Leno

Gileno Osório Wanderley de Azevedo was born in Natal in 1949 and spent part of his childhood in Copacabana, where he was a neighbor of Lílian Knapp. With her, he formed the duo Leno e Lílian in 1965, achieving major success during the Jovem Guarda, Brazil’s 1960s rock ’n’ roll wave, with Pobre Menina, an adaptation of Hang On Sloopy. After they separated in 1968, he pursued a solo career and, at CBS, grew close to Raul Seixas, then a producer at the label. Together, between late 1970 and early 1971, they recorded Vida e Obra de Johnny McCartney, with A Bolha and Renato e Seus Blue Caps; the censors banned lyrics, and the record company shelved the project. The tapes resurfaced in Sony’s archives, and the album was finally released in 1995. Leno died in Natal in 2022.