Astrud Gilberto Music

This album is not what I was expecting, but it is mostly well done. Deodato did the arrangements and conducts throughout. This is really HIS album, more than Astrud's. Astrud is absent on two songs. (One of those -- pure instrumentals -- is a tasty arrangement of Steven Stills' To A Flame.) Turrentine shows up only on only four cuts. There is probably less improvisation on this album than on Deodato's hit CD Prelude, but the Deodato touch is very familiar. He makes arrangements that are easy to listen to without becoming completely cheesy, and he leaves room for the instrumentalists to improvise. However, I didn't feel that the spotlight was on Astrud. She became a central voice in Deodato's little symphonies.

Astrud's vocals range from wonderful to a little embarrassing. Zazuiera in particular sounds tentative and sort of dashed together. She is rarely exactly in tune on this song. On the other hand, Burt Bacharach's Wanting Things is just beautiful, touching. The best cut on the album is probably Brazilian Tapestry, bringing together the best of Deodato's arranging, Turrentine's sax, and Astrud's vocals.

I don't like the way Astrud's voice was mixed. Ponteio and Traveling Light sound normal. On some of the other cuts, her lower range is boosted, and the upper middle and higher frequencies are sucked out, removing any hint of breathiness or reediness in her voice. What's left is the fundamental note, plus the sibilants at the extreme high end. It sounds heavy and thick. The audio engineering could have been improved on in this regard.

What we're left with is an album with many good individual tracks that make for pleasant Sunday brunch-style jazz listening, but is not in any sense a cohesive whole. I recommend the album. In fact, I've enjoyed it very much. I just wasn't prepared for Deodato being the mastermind.

By the way, I would recommend the European Import "Master Series" version, ASIN: B0000AM6RE, currently available through Amazon marketplace sellers for less than $9 plus shipping. Look carefully through the Amazon listings, and you will find it. It contains three bonus tracks, not very consequential ones, but still. Also, the overal sound quality is quite pure and clean, apart from the heaviness apparent on some of Astrud's vocals. (It is an HDCD disc.)

I have been listening to this album since I was 3 years old when my father first brought this home from the record store in 1972. It is just incredible. Astrud's voice and laid-back delivery are better here then on her earlier (and better-known) Verve albums. The real treasures of this ablum though are the outstanding arrangements by Eumir Deodato, who once again proves he is the master of this type of music. Nearly every track is full of interesting, complex, yet beautiful instrumentation. He blends mellow low strings with lots of Fender Rhodes electric piano, plenty of electric and acoustic guitar, and a wide variety of Brazilian percussion instruments. It's just a rich tapestry of sound that never fails to intrigue me, even though I've probably heard the album a hundred or more times. Stanley Turrentine is all over this record, and his solos are soulful, strong, and melodic as always. If you can get past a couple of the Carpenters songs that are included, you'll find it to be a timeless album. This is one you'll want to listen to this one over and over.

This is another great album of Astrud Gilberto... This one seems to be more instrumental compared to some of her other albums, which is nice in my opinion. This music is very relaxing and soothing.
This or any of her other albums are great for those that are already familiar with her style and those who are not.

I first purchased this LP on vinyl in '79. The record became a favorite when I was in a mellow, laid-back mood but still wanted to hear good jazz players, solo's etc.. Stanley Turrentine plays sensitively, but, shows his testosterone throughout. One reason to buy this CD is to simply get more of the phenomenal musician "Toots Thielemans". Like Art Tatum, Toots never played a bad note. Add-in Ron Carter, a team of great percussionists, Gtr. solo's by Bob Mann, Astrud's soft, innocent vocal approach, Deodato's arrangements and Creed Taylor's production and you get a very cool session.

Some tracks are a bit sappy like "Solo el fin (For all we know)" and "Historia de amor (Love Story)", but 5 or 6 other tracks make up for it and hell, when's the last time you bought a record where over half the tracks are keepers? Standouts are "To A Flame" (Turrentine sings), "Zazueira" (infectious rhythms behind Astrud and Turrentine), "Ponteio" (I learned to play bass by) that features Toots throughout, fine melodies sung by Astrud & more of Turrentine, "Brazilian Tapestry" (starts mellow, but, has an upbeat, pretty instrumental ending) and "Traveling Light" that features nice solo work by Mann.

The record is hard to categorize. Brazilian Pop? Jazz? Soundtrack background? For me, it works.

What doesn't work: if you loved the vinyl (and have BiG ears) the reissue is a HUGE disappointment, a travesty to the Artists, Creed Taylor & Rudy Van Gelder. Whomever of these have left this earth must be rolling in their graves. The Mixes suck. One example in detail: on "Traveling Light" there's a whole section of Bob Mann's ripping solo that is almost buried in the mix. I can't imagine the idiots who put up the original tapes and didn't hear this. Instead of keying in on the featured Guitar solo, they let it muster and instead let Deodato's Fender Rhodes (strictly a background part) take over. Too bizarre for words. The only upshot to this track was they let the song play out longer than the original. You get more music. You also get a couple bad notes by Mann, kinda' rare to hear in the ultra-safe world of Pop.

The rest of the record sounds thin. Nothing like the vinyl. Maybe this is an homage from the Producer's to the old days of Vinyl? The CD is so uneven I often wonder if there's a hidden message.

Still, the record is an achievement, and though a bit dated sounding, contains great performances.

Gotta confess, I ordered this album without reading the details when I saw the name Gilberto thinking it would be Joao and not Astrud together with Stanley Turrentine. Well it was a mistake, but not a disaster.
I have never been a big fan of Astrud Gilberto's voice, and this CD has not changed my opinion. But, fans of Turrentine will enjoy the smooth sax interludes that pepper this recording. I like him most on To A Flame, Ponteio and the Milton Nascimento instrumental composition Vera Cruz.
I really like most of the CDs that were originally issued as albums on the CTI label. But overall,Gilberto with Turrentine falls short of the high standards set on most of those recordings. It is too commercial for my taste and features nothing unusual to recommend it. As background music, it is unobtrusive but nothing you'd want to listen to every day. Three stars to Turrentine for his fine sax work in the face of mostly weak material. Too bad Turrentine isn't around to do an album with Joao Gilberto, now that would be of interest.

Astrud Gilberto is a great perfomer. She communicates with good taste and no exaggerations.