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Originals from Sheila's Writer's Tapes:

Accompanying herself on guitar, vocalizing the melodies and improvising on the chord structure. These are before the addition of lyrics. I wrote a lyric for The Wonder of Life, which we recorded on the “Brasil, There & Back Again” album, and also released on the “Our Own Way” album. Sheila wrote this with Stevie Wonder in mind, with whom she recorded.

 "Angie,"  Sheila wrote for a newly born neighbor of ours while living in the mountains of Costa Rica. The little girl had a very Asian aspect, which I think Sheila captured in the song.

Sheila wrote "Esperança" while we were living up in the mountains of Costa Rica running a bee-keeping business.

In the final recording, found in the Our Own Way Vol.II, and also released on this website in Discography as" Brasil, There & Back Again", Sheila is playing the wood blocks. She said it was the sound of the horses cilp-clopping past our house. I wrote the lyric referring to a time when I had gone back to the U.S. to buy supplies for honey extraction. That bittersweet longing & hoping to make it back.

É Com Esse Que Eu Vou:

This song was dedicated to Elis Regina, from whom we learned it. It was released on our first album," Our Own Sweet Way", in cassette, but never re-released in our CD albums that followed. A singer with whom I play bass,  asked me, to my surprise, if I knew the song,. When I listened to this recording I realized that it deserves re-releasing. I sent her the song & a copy of our chart.

This was recorded direct to 2 track tape by Ron Davis at MasterTrack Studios in Hayward CA. in 1989.

 Carlos Oliveira is on guitar.

Paul Smith, Nov. 2012

Bodas De Prata Dourada

In 2001 Moacir Santos, our " Pai", was given a homecoming recording, Ouro Negro. The recording was done in São Paulo with all Brazilian musicians & singers, with the exception of one song where Sheila sings a wordless duet with the trombone in the first half of Bodas de Prata Dourada, the last song on disc 2. Moa wanted Sheila on the recording. There was no budget for her to go to Brasil.

Since it was to be a strictly Brazilian production, new Portuguese lyrics were written for the songs which had previously been recorded with English lyrics. Sheila's part was wordless so she passed the Brazilian requirement.

Most of the talent donated their efforts, Milton Nascimento, Gilberto Gil, Joyce, Donato, Djavan, etc. Sheila laid down the vocal track listening to a cassette of Moa playing the song on the piano at his house in Pasadena CA. We sent the disc to São Paulo with only Sheila's voice on it. Moa told us that they played it live with the band, not overdubbing it. He said she was a disembodied spirit in the studio. This followed our tradition of never overdubbing on all our recordings.

Body & Soul

Sheila  sitting in with Laercio De Freitas ,piano. Rio '73.

 

Donde Está el Amor (Where is the love)

Cherokee Studios, Hollywood '72. Spanish lyric, Paul Smith.

 

Eu Não Sou Agua

Clube A Fossa, Rio '73 Sheila sitting in on Paul's gig.

 

Good Bye LA

This was recorded for the 'Brasil, There and Back Again' album, originally released on cassette in 1990. Most of that album was re-released in the 'Our Own Way' trilogy on CD, excepting this and one other song. The guitarist, Ary Piazzarollo was our guitarist in Rio in 1973. The entire album is offered Here.

This is a highly personal song, saying goodbye to all our friends in L.A. as we prepared to go to Rio for a 6 month engagement. We rented an apartment near us in  Alameda for Ary, who stayed a month and a half, rehearsing with us and doing a few gigs with 'Viva Brazil'. When he had to leave we still hadn't recorded this song in the studio (MasterTrack, Ron Davis- engineer), so we recorded it at home with Ary, sending only the guitar to the mastering tape. Then we played that track in the studio and recorded with it. Ron Davis said he had never done that before. We weren't overdubbing, but playing with the guitar track. Ary was present, though disembodied. This goes out to Ricky, Sheila's brother, who wore the cassette out, and who loves this song.

Hay Una Rosa en el Barrio (Spanish Harlem)

(Spanish Harlem) Cherokee Studios '72. Spanish lyric, Paul Smith.

 

Hello:

by Sheila from the '73 concert in Rio, with Ary Piazzarollo guitar. Ary was the guitarist in the Fossa Band, and later recorded an album with Paul & Sheila "Brasil,There and Back Again" cuts from which can be found on their 'Our Own Way ' trilogy.

Here Comes That Rainy Day

A Fossa, Rio,'73.

 

I Get a Kick Out of You

Sheila with Laercio De Freitas,piano. Rio '73.

 

I Have So Very Much With You

Sheila and Yusuf Rahmann, the composer, Cherokee Studios. '72

Sacred Songs, music and words by
Jules Rowell

Jules Rowell, trombonist, composer, arranger, wrote two works for quintet plus singer: Sacred Songs, and music set to the poetry of E.E. Cummings. Sheila and I were on both projects.

The Sacred Songs collection was recorded in Ian Willson's studio on my digital 8 track Tascam. Initially it was never well mixed. As a result Jules had lost interest in the recording. Since I own the master, I decided to let Jeff Cressman have a go at remixing it . The results were so good that Jules now has been shopping the two projects to labels.

None of us had any idea of Jules' Biblical interest. None of us were born again Christians, but the quality of the compositions engaged us all.

Personell on this recording includes:

Jules Rowell, trombone & composer
Ian Willson, saxophone
Michael Bluestein, piano
Rob Gibson, drums
Paul Smith, bass
Sheila Smith, voice & percussion

No overdubbing was done. Some songs
are first takes. some two or three takes.

 

Paul Smith Sept. 10, 2012