The album vocals and acoustic guitars were recorded in a small recording studio in Salvador, where Veloso was confined for defying the authoritarian Brazilian government of the time.

He recorded the vocals, and Gilberto Gil the acoustic guitar, which were sent to arranger and producer Rogério Duprat, who added layers of electric guitars, horns, bass, drums and other instruments in a more professional studio in São Paulo The album, like its predecessor, is very eclectic (a characteristic of the Tropicália movement), with songs that vary from Bossa Nova, Psychedelic rock, Carnival music, traditional Bahian music, Fado, Tango, and others.

Its cover and self-titled nature are a reference to the Beatles' famous self-titled album, released a year prior.

The song 'Alfomega' was sampled by MF DOOM on the Ghostface Killah track 'Charlie Brown' in 2006.

All tracks are written by Caetano Veloso except where noted