Dona Onete - 'the grande dame of Amazonian song' - returns with further tales from the river Amazon on her sophomore album Banzeiro. Whether she's championing gay rights, singing about the delights of indecent proposals or praising a former lover for his 'crazy ways of making love', Banzeiro is defined by Onete's honest reflections on life, love, sex as well as her delight in the everyday pleasures of life in the Amazon, whether that's spicy seasoning, salty kisses or fishy-smelling water. Formerly a history teacher, folklore researcher, union representative, culture secretary and children's author - "I never thought I would be a singer" she claims - Onete recorded her debut album Feitiço Caboclo at 73. A cult figure in Brazil and an ambassador for Amazonian culture, the music she sings is a unique mix of rhythms from native Brazilians, African slaves and the Caribbean - epitomised in the joyous carimbós that are her trademark. In the early eighties Onete quit teaching to campaign for workers' rights and following retirement in 1990 she became her region's Municipal Secretary of Culture from 1993-1996, a role she embraced: "I helped local musicians and local culture that people didn't value. I brought my culture to the fore".