BOSSA NOVA: MUSIC OF MODERN LOVE
Reaching back to the 1960s to the cool, sultry
sound that riveted Brazil and seduced the world
From the pages of the CA-Modern
By Jeff Kaliss
"Popular music comes and goes," Antonio Carlos Jobim told us from his Rio de
Janeiro home in 1993. "It has vogues," he said, speaking with the broad vowels
of his native Portuguese. "Things appear and disappear."
'Tom' Jobim's words sounded a bit like a lilting lyric from one of hundreds of
bossa nova tunes he penned until his passing, in 1994. They also sounded
markedly, and characteristically, modest.
Far from being a vogue, the bossa nova which Jobim helped create went on to form
"the biggest revolution we had in music in Brazil," in the words of Caetano
Veloso, one of that country's current superstars.
In the four decades since its heyday, bossa nova never faded away. It has found
a permanent place in the repertoires and hearts of musicians and fans all over
the world, and in the United States in particular. Like the best of what was
happening in home design at the time of bossa nova's birth a half-century ago,
the music has continued to inspire good taste and to affirm the bright lightness
of being.
As in mid-century modern America, Brazilian culture moved into a fertile period
following World War II, particularly after the mid-1950s. "Our generation was a
special generation," says Hélcio Melito, who at that time had relocated
from his native São Paulo to Rio, on his way to becoming a seminal
percussionist.
"Everybody think to create something new," he continues in idiosyncratic
English, from his current venue in Pebble Beach, California. "In soccer [on the
way to Brazil's first World Cup victory, in 1958], in other sports, in culture,
in theater, in poems."
Melito could easily have added architecture, particularly with regard to
Brazilian modernist architect Oscar Niemeyer, who had designed the Manhattan
headquarters for the United Nations after the War and was appointed by left-wing
Brazilian president Juscelino Kubitschek in 1956 to help create Brasilia, a new
capitol city.
There was progressive activity also in theater and film. Poet Vinícius de
Moraes, also in 1956, forged a musical theater setting of the Greek myth of
Orpheus in the black slums of Rio, which three years later evolved into an
award-winning film, 'Black Orpheus,' and inspired the production of more quality
films by Brazilians.
Bossa nova was the most prominent genus of Brazilian music during this period,
but it had evolved from long, strong roots, extending back to the arrival of
Portuguese explorers in 1500 and the first of the African slaves a few decades
later. Different musical instruments, melodic forms, and rhythms came from these
two sources, ultimately cross-fertilizing, as did their people.
The musical melding accelerated in the 20th century, carried by phonograph and
radio to the increasing populations of Brazil's cities. Rio perhaps deserves the
most credit for the variegated development of samba, apparently named for a
navel-touching dance from Angola (which shared Brazil's Portuguese colonial
tradition). The late 1920s witnessed the institution of 'escolas de samba,' or
samba schools, which came to dominate, and compete in, Rio's annual pre-Lenten
Carnaval parade, with a large and loud battery of cross-cultural percussion.
Powerful, rhythmically complex sambas were created (and rehearsed) in the
escolas, located in the hillside slums, called favelas. These sambas attracted a
broad range of Brazilians and tourists, but were pretty much confined to the
Carnaval celebrations. More-affluent Cariocas (Rio residents) favored
sophisticated samba-canções, which showcased melody and lyrics and
got year-round radio play.
The radios, phonographs, and concert halls of middle-class Brazilians in the
mid-1950s were also tuned to sounds from the other side of the equator,
including the seductive, conversational singing style of Frank Sinatra. Those
with jazz taste became aware of the breezy but sophisticated approach of the
West Coast 'cool school' of jazz [see our coverage in the summer '06
'CA-Modern']. Equally alluring were the sparkling, close vocal harmonies of
groups like the Four Freshmen, the Merry Macs, the Starlighters, the Mel-Tones,
and later, the Hi-Los.
