, right right after Brian Jones. Yes, yes, the doves free, etcetera. I arrived in London and I remember, well, going coming to the airport to the hotel we're going to be, I saw the park, I mean the leftovers, you know, Ken's and garbage and everything in in in the in the in one sector of the Hyde Park.

And then I asked the driver, what's what's going on. Why you know that? He said, it's just the Rolling Stones concert that happened. You know that, and you know that was finished like two or three hours ago. So you land in London, how do you penetrate and get involved with the music scene there? First in terms of recording, the possibilities of recording and everything. Our company here, the PolyGram, a company here got in touch with their their puls

and their guys. Remember who was running PolyGram in London. Then no, they get in touch with the guys from PolyGram on PolyGram that they couldn't properly. They themselves do not take care of our of our of our stuff in London, didn't They askd Famous Music, famous music and labor Famous Music part of Paramount and then Ralph Mas was in charge of of of of famous music in London, and that was the guy you know that took us

to the studio and started doing things. Planned a recording, did the recording, did the release, and then I released my My, My album in London. So when you were there, was your intention to make music for Brazil or to make music for the rest of the world. Mixed mixed feelings about I was, of course, I I had to to stand for my my Brazilian you know, character and and everything. Was a Brazilian musician recently living the country and everything. So I was a lot compromised with with

with the Brazilian thing. But at the same time I had I had a feeling that, you know, I could do an international thing. I could somehow try and an international career. And I started doing it. I started going to Europe, you know, to perform in Switzerland, in France, in Germany. You know, now, did people already know you there or you felt if you played you'd be good enough to build an audience? I know, I had to

build an audience. I was not artistically artistics Artistically, I was not knowing, no, no, no. I was a little known in some circles and some restrict circles in in in Paris, and and and in London and Berlin, and and and and other places in Spain by the fact that that we were victims of the of the repression and the dictatorship here. Yeah, so you end up working with some famous musicians while you're in London, yeah kind

of yeah, yeah, yeah, we went. One of the things that I used to do was going places to see performances, different performances from different artists, and then I got acquainted, you know, with with some remember Jimmy Capaldi for instance, the drama for of course Traffic. He became a friend at Terry Read Terry Reads, Terry Reading McCabe's. That was a real real friend. I mean, do you know to come to my place, you know, every week and I would go to his cottage, you know, in the countryside

in England. And David Gilmore from from from Big Floyd and and many many, many, many different paths that you know, we were able to do. You think they were friends because of your winning personality or because of your music position physician physicians. Yeah, so your music opened the door.

But now didn't you also record with Jimmy Cliff That was later, That was late when I got back from exile in Brazil already because reggae music was something that I I had the contact with in London, and yeah, it was big and it took. It wasn't until about nineteen seventy eight that Bob we had the Johnny uh suddenly from Johnny Nash, who had I can see clearly

now in Rain is Gone. What are the great records of all time, but in reality, even though they kept saying that Bob Marley was signed with Blackwell, was black Well? He was on island and they did and and and and then then c Clapton recorded was seventy four, Okay, the end of seventy four, that was the hip of

people in America still didn't know what reggae was. So the first album comes out you because I was, as I said, you were in London, but in America we catch a fire and then they had burned in and then I rost them on vibration. Then they had the live album from the Lyceum in seventy seven. But it wasn't until about seventy eight with Doublon by Bus that all of a sudden I followed all of that right because I was a follower of reggae already in Brazil,

you know, since I nineteen seventies three. At seventy four, when I came back here and then I got the song uh No One to Cry. I wrote a version of Portuguese version for for that song with the direct translation or new lyrics directors a little adapted to the Brazilian Was it successful? I was talking about the main points in the Yeah, so was it successful? Here? Who was big? The biggest I ever done? Really I've ever made? Yeah? Because No Woman, No Cry. That's my favorite Bob Marley song.

