Astrud Gilberto Music

one of my favorite records of the last few years. marykate knows how to write them songs. questions: (1) why isn't she more famous? (2) when shall we be treated to another record?

This is my favorite CD of the year. It's great, straight ahead pop music. I hit the 'repeat' button on "Mundane Dream" over and over. The writing is great, and the music is a throwback to a simpler era of pop music.

Every now and then you come across a record that makes you think the world would be a better place if everyone would just give it a listen. Marykate O'Neil's self-titled debut album is just that record as her sunny melodies, bright lyrics, and day-glo voice warm any with whom they come in contact. The influence of the Monkees on O'Neil, with their beach jingle-jangle is evident in tracks like "Another Saturday" and "Still Waiting," while "Newsday" borrows the chords from "You Really Got Me." Producer Jill Sobule, Marykate's Brooklyn-apartment roommate who also co-wrote half the songs, adds nice backing harmonies and is given room to experiment in the production using "all kinds of fake instruments." The gorgeous "U-Haul" has the feel of an elegiac samba and her cover of the Spice Girls' "Stop" is deliciously loungey making you easily forget the original. With just enough pep to brighten your day, Marykate O'Neil is a shining debut without any burn.

This is really good. You should buy it.

Marykate O'Neil's debut CD is an excellent set. My favorite track is the opener "Hudson" with its bouncy rhythms & Micky Grimm's percolating percussion, "I'm soaked down through the bones; I never thougt I'd be this cold; It's never like it is on the TV." "Getting Out of Bed" has a great power pop feel with some stinging electric lead guitar. The midtempo "Radio Shack" has a pretty pop melody with lovely guitar. "Another Saturday" sounds like Revolver-era Beatles while "Newsday" starts like the Kinks' oldie "All Day & All of the Night" before hitting cruise control. Marykate takes one of Spice Girls' strongest songs, "Stop," and gives the only cover tune in this set a great performance with a driving beat. "Bedsore Brain" is an acoustic samba. "I've got a secret; I'm crazy in love with you," Marykate sings on "Secret Crush" with a pounding rhythm track by Dennis Diken of Smithereens. The CD concludes with a cute ballad "8th & 14th" that clocks in under 2 minutes. Jill Sobule produced and cowrote much of this disc. Marykate's vocals work well; and the entire set is a real charmer. Enjoy!

This CD is one of my favorites! I'm a Bossa lover, and this album contains some of the most famous songs, such as Quiet Nights, How Insensitive and Desafinado. This is a must-have. The only famous song missing is The Girl from Ipanema.

I dearly love Astrud Gilberto. Have almost everything she's ever had
recorded. This particular recording has been issued, re-issued under
about 20 different versions of cd covers, faces, titles, etc. They all
have Astrud Gilberto listed on the front, but not always the same photo
or caption. Same songs on every cd and same versions. For me, the ONLY
keeper on this is the gorgeous rendition of "Far Away" with Astrud and
the late, great Chet Baker in a vocal duet. I only wish the whole cd
was up to this standard, but alas, it is not. Those looking for the
original "Girl From Ipanema" version w/Stan Getz or ANY of Astrud's
other beautiful Verve songs need to stay away from this low point in
her recording career. I don't blame Astrud on this project, and will
forgive her. She obviously had bad advice and/or management with this.
5 stars for "Far Away" and 2 stars for the rest of the material.

I've always liked this album. I've not listened that much to Ms Gilberto but I like her voice a lot, even though she sounds a bit distracted at times. What makes this album special are all the great New York studio musicians that play on it. In here you'll find people like George Young, Eddie Daniels, Will Lee, Allan Schwartzberg, Warren Bernhardt, Jeff Mironov etc. I don't remember the others offhand. The album also features a special performance by Chet Baker on "Far Away". I recommend this album to anyone who likes good music!

So maybe in the 1970s,when both bossa nova and Astrud Gilberto's time had peaked and passed,it seemed a good idea to re-record these classics in order to sell them to the disco crowd...Maybe Gilberto needed the cash...certainly it was no real stretch to go from bossa nova to disco..BUT THESE SIDES JUST AIN'T THE SAME AS THE ORIGINALS,and without Stan Getz's contributions these sides stink...

When I ordered this CD I was expecting the original "The Girl from Ipanema." Imagine my disappointment when a totally different version, minus the incredible sax, began playing. I wanted to toss it then and there. I decided to check out the rest of the CD but it didn't get any better. Fortunately, I found the correct recording on the "Getz/Gilberto" CD, which is absolutely an incredible listening experience. This is the CD you want if you're looking for "The Girl from Ipanema." Don't waste your money (or your ears) on this CD. Just awful.

This was quite an odd collection of songs, but being a fan of Ms. Gilberto's voice and phrasing if the CD's plays on you just may forget to press the forward button. I don't know where they found that fantastic electronic piano player but I don't think I've ever heard an eletric piano sound that grovy before. I didn't really care all that much for most of the tracks but If you love Ms. Gilberto you need to pick this up.