An aspiring Rio vocal group, Os Garotas da Lua (Boys of the Moon), recruited
19-year-old João Gilberto to move south, in 1950, from his home in the
tropical northern state of Bahia, where he'd learned to sing and play guitar. A
couple of years later, Gilberto was off on his own, recording
samba-canções in a somewhat affected, vibrato-based manner quite
different from what he'd become known for a half-dozen years later.
Other Brazilian singers, including Dick Farney and Lúcio Alves, were
already emulating the more naturalistic style of Sinatra. The future stars of
bossa, including Nara Leão, Roberto Menescal, and Sylvia Telles, were
listening to domestic and imported recordings in their stylish apartments.
Gilberto, when not singing, became known for his flights of virtuoso guitar at
the clubs that dotted Rio's waterfront neighborhoods. He met others who worked
and hung out there, including pianists Johnny Alf and Tom Jobim and poet
Vinícius de Moraes.
More and more modern apartment buildings sprung up, alongside hotels, with
vistas of the Atlantic and the Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon. On the street below,
Jobim remembered, "Ipanema was a strip of sand between the sea and the lagoon.
There was a channel, where the fish used to come in to spawn in the lagoon, in
crystal clear water. We were there, we were young, and the sand was fine and
clean and white. We knew the people that lived there, we knew each other."
In college, Jobim at first studied architecture, inspired by the modernist
movement. But he was ultimately less interested in designing contemporary
apartment houses than in creating a brighter soundtrack for the lifestyle that
inhabited them.
"Brazilian music [had been] very negative," Jobim pointed out.
Samba-canções had indulged in melodrama, "saying 'Oh, no, no -- I
don't want your kisses.'" With the advent of bossa songwriting, Jobim continued,
"Vinícius started to sing, 'Yes, yes', like Cole Porter: 'Let's do it,
let's fall in love.'" (It can be assumed that Jobim didn't intend to overlook
those bossas that would deal with some of the sadder sides of love, such as his
and Vinícius's own 'Insensatez.')
De Moraes, who had a separate (and financially dependable) career as a diplomat,
returned from a posting in Paris in 1956 and approached Jobim with the concept
that would become 'Black Orpheus,' which he'd been incubating while overseas. He
and Jobim began collaborating on songs for the theatrical version, which opened
that year, with a set designed by architect Niemeyer and the sound of Orpheus's
guitar provided by the virtuosic Luiz Bonfá.
Meanwhile, João Gilberto was wandering around Brazil, seeking an inner
vision and developing a percussive, plangent style that would become the envy of
all guitarists, amateurs and veterans alike. As yet unnamed, this style bore the
swing of samba, but made samba's elements sound sweetly from a single
instrument, with 'altered' chords that evoked both African folk music and the
sophistication of jazz.
Gilberto, as yet unknown, delivered the new style to those who would listen when
he returned to Rio in 1957, accompanying himself with a new way of singing. His
voice was free of vibrato and drama, airy in the manner of West Coast Cool
jazzman Chet Baker, when Baker put his horn aside to sing.
Hélcio Melito remembers a walk on the beach with Gilberto, who shared his
urgency to evolve past older styles: "With this kind of [older] samba, we're
never gonna get out of here. We need to do something."
Jobim, who obviously shared Gilberto's sentiments, quickly perceived how well
the guitarist-singer's quiet, fluid approach could be adapted to some of the
songs Jobim had been writing with de Moraes outside of the 'Orpheus' project.
Gilberto was brought in to back singer Elizeth Cardoso on an album of those
songs, among them 'Chega de saudade,' released in spring of 1958. A few weeks
later, Gilberto accompanied himself on his own 78-rpm single of the song.
João's version of 'Chega de saudade' became a hit, later to be credited
as the first for bossa nova and translated as 'No More Blues.'
As a genre name, bossa nova was christened at a college concert during that same
year. "The bossas are these lumps that we have on the cranium," Jobim explained.
"In the old days, medicine thought these protuberances had to do with the brain.
So you would say that John has bossa for painting, and Larry has bossa for
futbol. It's a 'gift.'"
What was it that made bossa 'nova,' or new? "It was the rhythm, the swing,"
Jobim pointed out. "It was João Gilberto with his guitar, the beat of
bossa nova."