Never a hit in America. Everybody knows it now. It's kind of like the It's kind of like the Doors that led Zeppelin. You know, they haven't made any new music for decades, but everybody knows. Okay, So you're in You're in London until what year, seventy two to seventy two. Then I came back too. I was allowed already they calm down or the government changed the government. They were still military, but you know they started an opening. Okay, So when you were in London, when I was in London,

I got the news. Now, probably you can't come back. They're not going to put you in jail again. They're gonna allow you to start a little you know, but can you make entry re establishing your career here. So if you if you want to come, come, but that they also say, don't make any trouble some to some, but you're a troublemaker. No, no, no excuse. So when you come back, do you make trouble? The recording of the song No Woman no Cry at the time of distinction.

You know that that's the word I forgot, distinction, you know, no distinction in distinction the system and everything that would that that song contributed a lot to the you know, to this opening to the Okay, So you did a version of No Woman, No Cry when you were still living in London. No, that's when you came back. I came back and then I met Jimmy Cliff here for the first time. Actually, Jimmy had a great version of of Yeah, of that songle and that was the one

I heard first. I came to listen Bob Maley's version later when I did the version in portug the Portuguese version I was based on on on Jimmy version. Okay, So when you were in London for three years, did you want to come back to Brazil? Are sure? Sure? We're missing the family, missing my my first two daughters. You know that I had to live here with my with my parents, and you know, Okay, so you come back.

So in the three years you are in England with the Polygraham UK, you make in roads around you, you make in roads around the rest of the world. So it's still going up and you go back to Brazil. You have an immediate hit with no woman, no cry, So you're bigger than ever. Yeah, what's the next step?

Next step to suggest to proceed, just to go go on doing things, one record after, you know, after the auto one record, and then another record, another record, one hit here, one hit there, and everything, and then years passing also the time passing by, and and and and and and and of course I became established artists as I am to And to what degree once you were back in Brazil, did you work in the rest of

the world. Pardon you, what do you mean exactly what you're now in nineteen coming background, you know, after you come back to Brazil, Yeah, in ninety two. To what degree are you working in Europe and the US? To a certain degree, not as much as I started to work after I went to the Montree Festival in Switzerland in nineteen seventy eight, because then I really had European doors open, you know, in a in a very extensive

sense so to my music. And then I started performing regularly in five six different towns in France, five six different towns in in Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, and so I was able then after after nineteen. I was able to travel for two months and perform every every every every two days, ever, two nights, ever, two evenings in different places in in Europe. And then that that because became a solid European career as well as in the States. I started coming to New York to perform. Who brought

you to New York? Brought you to the States, the same people that brought me to Monterrey. My my my record company, people Warner brother ness We so we heard again, yeah, the distribution arm It's brother He brought me to montre and so he knew Claude and he said you got to put him off. Yeah, sure, and so we we credit Nessary for your international career. Sure, absolutely absolutely. And then she said, now it's time after Europe. Now it's America.

So you had to come to America. I'm gonna find a promoter, I'm gonna find a book king agent for you here. And then they started booking me in Washington, in in In in Chicago, in New York, in Miami, in Los Angeles, in San Francisco, and places where I still go very often. You know, now there are a lot of people live in America. When you first come

to America. Is it mostly Brazil at expat Brazilians or is it not necessarily No, I started having audiences, you know, local audiences all over you know, and how how important is it? Right? How important is it to you to be successful outside Brazil? It's always important a musician that you know, has music as as his you know, to his instrument, his element, to contact, you know, to get across musical messages and and and not just musical messages,

but messages in general. I mean, it's very important that we have an international always say the same thing. A real artist likes an audience more than money. That's it money, secretary, But there's some money is just to survive, right, All giences is to live or it's like, uh, a friend of mine booked Oprah Winfrey. You know who Oprah Winfrey is? Yes? No,

do you know who Oprah winfre Okay, we never met? Okay, so president, but I know Oprah ended her TV show and she was playing arenas and a friend of mine was booking it. And they say, why does Oprah have to work? As David letterby saying Oprah has all the money you No, No, he says, no, where he can get that amount of love that hit unless you play live.

