Now in his mid-eighties, composer, arranger, multi-instrumentalist, and all-around visionary has entered an agreement with England's wonderful . Their initial project with him was the first-ever release of the stellar , in 2017. He is overseeing the reissue of his / -produced 1970 self-titled debut album, and provided them this tape: the first-ever release of 1981's . It is among the first concerts by 's long-lived supergroup, who would come to be known simply as "O Grupo." plays saxes, flutes, bass horn, and piano, and he's joined by drummers/percussionists , , and , bassist , keyboardist , and soprano saxophonist/flutist . This show took place at Rio's Planetarium in 1981. It was their coming-out party; the band had spent months practicing seven days a week, and wouldn't record in studio until later that year. Much of the material here is previously unissued. This soundboard tape is more than 40 years old. 's restoration is remarkable. While some instruments are a tad unbalanced, fidelity is excellent. He went to great pains to preserve the gig's raw atmosphere and the band's knife-edge drama. The opening medley of "Paz Amor e Esperanca" and "Homonimo Sintrovio" lasts more than half an hour. The former, which appeared on 1980's , begins with spectral improvisation from melodica, horns, and droning keys before 's bass horn, and the drummers kick it into gear. It flows across samba, free jazz, and fusion for the next 18 minutes, creating a tapestry of spirited interplay. After flute and keyboard solos, the previously unissued "Homonimo Sintrovio" whispers in with folksy soprano sax lines, Rhodes piano, and syncopated percussion before exploding into an orgy of rhythm. "Samba do Belaqua" offers reedy post-bop horns up front, balanced by a groovy Rhodes piano integrating killer melodic improvisation and quotes from -era . 's tenor solo is resonant, colorful, and complex. He introduces the previously unreleased "Bombardino," an elegant exercise in improvised jazz fusion welded onto electric samba. The composer's oft-covered famous "Sao Jorge" appears in a killer medley with the funky, then-unrecorded jam "Ilza na Feijoada," offering an amazing soprano solo. Set closer "Jegue" commences as an astonishing 7/4 samba, juxtaposing complex lyric and dissonant harmonies inside a melodic vamp suggesting the era of and . The interactive polyrhythmic invention and interplay is labyrinthine; it surrounds the front line and bathes them in joyously syncopated pulses. offer striking call-and-response conversation before moving toward swinging post-bop. is a grail for fans of and vintage Brazilian jazz. This music is presented as wooly, raw, joyous, and virtuosic. This band not only fired on all cylinders here, they created wildly inventive new directions for electric samba, Brazilian jazz-funk, and '80s fusion. ~ Thom Jurek