By the end of 1958, the term 'bossa nova' had appeared in the lyrics to what
would be another of the genre's early (and ultimately international) hits,
'Desafinado,' composed by Jobim and journalist Ronaldo Bôscoli and
recorded by Gilberto.
There was bossa also in the brand-new soundtrack written by Jobim, de Moraes,
and Luiz Bonfá for the film version of 'Black Orpheus,' a co-production
of France, Italy, and Brazil. Picking up awards at Cannes and at the Oscars, the
movie spawned several bossa hits and helped spread awareness to the outside
world in 1959, not only of bossa but also the samba-enredos of Carnaval and the
rituals of macumba.
Musical visitors to Brazil, chief among them jazz guitarist Charlie Byrd, began
bringing home news of bossa. By the end of 1960, Capitol Records had released
the album 'Brazil's Brilliant João Gilberto' to delighted Americans.
An American jazz festival staged in Rio and São Paulo in 1961 brought in
American jazz flautist Herbie Mann, who'd already acquired Brazilian tastes from
expatriate pianist and accordionist João Donato. Jazz, as we've seen, had
inspired bossa with its innovative but sophisticated approach to harmonic
arrangement. Now jazz was reaping a return on its investment, replete with samba
rhythms and tropical ease of delivery.
By 1962, the term bossa nova was in common use in Brazil, bolstered by a new
crop of what would be the genre's classics tunes, created by Jobim, Jorge Ben,
Roberto Menescal, Baden Powell, and others. But as 'nova' as some of this may
have seemed at the time, not everything about the music was totally new. Some
purveyors of older styles, like the singer Lucio álves, simply adopted,
or let themselves be adapted to, the new style. The national affinity for vocal
groups, earlier modeled by postwar American singers, extended to closely
harmonized bossa by such groups as Os Cariocas.
Among the tasty new tunes served up to bossa performers and their fans was a
paean written by Jobim and Moraes to a young woman they'd regarded, repeatedly,
passing the Veloso bar, one of their favorite vistas in Ipanema for
contemplating real-life and imaginary muses. Aside from the aspects and objects
of carnal love celebrated in their 'Garota de Ipanema,' bossa lyrics
(particularly in the original Portuguese) proclaimed affection for place
('Corcovado') and for the felicities of life itself ('A Felicidade,' and 'Aguas
de Março' or 'The Waters of March').
Interest in the genre abroad justified the staging of a concert at New York's
Carnegie Hall in November 1962, billed as 'Bossa Nova (New Brazilian Jazz),' and
hosted by jazz critic Leonard Feather. The performers included Jobim, Gilberto,
Menescal, Bonfá, Carlinhos Lyra, Oscar Castro-Neves, and Sérgio
Mendes.
A few days later, in the same city, Jobim and Gilberto met with producer Creed
Taylor and saxophonist Stan Getz to discuss a follow-up to Getz's earlier
flirtations with Brazilian sounds, showcased on the album 'Jazz Samba,' and
inspired in large part by Charlie Byrd. On the sessions for the 'Getz/Gilberto'
album, in March of 1963, Gilberto's wife Astrud insisted on providing vocals, in
English, for 'Garota de Ipanema,' translated as 'The Girl From Ipanema.' When
released the following year, this song became one of Brazil's biggest and
longest-lasting cultural exports.
Despite some skepticism in the mother country about bossa's destiny, many new
singers embraced the genre, while some already associated with bossa pursued
their fortunes abroad. Although the Gilbertos' marriage was dissolving, Astrud
toured with Getz and recorded her own popular albums, singing mostly in English;
and João rejoined the saxophonist in 1964 for 'Getz/Gilberto #2.'
On the other side of North America, Sérgio Mendes took up residence in
California and a place on the charts with his Brasil '66 vocal group, showcasing
both bossa originals and bossa-izations of other people's pop hits. Luiz
Bonfá and pianist-arranger Eumir Deodato also fared well in the American
recording industry, at a time when more and more fans and fellow musicians were
waxing curious about their approach.
