Milton Nascimento & Lô Borges – O Trem Azul
Here in the States, it’s almost time for Memorial Day weekend, which is the unofficial start of Summer for us (even though it doesn’t actually start until June 20th)…but I’m not ready to give up this Spring. While we all know that eventually things are going to turn unbearably hot here in SoCal, right now we’ve been in the midst of breezy and cool May, almost an early version of June Gloom (a title I’ve always disliked, since the weather is like this all the time and I love it, but then again I’m depressed, so I’m used to “gloom”), with temperatures in the 70s and cool air all around. The kind of feelings generated by this kind of weather tend to be as breezy as the wind. Musically, there might not be a better representation for how this period of time feels than “O Trem Azul,” from the landmark Clube Da Esquina album released in 1972. Though credited to Milton Nascimento & Lô Borges the album (which I’ll likely feature here at a later date) is really a collective effort from the whole “Clube,” or collective of musicians associated with a particular location in Minas Gerais. Of late, I’ve had this on repeat, which involves a bit of effort, since until I got this post together I only had it on vinyl, so I’d have to get up and start the needle at the beginning again and again and again. But as soon as the song starts you understand why, and also why it so perfectly fits this moment of the year in LA.