JOYCE, NANA VASCONCELOS & MAURICIO MAESTRO - Visions Of Dawn

Despite the trio billing and the outstanding ensemble playing throughout, for all intents and (collectors') purposes, this is Joyce's great unreleased record from the mid-'70s. All three were graduates of Luis Eca's Familia Sagrada that toured Mexico and produced the legendary (and insanely arranged) La Nueva Onda De Brasil. Recorded during the same European stint that produced the beautiful Passarinho Urbano, this album was recorded in Paris but never issued until now. An excellent transitional album, Visions bridges her folky psych-samba of the early '70s and points to the dancefloor jazz heights she would achieve with 1980's Feminina after hooking up with future husband Tutty Moreno. The legendary Nana Vasconcelos handles percussion duties and keeps things dreamily atmospheric, occasionally ramping up the energy on tracks featuring Joyce's emerging scat singing style. Thanks to Far Out, the only full-length that remains unreleased from her first decade of recording is the Claus Ogerman-produced Natureza from 1977. Don't miss her when she makes her Canadian debut this summer!