Notable among the curious was one of Brazil's long-loved idols, Frank Sinatra,
who brought his favorite Brazilian composer to California to record the album
'Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim,' in 1966. Sinatra sang with
appropriate tender restraint, and the album was sufficient proof that bossa had
moved into a permanent place in American popular culture. (For many fans of that
disc, and of the earlier efforts of Getz and the Gilbertos, that place was right
next to the sofa, or the bed; this was paradigm make-out music.)
Sinatra was a hard act to follow into bossa, but many other American singers,
vocal groups, pianists, songwriters, and even symphony orchestras quickly tried
to do so. Bossa nova also found friends among sax players with a breathy
approach to their horn, like Getz, and a will to explore different shades of
blue. Bossa-themed albums were recorded by reedmen Cannonball Adderley, Coleman
Hawkins, Charlie Rouse, Ike Quebec, Bud Shank, and several others.
Years later, in the 1990s, harmonica and guitar veteran Toots Thielemans
assembled the two-CD 'Brasil Project,' co-produced by Brazilian bossa emissary
Oscar Castro-Neves. "They have so many of those devilishly simple melodies,"
Thielemans told us of his affection for bossa and samba, "and it's all on good
chords that the jazzman likes to play over. And that rhythm -- it does something
to me, and always has done something to me."
It could be argued that bossa, as a musical form, has sustained more interest in
the American jazz world than it has on the stages and airwaves of its home
country. However, our interviews with post-bossa Brazilian performers have
revealed an ongoing absorption of and respect for the contributions of bossa.
The contemporary Brazilian group Bossacucanova updates the legacy with what
member Alex Moreira describes as "modern production methods [sequencers and
samplers] with the classic feel of acoustic guitars and great singers." Moreira
admits that bossa nova "does not play a lot on the radio [these days], but it's
always present in daily life." He also notes that "a current major soap opera
features a lot of the classic bossa themes," and that bossa legend Roberto
Menescal, who continues to record today, is the father of band mate Marcio
Menescal.
A healthy quorum of bossa veterans, including João Gilberto, Oscar
Castro-Neves, Hélcio Melito, Sergio Méndes, and Marcos Valle,
continue to work in the music business well into middle age, on tour and as
expatriates. The United States and other parts of the world, including the
Philippines, can boast their own homegrown bossa specialists.
The persistence of bossa nova through time and place came to Jobim's mind
metaphorically during the course of our interview.
"Yesterday, I saw the garota herself," he confided, in reference to the original
'girl from Ipanema,' Helô (Pinto) Pinheiro. "She has two beautiful
daughters, with the green eyes and the gold skin. New garotas -- and I'm getting
older, and they're getting younger. But I can still appreciate it -- from an
official distance -- with new glasses and a good cane."
Special thanks for research assistance to Dave Cuzner of modelements.com
Photos: courtesy Michael Ochs Archives, Eli Coory/Fotolia, Achilles
Moreaux/Dreamstime, Bossacucanova and Six Degrees Records, Verve Records
• Discover the bossa nova CD essentials found among our sidebar selections
and many more hard-to-find musical gems at dustygroove.com
• For a fascinating study of the bossa story, read Ruy Castro's 'Bossa
Nova: The Story of the Brazilian Music That Seduced the World' (A Capella Books)
An Infectious Beat,
a Three-dimensional High
Bossa nova is timeless -- and infectious. That's the way John Isaac, a huge Bay
Area fan of original '60s-era bossa as well today's European and Japanese brands
of techno-modern bossa, sees it.
Isaac, who lives in what he fondly calls a mid-century 'likeler,' in Fremont,
and works as bossa club disk jockey DJ Caasi by night, professes to have a
strong affection for mid-century modern homes, classic modern furnishings, and
bossa nova -- and not necessarily in that order.
"Music and space create and promote a three-dimensional high," Isaac says of the
glow that comes over him when his three passions are brought together. "Bossa
nova and lounge music truly represent the era of mid-century homes and
furnishings -- and it's there in the happy-sad feeling you get when listening to
[bossa artists like] Astrud Gilberto."
