Os Leifs

Origin

Salvador, BA

Also known as

Os Leif's

Years Active

1960–1970

Genres

psychedelic rock, rock

Biography

Os Leifs was a Brazilian psychedelic rock musical group founded in the 1960s by Erickson Leoni da Costa Nunes, known as Leif Erickson Lico. The original lineup featured talented musicians from Bahia: Pepeu Gomes, Carlinhos Gomes, and Jorginho Gomes, and is considered the true embryo of the acclaimed group Novos Baianos. At the time, the band stood out intensely in Bahia's musical scene due to their energetic sound and the virtuosity of their members.

Thanks to the reputation they built, the group received a special invitation from Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil to act as the backing band at the emblematic Barra 69 concert, held in Salvador shortly before the duo's exile abroad during the military dictatorship. This historic show ended up becoming one of the rare official recordings of the striking psychedelic sound produced by Os Leifs. In 1969, the band was also scheduled for the PrimaVera Festival in São Paulo, an event that ended up being canceled by the repression of the military regime and which was set to feature fundamental names in Brazilian music such as Tim Maia, Os Mutantes, and Gal Costa.

In 1970, the group released a 7-inch single through the Beverly label containing the tracks "Fobus In Totum" and "Nem Sei De Mim", although the material was distributed exclusively to major Brazilian radio stations and not sold directly to the public. Seeking to ride the wave of the tropicalist movement's popularity, the record label mistakenly credited the release under the name "Os da Bahia", generating deep outrage among the musicians. Decades later, in 2010, the single was finally reissued by the Psico BR label with the credits properly corrected to Os Leifs.