But he got twenty thousand people cheering for you and saying exactly, still valuable, It's still worth you know, listening to somebody like hair and and it's it's still worthful hair addressing some people. So, but you're in Brazil. In America, generally speaking, artists is successful for three to five years. Then there's a new crop of artists, but you continue

to be successful. I come from a time in history, you know, as as an artist, where and where things were a little different from you know they are today. Establishing something was was important, you know, not just for for the artists or the record companies, but also for the public. The public like it to be, you know, to be to be with the ones, to be standing for the ones that they couldn't agree more, you know,

but public wanted that. And you think the public had their space to do that because they were not bombard by by new stuff, new musical bombs and as we are today, I mean we had we had time and space the time economy. No, I couldn't agree with as I said, you would be in yours to to to to to settle. You know, you bought a record and you couldn't afford every record, and you came in your bedroom and you played that record again and again and again.

It's not like today with the whole history recorded music, is that your fingertips not no, no, And with the the internet, music shops and and everything that you can you know, you do your lists and everything. I mean, it's it's completely different today, totally different. So you know, they want to be faithful. I mean, like the public who wanted you know, that kind But do you think the public still feels that way. It's just they're bombarded.

Some especially the older generations, they stand for that style of of of you know, of being fans and in appreciating music and everything. Then new kids forget. I mean, they go with the tides. You know, you're listening to the legendary Gioberto Jiel, superstar in Brazil. We'll be back in a moment. I hope you're enjoying listening to this episode of The Bob Lefts Podcast. If you want to see videos and photos of our guests, go to at

tune in on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Let's dive right back in with my guest Joberto Jill on the Bob Left sets podcast. So you end up working in the government for a while. Yeah, how did that come to big? Oh? One day I was president Lula had been elected. So what year is this? That was two thousand one, two thousand end of two thousand one, two thousand two, uh,

and he had been elected. In one day. I was on stage in some Paulo um uh sound checking for a concert and then I got a call and that was his secretary. They had you met him previously? Oh? Sure, I had met him, sure during the campaign. And I had been following his career because he wasn't a worker and he was a labor you know man for for for a while, and then he became a politician and then he ran for for for president for three times and lost, and then he went a fourth time and

he he succeeded. He was elected. Then that day he was that call from him from his secretary saying President Lula. Yeah, he was good to be inaugurated like three months later in January two thousand three. And then he invited me to go to Brazilia and to offer me the Ministry of Culture. And then I pondered, then, no, they are start pros and cons and and that single, and I decided to go and I went. I stayed there for six years with him. Okay, when you were the six

years there, to what degree could you pursue music? Of course I could. I could have my guitar with me whenever I went wherever I went, and I I made a deal with the with the the government that I I could perform. I could keep performing, uh as far as I could, you know, yeah, time, Yeah, I had

time for that. And then every every year we had we were allowed one month off the government job, and that I took those went on the road to go to the States, to Europe and everything, and here in Brazil, every weekend or whenever I wanted, at the weekends, I would go places and perform, provide that I was performing by my own you know, costs, and not doing not not performing for for public. So what did you show? What did you learn working six years for the government.

What I learned that is very first that that's very difficult government job. Government job is something very difficult because of many factors. First money, first, the budget, you know, in in in a country like Brazil, for instance, you know, with a with a little tradition of of of of of of of really having money for you know, for the public thing. It's very short the money that you can have, especially if it's a minister of like like the one I went, you know to run culture, minister

of culture. It was very little money. That was one factor that you know, made the thing very difficult. Second, the politics themselves, you know, different parties, different people too too, to attend different people to to satisfy different different you know, and a huge uh condition of Brazil as a country, you know, many many different areas two enchy and such an states, different states, difty five thousand municipalities, and and and and and and it was very difficult, you know,

it was. But anyway, we we we succeeded to do something. We did something. So if you had to do it all over again, would you still take the job because because I'm I'm, I'm it's a different moment, I am too old, or we forget forget that if you were the same age again, if we could go back in time,

back in time, of course I would I would accept. Okay, So what because that was a natural impulse that I followed, you know, a natural inner thing that I followed that it is studid with me I mean, I'm I'm sticking to my nature. So uh you if you were famous for being the opposite of a lot of old I don't mean the ural, but a lot of institutional people. You were for creative comments, you were all about the internet.