I got "Beach Samba" and "September 17, 1969" for Christmas 2007. Of the two, I like "Beach Samba" better. Released in 1967, it perfectly captures the breeziness of that year's music. "Beach Samba" is fun, jazzy, up-tempo, and well produced. Astrud's vocals are as charming as ever, and it doesn't have pop pretentious in the way "September 17, 1969" does (a cover of "Light My Fire," really?). On "Beach Samba," she is still close to her Latin/bossa roots. Most of the songs here are in English. "Canoeiro" (which, near as I can tell, is about Brazil's canoe people) is in Portuguese. "Face That I Love" is one of her better songs, which I had first heard years ago on her wonderful "Finest Hour" CD. "Face that I Love" makes me think of couples strolling on the boardwalk as fireworks explode behind them. I also liked "Oba, Oba." I would say "You Didn't Have to Be So Nice" (a Lovin' Spoonful cover) was too cute (she sings it with her young son, Marcello), if it wasn't so unselfconscious. The album ends well with "Nao Bate O Corocao." The bonus tracks are good if you've never heard them before, but for devoted Astrud fans, they are too familiar. "Goodbye Sadness" seems to land on every album of hers.

I haven't been so entranced by this many songs in a row, in a long while; Astrud Gilberto has the winning formula: tone down the bossa nova roots from 'Look To The Rainbow' (1965) for just a moment, and wash away our worries with a dozen tracks of pure pop-inspired wonder. If you want lush, soothing, romantic summer fun from the late '60s, this record is for you. Play it at a party, play it for yourself. It doesn't matter. There's a reason this is one of her most popular albums, as it marked, in my opinion, the beginning of her ascent into iconic status as a recording artist and performer. Buy the Samba now. You won't be sorry!

Astrud Gilberto's first wave of success obviously came with her sensational involvement in the bossa nova standard 'Girl From Ipanema' from 1963. As her solo recording career was on the rise, it seems that 'Beach Samba' represented what I feel is the beginning of her next peak in quality, one that would continue with 'A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness' (1967), dip a bit with 'Windy' (1968), and then come to a glorious halt with 'September 17, 1969' (1969). 'Beach Samba' is one of the most feel-good records I've ever heard. Many people criticize it's 'pop' feel, with less bossa nova sensibility. It is indeed noticeable, but doesn't detract from the LP at all, at least not for me. Even the corny duet with son Marcelo, 'You Didn't Have To Be So Nice,' is fun in a 'bonus track' sort of way. It's not meant for serious analysis; just enjoy it (and the rest of this lush pop standard) for what it is: a great album by a great singer.

This is a rather collection of jazz standards and some Brazilian flavored tunes (including a couple Luiz Bonfa tunes- for great 60s Brazilian acoustic music, check his Verve reissues) and Astrud's sweet, gentle voice. There are maybe more instances on this record that sound a bit off as far as her performance, and I can see where the big band jazz setting seems a bit overwhelming for her voice when compared to her usually soft instrument surroundings, but it's still a worthwhile collection of good tunes. Many tunes still have a samba/bossa nova feel to them even if they are not traditional Brazilian material. Like another reviewer mentioned, A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness is still my favorite of Astrud's albums- better tunes in my opinion. The last 5 tracks here from that album offer a taste of it, even if they don't include my favorites.

"I still believe that the simplest thing to do is what pleases you. I sing what I like, whether the song is American, French or something else. I feel a song should give you pleasure, whether or not you're dancing and even if you've heard it many times before." ~ Astrud Gilberto ~

Put some brilliant arrangers, talented instrumentalists, an unbelievably musically sensitive songbird with a unique vocal style together, add seventeen lovely standard pop songs in a recording session and the end result would be an outstanding and remarkable compilation CD such as this. You can't go wrong with this one, very highly recommended.

The brilliant arrangers are Don Sebesky and Eumir Deodato. The talented instrumentalists are Toots Thielemans (harmonica), Ron Carter (bass), Hubert Laws (flute), Bobby Rosengarten and Grady Tate (drums), Ernie Royal (trumpet) and Walter Wanderley (organ), among many others. And of course the songbird with a unique voice is Astrud Gilberto.

The first 12 tracks are from the original recording of "Beach Samba" and tracks 13 through 17 are bonus tracks and were originally issued on the album "A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness."

Listen to her interpretation of Harry Warren and Mack Gordon's dreamiest song "I Had The Craziest Dream," which was introduced in a 1942 movie "Springtime In The Rockies," and you'll totally agree with me that it's the best version of this classic gem. Don Sebesky did an excellent job on the bossa nova arrangement. One of my all-time favorites is Jimmy Van Heusen and Johnny Burke's rainy-day mood song, "Here's That Rainy Day," and hers is my top favorite for female vocals and for male vocals, it's Kenny Rankin from "The Kenny Rankin Album." Another rainy-day mood music is a poignantly beautiful song by Tim Hardin "Misty Roses."

One of the highlights is the wonderful duet arranged by Don Sebesky "You Didn't Have To Be So Nice" (a very popular song by the Lovin' Spoonful in the Sixties), her son, Marcello, steals the limelight from Ms. Gilberto and features the hauntingly beautiful harmonica playing of Toots Thielemans on the background.

The rest of the spotlights are Tony Hatch's "Call Me," Irving Berlin's evergreen "It's A Lovely Day Today" and last but not least my very favorite from the musical treasure chest of Victor Young and Ned Washington, a gem of gems "My Foolish Heart," another Don Sebesky's awesome arrangement using cellos, French horns and woodwinds making it the most beautiful and to-die-for version I've ever heard!

"The night is like a lovely tune
Beware my foolish heart
How white the ever constant moon
Take care, my foolish heart."