África Brasil

África Brasil was recorded in about ten days at Phonogram's new 16-track studio in Barra da Tijuca with Ben's band Admiral Jorge V, a horn section, the Azymuth keyboardist José Roberto Bertrami on arrangements, and a crowd of percussionists. Ben swapped guitars with his bassist Dadi, who had brought an Ibanez back from London, and played electric for the first time on a whole album. Philips pulled the producer, Marco Mazzola, off the project mid-session over Ben's objections; Ben later said the anger in his vocal on the remade Zumbi was real, and that it was the only time he sang that way.

It opens with Ponta de Lança Africano (Umbabarauma), about an African striker, and includes a faster Taj Mahal, Xica da Silva and Camisa 10 da Gávea, about Flamengo's number ten. It sold around sixty thousand copies in Brazil. Ben disliked the mix and the cover and left Philips afterwards. Its reputation has only grown: it is in 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, Rolling Stone placed it among the coolest records ever made, and AllMusic called it one of the great classics of Brazilian popular music. Kamille Viola's 2020 book about it was shortlisted for the Jabuti prize.