How did you come to those beliefs through natural inter connecting, interchanging with life and you know, with new technologies and new um and concepts about about what is necessary to provide as a as a as a government. You know what what what's what's the task of a government, especially in the democracy, when we can you know, have different ideas, different people, different uh ways of of of of viewing

the world and everything. So the new ways of and in one thing, I as an artist, especially in those times with when I was, I had to to sort of oppose myself to the dictator of ship and everything and the exile and everything. I learned too. I learned to respect youth, to respect the new things in in in life. I developed a big respect for new things in life. I think that new things do not that come through technology, through science, through you know, uh uh

different forms of knowledge and everything. That's very important. That's what you know that that what's pushes so I had well a little and I took some some of those ideas and some of the projects that we had around to the gut. Okay, once a little bit slower and a little bit deeper. What made you realize you have to get into new ideas and you have to embrace the future. What made me too? I don't, I don't. I don't know if I if I had, I can recollect in terms of memory. Let me put it in

different Let me put it in a different way. Uh. There are many people who love rock and roll but hate but hate hip hop? Are you the type of person when there's a new sound you say I like the old sound, or you say, well, let me see what's going on on the new side. Even if I don't like, I respect the right of existing, the right of being. You know, I respect differences. This is something that I learned in life to respect differences. You know, I am different from you, But it's not because I'm

different from you that I have to eliminate you. Right. So what are you most proud of? What you accomplished?

Working for the government, we had a project named cultural hot Spots that we were able to spread over Brazil that would would be uh, the calling of the communities, especially poor communities and especially very distant communities in the country to come and participate culturally and have and and and and and and start playing with computers and starting have broad band, you know, to uploading download things and everything.

So the hot spots where you know, designed to do that, and we were able to have three point five thousand hot spots in Brazil in that period of six years, and uh, you know, some still doing very well. You know, they were very helpful in in in in bringing people to to to do different things, to to include themselves culturally, you know, to come from from from the very far away places, you know, and have a role in the in the cultural uh, the whole cultural thing in Brazil,

in the country. And I am very proud that project. Okay, as we sit here, President Lula is supposed to turn himself in to go to jail. What do you feel about that? I feel so many different things. First, I feel very sorry for him and for ourselves because it's a very interesting man that had done a very interesting job for the for for for our country. Um and and of course I mean he he's been child you

know by justice in Brazil. With some and and just the justice in Brazil had has some some arguments, you know, and they have some after all, they they have collected some reasons to put him, to send him, you know, in prison um, which are very sketchy, sketchish, you know, And so I feel I feel sorry for for all

of that. I hope, I hope that either staying in prison, oh getting out, he will be able to stand you know, for his strong characters as Okay, it's an interesting this, it's a learning experience being an American in Rio, Brazil. Although we get we get a certain amount of news. But before I came to I tend not to be a paranoid person. But before I came here, high profile people in the music business said very dangerous, don't leave

the hotel without security, etcetera. I thought they were fearful Americans. But when I talked to people in Rio, they say, it is dangerous. Okay, So what is the future of Brazil. I hope we we're gonna be able to overcome this degrading there's a degradation that we live now in terms of society socially, you know, with the whole differences that

we have today. I mean the injustice, the social injustice that we've been having with bad distribution of wealth and and that up to thaying I mean access of education, excess of UH to health care and that kind of thing. I mean that makes Brazil, I mean this this dangerous place that we have today because poor people not assisted, not not attended, you know. Um, so crime becomes an alternative, an easy alternative. Crime is something very very very strong worldwide.

