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Writer's pictureLucas Lima

Who was Marku Ribas, the Brazilian musician who played with the Rolling Stones

Updated: Dec 13, 2023

Composer, multi-instrumentalist, singer and actor participated in the album "Dirty Work"

Marku Ribas
Marku Ribas | Photo: Cia da Foto/Itaú Cultural

Composer, multi-instrumentalist, singer, and actor, Marku Ribas is a revered musician well-known in the music universe. However, for many, he remains a somewhat obscure figure in the history of Brazilian music.


He, who left us in 2013, was already an instrumentalist at the age of 15 when he debuted as a drummer and singer in the group Flamingo. His virtuosity and talent as a composer caught the attention of big names like Alcione and João Donato. Highly persecuted by the Military Dictatorship, he had two original songs censored - "Canto Certo" (re-recorded by Alcione in 1976 with the title "Alerta Geral") and "Nunca Vi." Consequently, Marku was arrested and exiled to Paris in 1968.


In French lands, he founded the Batuki group and ventured into an acting career. Still in Brazil, also in 1968, the musician met the members of the Rolling Stones, who were on vacation in the country. The encounter with Mick Jagger happened by chance at a restaurant in Copacabana.


Later, in 1984, at Jagger's invitation, Marku recorded the video for "Just Another Night," a track on the English singer's first solo album. Seventeen years after their first meeting, the Brazilian musician was invited to participate in the recordings of the Stones' album "Dirty Work." It is Marku who plays percussion on "Back To Zero," a song on the album.

On WePlay, you can revisit the work and life of Marku Ribas in the "Toca Brasil" show, recorded at Itaú Cultural in São Paulo.




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