Nuggets II: Bat Macumba by Os Mutantes

The success of Rhino’s 1998 Nuggets boxset justified a follow-up. The sequel covers the rest of the world since the first volume only chronicled the USA.

Nuggets II: Original Artyfacts from the British Empire and Beyond, 1964–1969 emerged in 2001. It features music from countries such as Iceland, Uruguay, and Japan. I’m profiling and rating each of the 109 tracks, working backwards.

Track 95 – Bat Macumba by Os Mutantes

From: São Paulo, Brazil

9

Credits

4/15. BAT MACUMBA – Os Mutantes (Brazil)
(Gilberto Gil/Caetano Veloso)

PERSONNEL/RITA LEE: vocals, flute, percussion * ARNALDO DIAS BAPTISTA: vocals, bass, keyboards * SERGIO DIAS BAPTISTA: vocals, guitar
Producer(s) unknown
Recorded in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil
From the album Mutantes, Polydor #44-018 (1968) [Brazil]

Os Mutantes

Brazil’s Os Mutantes are one of the more prominent bands on Nuggets. They’ve released ten albums and reunited in 2006 for intermittent new albums and tours. They enjoy famous fans like Flea and Kurt Cobain.

The band was formed by two brothers – Arnaldo Baptista (bass, keyboards and vocals) and Sérgio Dias Baptista (guitar and vocals) – with lead singer Rita Lee.

Arnaldo and Sérgio’s brother, Cláudio César Dias Baptista, built many of their instruments and electronic effects. Most famously, he created Sérgio’s Golden Guitar (Guitarra de Ouro). Through TV appearances, they met prominent Tropicalia musician Gilberto Gil.

Formed in Brazil in 1966, Os Mutantes were the junior beat group enlistees of Tropicalia, a movement of Brazilian modernists that included writers, actors, visual artists, architects, and pop musicians/composers such as Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, and Tom Zé. The work of the Tropicalia musicians aimed to subvert the traditionalist ideals espoused by the country’s right-wing military government.

Young and audacious, Os Mutantes could be considered the psychedelic chapter of the Tropicalia tribe. Based around the core trio of brothers Arnaldo and Sergio Dias Baptista and singer Rita Lee, Os Mutantes released five albums between 1968 and 1973, infusing bossa nova and Bahian carnival rhythms with electric rock instruments, Beatles-esque orchestrations, and sound effects. Their lyrics–most often in Portuguese–were often sharply critical of the establishment; the poetically encrypted messages are masked with humor and sealed inside delicious pop melodies.

Mike Stax, Nuggets II liner notes

Bat Macumba

‘Bat Macumba’ is drawn from the band’s 1968 self-titled debut. It was co-written by Gil, who also plays percussion.

Caetano and I sat on the floor of his apartment, on São Luis Ave. in São Paulo, composing music. We wanted to make a song that was stripped-down, something that could be sung by a non-musical group, something tribal, that would be related to a symbol of our popular culture, such as ‘macumba’- this term that represents all African religions (non-Christian), which Oswald de Andrade had used.

Gilberto Gil, Todas as Letras

It represents a collision of styles. Take away the fuzzy, tremelo guitar leads and it could be a traditional song. Instead, the guitar fights for attention with the harmonised vocals, creating a unique sound.

It’s fascinating and there are enough ideas for a long career.

The Aftermath

Sérgio Dias Baptista is still the leader of Os Mutantes. Arnaldo Baptista left the band in 1973 over band conflicts and a struggle with LSD use. Rita Lee was married to Arnaldo Baptista, but left the band in 1972, the year the couple divorced. She enjoyed a successful solo career before passing away from lung cancer in 2023.

Read More

• Nuggets Song by Song
• 1960s Album Reviews

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