line up 1  

- Marco Antonio Fernandes "Nescau" Cardoso -- bass, backing

   vocals

- Pete Dunaway (aka Otavio "Otavinhi" Augusto Fernandes Cardoso

  (aka August Dunaway) -- guitar, keyboards, backing  vocals

- Joe Bridges ( aka Jose Eduardo Franca Pontes, aka 

  Dudu Franca, aka Eduardo Franca) -- lead vocals, drums,

   percussion

- Mark "Marcao: Maynard -- guitar, keyboards, backing vocals

- Carlos "Carlinhos" Alberto Marques -- guitar. sax, backing vocals

- Juvir "Xilo" Moretti) -- guitar, backing vocals

- Baby Joe

- Beach Band

- The Boyfriends (Eduardo Franco)

- Joe Bridges

- The Bumble Bees

- The Clocks

- Colt 45

- Cynthia

- Mark Davis (Jose Eduardo Franca Pontes)

- Pete Dunaway (Otavio Augusto Fernandes Cardoso )

- The Fox

- DuDu Franca

- Kompha

- Lee Jackson

- Loupha

- Memphis

- Glenn Michael

- Top Sounds

- Uncle Jack

Genre: rock

Rating: 4 stars ****

Title:  Sodom

Company: Beverly/Kool

Catalog:  SBLP 19 008
Year: 1971

Country/State: Sao Paulo, Brazil

Grade (cover/record): VG/VG+

Comments: worn cover and edges; gatefold sleeve

Available: 1

Catalog ID: 2806

Price: $175.00

Would anyone be interested in spending big money on an album by a mid-'70s Sao Paulo, Brazil-based studio  band that worshipped at the alter of Anglo rock and sang in English.  There probably weren't a lot of mid-'70s Brazilian bands singing in English, but making the story even stranger, in order to convince local audiences they weren't Brazilian, this band's management packaged their one and only album to make it look like it was an American product (Kool Records of Dubuque, Iowa), imported into Brazil by Adiel Macedo de Cavalho's Discos Beverly label.   The crowning glory is that four decades later the album actually finds an audience with American and international collectors ...   Life is strange.

As far as I can piece this one together, Kris Kringle was a studio project put together by Italian producer Cesare Benvenuti.  Living and working in Sao Paulo, Benvenuti seems to have been working off the same marketing manual as American bubblegum producers  Jerry Kasenetz and Jeff Katz.  Like Kasenetz-Katz, Benvenuti set about creating a string of Brazilian studio entities with international sounding names that could tap into the Brazilian market for English pop songs.   Among his creations were groups like Connection Eyes, Edu Leslie, Light Reflection, Lee Jackson, Sunday, and Kris Kringle.  

Benvenuti's musical partner in Kris Kringle was singer/drummer Jose Eduardo Franca Pontes (aka Joe Bridges, Dudu Franca, aka  Eduardo Franca).  Franca was no slouch himself.  He'd been recording popular tunes since at least the mid-'60s, fronting a slew of San Paolo studio bands including Baby Joe, The Beach Band, The Bumble Bees, The Clocks, Colt 45, The Fox, Memphis, and Top Sounds (the latter having released a 1964 album of instrumental surf tunes "Twist Hully-Gully and Surf with Top Sounds".

Under the Kris Kringle nameplate the band made their debut with a single on the small Brazilian Kool label.  Setting the pattern for what was to come, 'Susie' was a cover of an obscure Terry Johnson 1969 "B" side single for Motown.  The flip side was one of the strangest, "heavied-up" covers of a Beatles tune you'll ever hear.  Strange, but engrossing.

- 1968's 'Susie' b/w 'Help (Kool catalog number BCS 116)

Three years later Kris Kringle reappeared with an album.  Fronted by Franca (frequently working under his English pseudonym Joe Bridges, the rest of the band consisted of bassist Marco Antonio Fernandes "Nescau" Cardoso, multi-instrumentalist Otavio Augusto Fernandes Cardoso, guitarist Mark Maynard, multi-instrumentalist Carlos Alberto Marques, and guitarist Juvir "Xilo" Moretti.  Produced by PEJA Productions (Benevenuti was listed on the liner notes), "Sodom" included both sides of the earlier single, a pair of Otavio Augusto Fernandes Cardoso originals (credited to August Dunaway), rounded out by a collection of obscure English and American pop, rock and soul songs.   Even though all ten songs were covers, the fact most were hopelessly obscure was almost as good as having recorded original material.  After all, how many people had ever heard  Kansas Hook's 'Mr. Universe', Beggars Opera's 'Sarabande' or the Balls' "B" side 'Janie Slow Down' ?  With Franca handling lead vocals in heavily accented English, the results were surprisingly entertaining.  To my ears, he sounded a bit like David Clayton-Thomas  ditching Blood, Sweat & Tears in order to front Deep Purple.  Franca and Clayton-Thomas shared a big, bellowing vocal delivery and you quickly became accustomed to Franco's accent.  While most of the covers didn't wander to far from the original arrangements and failed to improve on the originals, I had to admire their taste in outside material.   Moreover, there were a couple of remakes that actually improved on the originals - that was certainly the case for 'Mr. Universe' where Christopher Evan's original vocal was nasally and irritating, and on their energetic remake of Beggar's Opera 'Sarabande'.  