You know, the connecting networks. You know that the crime networks are very very big all over you know, so for for for for for a, for a for UH and then not none attended population. You know, crime is becomes a very easy alternative, you know, and that makes makes a place danger as as as we have today

in this is the way out to Dame Brazil. In other places we have different forms of danger, like in your country and right the things of the guns and well, in my country there's a lot of crime committed by white collar community and there's very rarely a penalty. But in the UK and in the US there's a camera everywhere. So certainly, certainly over the past few decades, the murder rate has gone down because the economy has improved, in most big cities. But if you're a blue collar person

and you do anything, they have a recording. We used to say tape. Now it's on hard drive, so you know, it's almost like a TV show. Somebody steals it. Let's go to the tape. There's always a tape. But it would it doesn't seem to be that way in Brazil. Doesn't seem to be like they have a camera everywhere. No, we as comparing no with with with with the States, with with your country. I mean we are we are under under under under development in various in many various sense.

You know, we have a lot to to to do. We have a long way to go. I mean, uh, how our foundations are historical foundations are very different from from the ones and from my body has told me how they're different. Oh, you had you had a colonizing

process that was quite different from from ours. Uh you were you had Bridge colonnaders, you know first, you know, coming from England to do a different thing, to prove that they could build a new society, you know, as a strong or even more strong than they had the English such the British society and everything. So they had to kind of a proud, you know, a pride and and and and and and and that sort of thing. They colonizers that came to Brazil, they came to to

rip them off, to rip and that mentality remains. Someone told me a Brazilian a driver said that Brazilians tend to look out for themselves and say, what what can I do for me? If it hurts somebody else, They're not that worried about it, not in some senses. But but we we also can be a very generous, uh people. It can be so at this point in many, many,

many different ways we can know about our houses. Well certainly have opened their hearts to me, but you know, my view is relatively limited to supposed to someone lives here. So you mentioned to me earlier before we were on Mike that you personally had an experience where you were robbed, your family was robbed. Mm hmmm. It was not recently. It was a couple of decades ago, a couple of decades.

But do you ever think of because of the social political situation in Brazil, do you ever think of moving to another country? No, No, I've been to other I was in London, right, I was in England, you know,

during the exile. I was spontaneously in l a for almost two years when I I decided to go there, invited by Sagimendous to do an American record and everything, but never really thought about living Brazil, you know, um and because I think that facing difficulties and and and and and in danger and and and accepted, you know, unbearable situations, there is something that you can always have anywhere. And the first time I was robbed was in London

and and what what what was it? I went to the ground Scotts that you might have heard about, very famous London nightclub, Jazz Scott and Scott the Sacks playing exactly club there. I went one night to see, if I'm not wrong, it was Sundra okay that was performing there,

legendary Arry Sundra. And entering the the club, I was grabbed by two young guys and with the with the knife and then you know, they menaced me with a knife and everything, and they mhm inside in my pocket, you know, hands inside my pocket, took my my wallet, took my money, run away. And that was London, so they say it could happen anywhere, and that was what they were getting money for drugs right m that's a

whole different topic about legalizing drugs and reducing crime. You know, we're making some progress with marijuana and America and America. Too many people are in jail for drugs who shouldn't be. But the federal government right now is fighting. It's a crazy situation. We don't have to talk about crazy. United States is. But at this point in your career, are you still excited about making new music? Yes, yes, but a little more selectively. You know, what does that mean?

More selectively, less frequently, less frequently, um attending to more special requests, you know, a little more like very So. How many live dates do you do a year now? I do around fifty, when I used to do a

hundred twenty. And you do it for the rhythm, for the emotional experience, or you do it for the money, mostly for for the experience, for the for the pleasure, you know, for the the nourishing of my You've been doing it a long time, and I heard this question asked if John bon Jovi, of all people recently, do you remember a specific gig that was like the greatest gig for you? Difficult one at least two or three and What made those so special, Uh that the music.

Sometimes I mean they're performing properly speaking. Sometimes I mean the delivering, the playing, the singing, the band, that kind of thing in the old giance and and their reaction.

