Carlos do Carmo

Carlos do Carmo
Carlos do Carmo (2007)
Background information
Birth name	Carlos Manuel de Ascenção do Carmo de Almeida
Born	(1939-12-21) December 21, 1939 (age 77)
Origin	Lisbon, Portugal
Genres	Fado
Occupation(s)	Singer
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	1964 - still active
Labels	Universal Music
Associated acts	Lucilia do Carmo , Alfredo Marceneiro , Amalia Rodrigues , José Carlos Ary dos Santos , Fernando Tordo

Carlos Manuel de Ascenção do Carmo de Almeida ComIH (born ; 21 December 1939 in Lisbon, Mouraria) better known as Carlos do Carmo is a Portuguese fado singer, one of the finest in the "Lisbon Song". He is the Son of Lucília do Carmo, a very well recognized Female singer of Fado in her time. (Lucília Nunes de Ascenção do Carmo, born in Portalegre on 4 November 1919 and died in 1999, daughter of Francisco).

He began singing and recording in 1963, with the release of the EP record "Mario Simoes e o seu Quarteto Apresentando Carlos do Carmo", and, still in 1963, the record "Carlos do Carmo e Orquestra de Joaquim Luiz Gomes". Until the end of the decade, he released another eleven records. With the arrival of the 1970s came success at home and abroad, releasing close to thirty records during that decade.

His most famous songs are Lágrimas de Orvalho, Lisboa Menina e Moça and Canoas do Tejo. He sang many songs written by songwriters like Ary dos Santos. He helped to open Lisbon Fado to other musical influences, like jazz and French music, as well as adding the orchestra to the traditional Fado guitar trio or quartet.

Carlos grew up in the city of Lisbon, an environment full of various and diverse elements. He was introduced to a heavily musical influenced lifestyle. He has three children, two boys and one girl with his spouse Judite do Carmo. They were singer Cila do Carmo de Almeida (born Lisbon), Alfredo do Carmo de Almeida and (not fado) singer Gil do Carmo de Almeida (born Lisbon, 21 June 1973). He was also a Commander of the Order of Prince Henry.

In 1976, he won the Portuguese Song Contest, with "Uma flor de verde pinho". The song finished 12th in the Eurovision Song Contest 1976.

He has established his own reputation as a passionate singer of Portuguese folk songs, as well as one of the most distinctive voices in the world. He first left Lisbon in his youth, to study hotel management in Switzerland but, with the death of his father Alfredo de Almeida in 1962, do Carmo soon joined his mother to help her run their fado house, the Faia. In 1964 he married Maria Judite de Sousa Leal. Encouraged by his friends' response to his singing, do Carmo soon began to perform at the fado house. While fado remains at the core of his music, do Carmo has used Frank Sinatra-style and French-style pop balladry and Brazilian bossa nova to give his music its distinct flavor. His uniqueness, apart from the special timbre of his voice, is in his ability to bring composers from other styles such as jazz. This is mainly seen in his success Um Homem na Cidade, which although now known as a fado classic, has an obvious jazz chord progression.