Not far from Isaac, in the hills of Oakland, Dave Cuzner lives and works in a
modern-styled two-story loft with vaulted ceilings designed by Ron Kappe, son of
the distinguished modernist architect Ray Kappe. Cuzner also has been stricken
by bossa nova.
"I appreciate good bossa for the same reason that I like good design," he says.
"The attention to quality, the aesthetic honesty, and the timelessness of the
piece."
Cuzner, who is co-partner of Mod Elements, an online retailer of rare and
unusual mid-century modern books, magazines, and accessories, sees Brazilian
music from the 1950s and '60s as a welcome addition to his love for jazz from
the same period.
"People that tend to be interested in modern architecture from the '50s and '60s
also seem to be interested in the music of that same time period as well," he
says.
"Bossa nova can be very addictive. The samba-derived rhythms really suck you in.
I find myself trying to sing those beautiful Brazilian- Portguese lyrics with my
horrible American accent."
As John Isaac so succinctly summed it up, "Bossa nova -- mid-century -- Jobim --
Jacobsen." Go for it.
-- Jack Levitan
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1 João Gilberto: Desafinado
(Saludos Amigos - 1959-61) This treasure chest from the onset of Gilberto's
recording career contains many of the early baubles crafted by Tom Jobim and his
collaborators. Some of the arrangements bear superfluous strings and other
instruments, but Gilberto's and Jobim's genius shines through.
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2 Stan Getz: Plays Jobim / The Girl
from Ipanema (Verve - 1962-64) Even before the Carnegie concert, saxophonist
Getz, under the influence of Charlie Byrd (who joins him here), was breathing
jazzy beauty into Jobim's creations. João and Astrud Gilberto share
Getz's cash-canção, 'The Girl from Ipanema,' and more Brazilians
bolster other classics.
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3 Astrud Gilberto: Finest Hour
(Verve - 1964-69) Hits from Astrud's several Verve albums, with Getz, husband
João, and others assisting, are transplanted to this showcase of bossa's
most widely celebrated songstress. Astrud applies her trademark girlish approach
also to American pop and jazz standards, cooly or warmly, and sometimes oddly.
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4 Sylvia Telles / Lúcio Alves /
Roberto Menescal: Bossa Session (Elenco - 1964) Bossa favorites Menescal and
Telles, and veteran vocalist Alves, combine in a pleasant, perky manner
evocative of commercial jingles and pop songs from 1950s America. Particularly
intoxicating and well suited to this troupe is 'Telefone,' with vintage sound
effects.
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5 Os Cariocas: Pure Bossa Nova
(Universal - 1963-66) Like the best of the American vocal groups on which they
modeled themselves, these singers are breathtakingly tight in their collective
approach to rhythm and harmony, serving up astringent bossa classics as lush
confections, on a bed of rich instrumental arrangements.
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6 Wanda Sá: Vagamente (Dubas
Musica - 1964) On 'To Say Goodbye,' the last track on this showcase from the
peak bossa year of 1964, Sá (who would later join Sérgio Mendes as
Wanda de Sah) reduces her seductive voice to a pianissimo whisper, which neither
of the Gilbertos would attempt. On earlier, perkier material, some in English,
Sá sounds engagingly like Astrud.
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7 Orlann Divo: Orlann Divo (What
Music - 1963) Divo was among those Brazilians who attempted to delineate what
they called sambalanço. But to most ears, then and now, it's not much
different from bossa, except maybe a bit more danceable and bubblegummy. Divo's
vocals are more boyish than sensual, backed by a peppy organ.
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8 Jorge Ben: Samba Esquema Novo
(Universal - 1963) It's a kick to hear the popular 'Mas Que Nada' as the
composer intended it, in his voice (which Ben deploys with a sort of yodel)
accompanied by his guitar. Ben also makes extensive, sometimes gratuitous, use
of falsetto and scatting, but proves the lyrical advantage of Portuguese.
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9 Miguel Angel: Samba Na Ondo
(What Music - 1964) Pianist Angel leads three other members of the group Os
Ipanemas in a vibrant session evocative of the piano-led jazz ensembles of Vince
Guaraldi and Ahmad Jamal. The jingly 'Telefone' rings again here, confirming the
rightful role of smart instrumental solos in bossa.