But sometimes the situation in the general sense. One of these memorable performances that I have in mind that you asked me about is the one in nine when we had already asked to leave Resil for the exile and we were allowed to do a farewell concert in Baiya and then we did, you know, and it was ten o'clock in the morning of Sunday, real real music time,

music time, and and it was incredible. I mean, you know, the the the the warmth, and and and and and in in the it's no words, you know, no words, I can get the emotion. Just yeah, you're saying, you know, to to a level that it's absolutely impossible to describe in words. Now, if you're at home, you obviously are making your own music. And A C. D. C famously said they didn't listen to anybody else's music. But do you listen to other people's music? And what are some

of your favorite musicians or records? I still like very much. I had some old rec is that you know, Oh I'm old to you can mention the role, yeah, exackly bye bye bye bye bye. Miles Davis for instance, kind of Blue, kind of Blue and Bitches Brew? You like it's that I that I I bought when I was in London. That was exactly when he released bitch Brew when I was arriving in The funny thing was because we were talking also off Mike about the Fillmore East.

Laura Nero, who was a client of David Geffen. She used to play at the Filmore ultimately every Christmas. But I went to see her in June, June of seventy and the opening act was Miles Davis playing Bitches Brew. Now, if you look at that record today and you look who's on it, we didn't know anything. We're sitting there waiting for Laura Nero. But I think John McLaughlin was in the band. Everybody was in the band was unbelievable. The Brazilian to any other records that you think of, Oh,

Jimmie's records, Jimmie Hendry's records, Molly's records. Can you mentioned a specific uh, Jimmie Hendricks or Bob Marley record or song Bob I would I would go what for for Oh Babylon Baby bas would be okay, But I think that catch a Fire would be okay one of the first third up studio up one of these things. Um from from Jimmie um Boda's Lovely six nine Yeah yeah, and from Miles I have already mentioned um Deylon's songs and records and and in Brazil. I mean so many. Okay.

So when the time you have left on this planet, which is not infinite because none of us are gonna live forever, any any specific thing you would like to accomplish, or any goals left unfulfilled that I haven't already. Yes, No, no big ambitions left. I mean I think that the main targets have been you know, hit and and the main desires have been satisfied. They're not I'm I'm okay, I'm I'm the little um ambition that remains. It's related to this day to day kind of you know, needs

that we have. We have to have to be clean. I love, I love to be. You're wearing all white today. I love certainly look clean and sound clean to be, you know, but a little perfume you know, I like to to to eat mhmm, not not much, but you know, I like the way they cook our food at home, that kind of thing. I I still like to go sometimes, go to go to the States, go to to Japan, go to Africa something. Um. I think that that in October,

I'm going to India for the third time. Uh. That those things, and watching the kids growing, watching the the family, you know, becoming grown up to them stafflished themselves. Yes, and and and have been starting to have to do with life problems been right right right, They see how hard it was, Yeah, and that sort of thing. I mean in the since I'm okay, I'm I've been, I've been, Um,

I mean fred you know, okay. In nine seven, James Taylor put out a record called JT Switched from Warner Brothers to Columbia, and the last song on the first slaught side was called the Secret of Life, and he said, the secret of life is enjoying the passage of time. Yeah, you have a lot of perspective. Any secrets of life you can inform my audience. Just the minute to minute, our to our day to day, year to year thing.

You know, it goes and it goes and goes, and you you you go adapting yourself in several terms and physically, mentally, you know, emotionally you go, you go, adapting to whatever life offers O impose to you. You've been listening to the astounding Gilberto Jill, who started talking about the impact of music beyond the actual notes on the audience in the sixties, and you can see he's still that gentleman who looks at the landscape and says, Hm, this is

my perspective. And if you've been listening to this point, I know that your perspective had been widened. Thanks so much for being on the podcasting to thank you and your audience. Once again, that was Gilberto Jill. I know your head is spinning as mine was when I was in the hills of Rio de Janeiro listening to him talk about his life, his politics, even being in the government of Brazil. Until next time it's the Bob left Sets podcast. M h. I can think of me reason and I don't know me exactly.