Against that backdrop I'd suggest you take dealer hype about this being a collection of hardcore psych and progressive moves with a grain of salt.  Yeah, there were a couple of heavy tunes ('That's My Love for You' and 'What You Want'), but the underlying sound was commercial pop-rock.

For hardcore fans and completists, there are actually two versions of the album.   The original is the black and white, opening door motif  gatefold sleeve cover.  The second, 1972 version featured the non-gatefold sleeve, multi-colored cover (same catalog number and track listing).

"Sodom" track listing:
(side 1)

1.) Louisiana   (August Dunaway - Robert Duncan) - 2:44    rating: **** stars

One of two tracks written by Otavio Augusto Fernandes Cardoso under the pseudonym August Dunaway, the first time I heard 'Louisiana' I would have sworn these guys were Dutch ...   lead singer Franca's accent and the song's melodic rock base just sounded like something off an early -'70s Dutch band - think along the lines of Shocking Blue, or The George Baker Selection.  And that wasn't meant as a criticism given 'Louisiana' rocked with considerable energy and enthusiasm.

2.) Help  (John Lennon - Paul McCartney) - 2:41   rating: *** stars

Hum, interesting cover of The Beatles tune - they were apparently trying to toughen up the arrangement, but the results were a bit schizophrenic with Franca sounding like he'd been watching to too much James Brown.  Loved the Latin percussion that accompanied the song.

3.) That's My Love for You   (Alan - Roberts - Harris) - 3:38    rating: **** stars

The crunching opening guitar sounded like something off a Black Sabbath album ...  One of the simplest song structures you'll ever encounter in rock, but I've got to tell you this was an awesome slice of sludge rock.   By the way, I think they got the songwriting credits wrong - I think the tune was actually written by Cliff Bennett, Frank Allen and M. Roberts.  Those were the credits given the song when it appeared on the first Toe Fat album.

4.) The Resurrection Shuffle   (Tony Ashton) - 3:18   rating: *** stars

If you're familiar with the Ashton, Gardner and  Dyke original, then their cover of 'Resurrection Shuffle' probably won't do a great deal for you.  It wasn't bad, staying very close to the original arrangement (even replicating the horn arrangement).  Come to think of it, Franca's bellow of a voice actually reminded me a bit of the late Tony Ashton.  Unfortunately their cover just didn't add much to the original.

5.) Janie Slow Down   (Alan White - Denny Laine) - 2:05   rating: *** stars

Give these guys credit for finding quality obscure material - in this case the "B" to a rare 1971 single by the short-lived Balls. Unfortunately their cover was a bit raw with Franca's stab at a falsetto leaving a lot to be desired.

(side 2)

1. Susie   (Terry Johnson) - 2:36    rating: **** stars

As mentioned, 'Susie' served as the band's 1968 debut 45.   Musically it was an interesting cover choice.  Written by former Flamingoes member Terry Johnson; the song (originally titled 'Suzie'), had previously appeared as the "B" side to Johnson's 1969's single 'What'cha Gonna Do'.   Once again, their cover didn't stray too far from the original.  Nice top-40 pop feel that sounded like something The Foundations might have recorded, which made it easy to see why it was also released as a single in France.

2.) The Monkey Song   (E. Welch) - 1:53    rating: **** stars

Clearly a cover, but I have to admit I've never been able to find the source material for this one.  Love the backing vocals in this one.  Very radio friendly; shame it wasn't longer.

3.) Sarabande   (Virginia Scott - Beggars Opera) - 3:26    rating: **** stars

Talk about an obscure obscurity - 'Sarabande' served as Beggar's Opera's 1971, non-LP debut 45.  You had to wonder how they stumbled onto the tune, let alone why they chose to cover it.   Again, this version didn't drift too far from the original arrangement, though I have to admit I actually like Franco's "big" voice better than Martin Griffiths' original performance.

4.) Mr. Universe   (Julian Burrowes) - 4:20    rating: **** stars

This tune was originally recorded by the band Kansas Hook (who were from Birmingham and included a couple of members who'd previously been in The World of Oz and The American Jam Band).  I swear I'm not making this up ...   Simply because Franco's vocal wasn't as nasally as Christopher Robin Evans' original, this cover got the nod. 

5.) What You Want   (August Dunaway - Robert Duncan) - 2:20    rating: **** stars

The second Dunaway original, 'What You Want' found Franco and company pulling out their best Deep Purple impressions.