Ildo Lobo

Ildo Lobo, son of Antoninho Lobo, also a singer, was descended from a long line of musicians and vocalists. Born in Pedra de Lume on the island of Sal on the 25^th November 1953, Ildo Lobo passed away the 20^thOctober 2004, at his home in Praia, the capital of Cape Verde. He was a giant of the Capeverdean music – both physically and in terms of his talent.

In his native Cape Verde, Ildo Lobo is seen as the archipelago’s greatest singers, heir to a tradition shaped by Bana and popularized worldwide by Cesaria Evora. Lobo also has strong political commitments and his plain speaking is legendary.

For years, he was the singer and star of the Os Tubaroes group, long viewed as Cape Verde’s “official” band in the days of the Marxist government. As such, he regularly traveled abroad to represent his country. Os Tubaroes (The Sharks) became the ambassadors of Capeverdean music, exporting their funana, coladera and morna beats all over the world.

Today, the group is no more. One of its particularities was that none of its members was a full-time musician, they were also lawyers, doctors, civil servants and so on. In fact, Ildo Lobo is a customs officer. As you might imagine, it is difficult to keep up another career while working in the performing arts, but in countries such as Cape Verde (or Martinique for Malavoi in Paul Rosine’s day), it is rarely an option for musicians to practice their art full-time.

In 1996, Ildo Lobo recorded his first solo album, “Nos Morna”. The record was a tribute to his father who had died a few years before and was composed entirely of mornas. Antoninho Lobo was one of Cape Verde’s great singers, leaving his personal mark on the morna played on the island of Santiago, and his son is carrying on the tradition today. « Nos Morna » was produced by Mario Lucio, the charismatic front man of the band Simentera, and recorded in Paris with the finest musicians from the island of Santiago.

In 2001, Ildo has released his new album entitled « Intelectual », still in partnership with his old songwriting companions, but accompanied by Cesaria Evora’s musicians this time.

After some health problems that kept him away from his musical activities for a while, Ildo returned to the studio during the summer 2004, together with Cesaria Evora’s musicians. The pianist Fernando (Nando) Andrade, who made the arrangements on Cesaria’s two last albums, produced the album.

Ildo decided to name the album from the song « INCONDICIONAL », the title of a morna composed by Constantino Cardoso, a young writer he wanted to give his chance. Another beautiful morna opens the CD, Nha Fidjo Matcho, the last song written by Ildo, in which a father gives advice to his son: « My son listen to my advice, Do not open your mouth to sing, If you sing or play the music, Beautiful women will cause your lost ».