João Penca e Seus Miquinhos Amestrados

João Penca e Seus Miquinhos Amestrados (Portuguese for "Banana-Bunch Joe and His Tamed Apes") was a Brazilian new wave band from Rio de Janeiro. Originally founded under the name Zoo, they were famous for their humorous, tongue-in-cheek lyrics filled with double entendres and innuendos which frequently parodied the conventions of 1950s rockabilly and 1960s surf music, and for their clothing heavily inspired by singers such as Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry.^[1]

History

The band was formed in Rio de Janeiro in 1977, initially under the name Zoo, by five friends who lived in the same building in the bairro of Leblon: Sérgio Ricardo Abreu ("Selvagem Big Abreu"), Marcelo Ferreira Knudsen ("Bob Gallo"), Luís Carlos de Avellar Júnior ("Avellar Love"), Cláudio "Killer" Knudsen (Bob Gallo's younger brother) and Léo Jaime. They began their career by opening shows for and collaborating with Eduardo Dussek,^[2] and in 1982 they changed their name to João Penca e Seus Miquinhos Amestrados.^[3]

Their debut album, Os Maiores Sucessos de João Penca e Seus Miquinhos Amestrados, came out in 1983 by Barclay Records; it was the only album of the band to feature Cláudio Killer, who died on December 1 of the same year due to an accidental poisonous gas leakage in his apartment,^[4] and Léo Jaime, who left them in 1984 to pursue a solo career, since he felt his bandmates "were not taking the musical career as seriously as him".^[5] Os Maiores Sucessos... spawned the hit single "Edmundo", a Portuguese-language parody of Glenn Miller's "In the Mood", and counted with guest appearances by Ney Matogrosso and Lulu Santos. Also in 1983 they collaborated with Eduardo Dussek for his most famous song, "Rock da Cachorra", off his album Cantando no Banheiro. Their second album, Okay My Gay, came out in 1986 and contained some of the band's most famous songs, such as "Lágrimas de Crocodilo", "Popstar" (which would obtain higher fame after being covered by Lulu Santos in 2005), "Os Amantes Nunca Dizem Adeus" and "Sou Fã", with the latter two being Portuguese-language covers/adaptations of The Flamingos' "Lovers Never Say Goodbye" and The Crests' "16 Candles", respectively.

The band reached higher fame in 1989, when their song "Matinê no Rian" was used as the opening theme of the telenovela O Sexo dos Anjos. In the same year they also made a Portuguese-language parody of Bobby Pickett's famous song "Monster Mash", entitled "O Monstro Macho" ("The Macho Monster").^[6] They also provided the opening theme of the children's show Milk Shake, which was broadcast by Rede Manchete and hosted by Angélica, lasting from 1988 to 1992. In 1990 they would cameo in and also contribute to the soundtracks of the films Lua de Cristal and O Escorpião Escarlate.

The band came to an end c. 1993, after the release of the compilation album A Festa dos Micos. They would return to active in 2007 though, contributing to the soundtrack of the telenovela Três Irmãs with a previously unreleased song — "Sol, Som, Surf e Sal", a Portuguese-language adaptation/translation of The Beach Boys' "Surfin' Safari". In 2008 they played at the Circo Voador in Rio, before disbanding once more in 2010.

After the band's second and definitive end, its former members began pursuing other activities; both Avellar Love and Bob Gallo became mechanical engineers, while Selvagem Big Abreu is a pedagogue in Tijuca.^[7]

Discography

Studio albums

• 1983: Os Maiores Sucessos de João Penca e Seus Miquinhos Amestrados
• 1986: Okay My Gay
• 1988: Além da Alienação
• 1989: Sucesso do Inconsciente
• 1990: Cem Anos de Rock 'n' Roll

Compilations

• 1993: A Festa dos Micos
• 2000: Hot 20

Band members

• Selvagem Big Abreu (Sérgio Ricardo Abreu) — vocals, bass (1977–1993, 2007–2010)
• Avellar Love (Luís Carlos de Avellar Júnior) — electric guitar (1977–1993, 2007–2010)
• Bob Gallo (Marcelo Ferreira Knudsen) — drums (1977–1993, 2007–2010)
• Léo Jaime — electric guitar (1977–1984)
• Cláudio Killer — keyboards (1977–1983)

References

External links

• João Penca e Seus Miquinhos Amestrados on Facebook
• João Penca e Seus Miquinhos Amestrados on Myspace
• João Penca e Seus Miquinhos Amestrados on Discogs