Milton Nascimento: 'Courage,' 1969

On Creed Taylor's birthday, a fresh listen to one of the last albums he produced at A&M

Today is the 97th anniversary of Creed Taylor’s birth. I interviewed the record producer for JazzWax about 30 times, starting in 2009. Nineteen of those interviews were biographical. After Creed died on August 22, 2022, I combined all 19 parts into a tribute post here.

Creed began his career at Bethlehem Records in 1954, moved on to ABC Paramount in 1956, started the Impulse label at ABC in 1960, became head of A&R at Verve in 1961 and joined A&M in 1967. When Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss moved A&M to Los Angeles, Creed stayed in New York and worked out a deal with Alpert and Moss to transform his A&M imprint— CTI—into a stand-alone company. CTI and its subsidiaries Kudu and Salvation would wind up being among the best-known jazz labels of the 1970s. [Photo above of Creed Taylor in the 1960s]

One of the last albums Creed produced for A&M under his CTI banner before going out on his own was Milton Nascimento’s Courage. Recorded on Dec 19, 1968 and February 26 and 27, 1969, the LP was arranged by Eumir Deodato and featured a massive orchestra. In many respects, it’s among Deodato’s masterpiece recordings. Courage was Nascimento’s first album recorded in the U.S., and his second LP overall.

Nascimento, 83, is a Brazilian singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He has recorded 32 studio albums and has won five Grammy Awards. Born in 1942 in Rio de Janeiro, Nascimento never knew his mother. A single mom and a maid, she raised him until she died of tuberculosis when he was 2.

His maternal grandmother took in Nascimento, who was soon adopted by the relatives of his grandmother’s former employers. His stepfather was a bank employee, math teacher and electronic technician; his step-mother was a music teacher and choir singer. Nascimento grew up in the city of Três Pontas, a municipality in the country’s southern Minas Gerais state, and was attracted to music at a young age.

At 4, he was given an accordion and began to sing. At 13, he sang for the group Continental de Duilio Tiso Cougo. Nascimento was also an occasional DJ on a radio station that his stepfather once ran. As an adult, he moved to Rio.

His songs include Nada Será Como Antes (Nothing Will Be As It Was), Maria, Maria, Canção da América (Unencounter), Bailes da Vida and Coração de Estudante (Student's Heart).

Courage has a rich, textured feel that’s peppered with percussion and softened with flutes. Despite the many musicians on the recording, the music has a breezy, elegant and wide sound. Nascimento’s singing style is distinct, featuring a forceful, emotive baritone that could swing high for a falsetto.

The tracks:

• Bridges

• Vera Cruz

• Tres pontas

• Outubro

• Courage

• Rio Vermelho

• Gira Girou

• Morro velho Catavento

• Cancao do sol

Though Creed signed Nascimento to a three-album deal, Courage is the only one they completed. My guess is that Creed’s sudden move to establish CTI combined with Nascimento’s desire to return home to Brazil nullified his contract.

Back in Rio, Nascimento recorded in earnest, returning to the U.S. periodically to work with Wayne Shorter and other jazz and pop stars. These gems include Milton (1976), with Shorter; A Barca dos Amantes, with Shorter (1986); Yauaretê, with Shorter and Herbie Hancock (1987); Miltons, with Hancock (1989); Angelus, with Shorter, Hancock, James Taylor and Jon Anderson (1994); and Under Tokyo Skies, with Hancock (2010). And, of course, Shorter’s Native Dancer (1975). Nascimento’s most recent album is Milton + Esperanza, with Esperanza Spalding (2024).

Today, Nascimento lives with family in Brazil , where they announced last year he had been diagnosed with dementia.

To listen to all of Courage, go here.

Here’s Bridges…