MM
Marisa Monte
1989
Rankings
Why This Album Matters
Released on 18 January 1989, MM, also known as Marisa Monte, marks the Brazilian singer's discographical debut, distinguishing itself as an inaugural live-recorded album. This singular work not only introduced Marisa Monte to the general public, but also consolidated her image as an artist of notable eclecticism. With its diversity of rhythms and composers, the album revealed Monte's artistic breadth. The proposal of a debut album in a live format was a bold and unconventional move, challenging the common practices of the phonographic industry at the time and highlighting the singer's spontaneity and interpretative power.
Marisa fuses styles and redefines "eclecticism" for the female vocalists of that decade.
Ademir Correa · Rolling Stone Brasil
Context
Marisa Monte's return from Italy in 1987 marked the beginning of a new phase in her career. With the support of Nelson Motta, a long-standing friend, the artist began planning her first public performances, culminating in the acclaimed Veludo Azul tour, which travelled through Brazil's main cities. Throughout 1988, Marisa Monte consolidated her popularity, making appearances on television programmes, in newspapers and magazines. Despite receiving numerous invitations from interested record labels, the singer initially showed resistance, opting to sign with EMI only after a period of reflection, in a move that remarkably singularly preceded her discographical debut.
Recording
The recording of MM stood out for its entirely unconventional approach for a debut album. The album was captured during a Marisa Monte television special for TV Manchete, directed by Walter Salles and produced by Nelson Motta and Lula Buarque, the singer's brother-in-law. Subsequently, this special was re-edited into video formats, such as VHS and DVD. Only one of the album's twelve tracks, the song "Speak Low", was recorded in the studio, while the others were registered live. This choice of format caused great repercussions in the media, as the live recording, without the usual vocal corrections and studio care that surrounded artists on their first albums, represented a challenge and a declaration of authenticity on Marisa Monte's part.
Songs
Of the twelve tracks that make up the album (eleven on the LP version, with the exclusion of "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" due to space constraints), only one was presented as new: the hit "Bem Que Se Quis", a version of the Italian song "E Po' Che Fa". The other songs were re-recordings that gained new arrangements and striking interpretations. Among the re-recordings that stand out are Tim Maia's "Chocolate", to which Marisa Monte added original verses and made a bold insertion about the legalisation of cannabis, "South American Way", immortalised by Carmen Miranda, and Luiz Gonzaga's "O Xote das Meninas", which received a surprising reinterpretation in a reggae rhythm. The track "Bem Que Se Quis" also gained wide visibility by being included in the soundtracks of three Rede Globo soap operas: O Salvador da Pátria, O Rebu and Verão 90.
Legacy
MM quickly became a sales landmark in the year of its release, featuring among the best-selling albums of 1989, with an impressive 700,000 copies sold. Its relevance and impact were reaffirmed on several subsequent occasions. In 2007, the album was recognised by Rolling Stone Brasil magazine, which positioned it at 62nd place on the prestigious list of the 100 greatest albums in Brazilian music. More recently, in 2022, MM was again praised in an O Globo newspaper poll, being elected one of the best albums in Brazilian music of the last 40 years by a panel of 25 specialists, including names such as Charles Gavin, Nelson Motta and Roberta Martinelli.
Tracks
Credits
Jorge Davidson
Lula Buarque
Eduardo Souto Neto
Nelson Motta
Joana Motta, Letícia Monte, Suzana Ribeiro
Marisa Monte
Ronaldo Diamante
Jaques Morelenbaum
Edu Szajnbrum
Paulinho Muylaert
Marcos Suzano
Roberto Alves
Saulo Dansa
Marie-Christine Springuel Bessler
Bernardo Bessler, Michel Bessler
Geraldo Murro, Renato Luiz, Sérgio Bittencourt
Cláudio Torres
Gualter Pupo, Tice Mousinho
José Roberto Eliezer
Podcasts
Gravado ao vivo e sem retoques, durante um especial para a extinta TV Manchete, "MM" (1989) não apenas foi responsável por apresentar o trabalho da jovem Marisa Monte, como apontou a direção eclética que viria a ser explorada pela cantora e compositora carioca pelos próximos anos. Entre preciosidades como "Bem Que Se Quis" e versões para músicas como "O Xote das Meninas" e "Ando Meio Desligado", C
Videos
Marisa Monte's Debut Masterpiece - MM
Rotação 33
Books
Marisa Monte: notas além da música
Emerson Rossetti · 2025
Editora Contracorrente announces the release of the book 'Marisa Monte: notas além da música', by Professor Emerson Rossetti. With a preface by the Philosopher Marcia Tiburi, the book is a singular record of the quality of the singer's entire body of work, uniting history, aesthetic and linguistic analysis of her work.
Os 500 Maiores Álbuns Brasileiros de Todos os Tempos
Ricardo Alexandre · 2022
The largest Brazilian music election ever conducted: 162 specialists, spanning journalists, critics, musicians, producers and podcasters, each nominated 50 essential albums, supported by a masterlist of more than 2,000 works. Led by Ricardo Alexandre with tabulation by Sérgio Jomori, it was published in December 2022 as a 200-page hardcover book with graphic design by Fernando Pires.
Analyses
MM – Wikipedia
Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia
MM – The 100 Greatest Albums of Brazilian Music
Ademir Correa · Rolling Stone Brasil
Marisa fuses styles and redefines "eclecticism" for the female vocalists of that decade.
MM by Marisa Monte (1989) | Jazz Album | All About Jazz
allaboutjazz.com
Listen to and explore MM by Marisa Monte, released in 1989 on EMI. Read reviews, track listings, and discover more jazz albums on All About Jazz.
MM | Marisa Monte
marisa-montelx.bandcamp.com
released January 1, 2025 Marisa Monte - MM Review okay so i just spent a good chunk of my afternoon with marisa monte's mm and honestly? didn't expect to get punched in the chest by 1989 brazilian mpb vibes. like, sure, i knew she was talented. but this album? it's not just singing. it's breathing, laughing, crying into a mic surrounded by cellos and cavaquinhos like they're old friends at a ...
Grandes álbuns da humanidade brasileira: MM (Marisa Monte)
notonlyrockandroll.wordpress.com
Released by EMI in January 1989, the live album featured a repertoire based on interpretations of national and international classics, moving impressively through pop rock, reggae, forró, samba, Carmem Miranda, Broadway and even opera.