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10 Os Ipanemas: Os Ipanemas (Mr.
Bongo - 1964) This group is not as focused on--and not as good at--bossa as it
is on a more percussion-driven samba, sometimes brassed up with horns. You'll
feel something of the bustle of a Carnaval parade, and a jazzy swing that's like
a gentler alternative to salsa.
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11 Sérgio Mendes: The Swinger
from Rio (WEA International - 1965-66) For those who associate Carioca
Mendes with his part-American, wholly successful pop group Brasil '66, this is a
chance to hear the man before success steered him in other directions, behind
his piano, leading a post-bop ensemble. It's busier and slicker than purists
might prefer.
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12 Eumir Deodato: Impulso! (Ubatuqui
- 1964) The cutesy jazz arrangements, piloted by Deodato's organ, may make you
think about '60s Hollywood composer Henry Mancini, or also about elevators and
ice rinks you may have frequented at that time. Compare and contrast Deodato's
tinselly take on 'Ela é Carioca.'
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13 Quarteto Bossamba - Walter
Wanderley (Som Maior/Som Livre - 1965) This album is another (hard-to-find)
revelation of the quality of a performer we'd heard mostly on the pop charts, in
this case Walter Wanderley. The selection of tunes from his native Brazil is
tasty, the arrangements uniquely creative, evocative, and well-performed.
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14 Luiz Chaves e Seu Conjuncto:
Projeção (RGE/Som Livre - 1963) Look to the name of the band
and of their track, 'Influência Do Jazz,' for clues; this is less bossa
than it is a classy homage to both big band a la Stan Kenton and to salsa, but
with Brazilian repertoire and percussion. The virtuosic piano at times waxes
almost avant-garde.
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15 Bossa Jazz Trio: Bossa Jazz Trio
(Fermata/Som Livre - 1965) Here's bossa you might enjoy with your serving of
feijoada in a classy Copacabana hotel restaurant, or in the lounge after, led by
the bold but swinging (and singing) piano of Amilson Godoy. Bossa and jazz
preconceptions both get reworked and skillfully integrated.
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16 Ike Quebec: Soul Samba (Blue Note
- 1962) As the title suggests, saxist Quebec takes both samba and bossa into
indigo shades of blue, with Latinized support from percussionist Willie Bobo and
guitarist Kenny Burrell. Quebec's gentle, breathy handling lets even Liszt's
'Liebenstraum' sound like good bossa.
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17 Bud Shank: Bossa Nova Years
(Ubatuqui - 1962-65)
This is as irrefutable evidence as you'll get of how bossa can swing, and the
proof is applied to both bossa familiars and to standards from the jazz book,
including 'If I Should Lose You.' Bud's alto is prettily partnered by Joe Pass
and a bossa rhythm section, including João Donato.
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18 Cannonball Adderley: Cannonball's
Bossa Nova (Capitol - 1962)
No surprise that saxist Adderley, with brother Nat alongside and members of
Sérgio Mendes's band, sneaks up 'Corcovado' in a sassy, brassy manner, in
which he also approaches other parts of the bossa repertoire. His 'Groovy
Sambas' seem to export 'Harlem Nocturne' to Ipanema.
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19 Quarteto Jobim-Morelenbaum:
self-titled (Velas/Caravelas - 2000)
Tom Jobim's son and grandson carry the genetic material of bossa into the new
millennium, along with cellist Jacques Morelenbaum and his wife, Paula, who
seems to be channeling the voice of Astrud Gilberto. They refresh the bossa
canon, with an almost chamber-music sheen.
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20 Bossacucanova: Uma Batida
Differente (Six Degrees - 2004)
For the most recent recording among our picks, a group of new, young bossa
exponents are joined by veterans Roberto Menescal, Marcos Valle, and Orlann
Divo, as well as second-generation star Wilson Simoninha. The updating involves
techno and other electronic effects, as well as rootsy Afro accents.
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