Latin Jazz Music

heard this album last night on a jazz station here in Miami. First time I've ever heard Rosa Passos, and was completely knocked out - her voice was so beautiful and compelling that even though I don't speak a word of Spanish I really believed that I understood what she was saying. On the first cut, I heard an single opening cello line by Yo-Yo Ma and was drawn in only to be captivated by some of the most compelling and beautiful Latin Jazz that it has been my pleasure to hear in recent years. Just ordered the CD and can't wait.

This bottom line about Joao Gilberto is that no one will ever stop anything from rushing a melody like his voice can.

If that wasn't enough, his guitar and his glorious compositions are stellar, his renditions of Brazilian classics and Claus Ogerman's strings, in Amoroso, are without a blemish.

This is two-albums-in-one kind of thing, and for a change, you get two momentous albums. The second half, Joao shares the studio with Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, Gal Costa and Maria Bethania, which guarantees that Brasil--the second album--is a treat, one of those occasions that thankfully gets recorded.

As big as Caetano and the rest of Tropicalia's first row are, the music is a pledge to Gilberto, nothing is more important than the Bossa he sings, right now, so many years ago.

Fantastic CD. Great orchestrations and concept. Wonderful songs. Singer creates a nice mood and has interesting rhythmic concept of deliberately not staying exactly with the beat at times.

i will focus on the brasil part in this review. as other reviewers have noted, joao was at his finest on some amoroso tracks but the production is unbearable at times.
the voices on brasil are familiar to anyone who is a fan of brazilian music: gilberto gil, caetano veloso, joao gilberto, and maria bethania are among the greatest superstars all time of brazilian music individually. and on this album they all come together to play joao gilberto's style of music. i'm not sure about bethania but gil and caetano were avid joao fans. however they had never tried to replicate his sound. tropicalia's musical influences certainly included joao but were nothing like his music. in this 1981 release, we here straight bossa nova. joao plays beautifully. the production at times is not optimal but at other times is excellent. hearing gil and caetano sing in such a restrained, soft fashion is impressive considering the vocals that they had used in their career up to that point.
anyways, this album certainly pays tribute to brasil and brazilian music. disse alguem, the simons and marks jazz standard all of me in portuguese lyrics, is the one exception. the vocals are stunning, the bossa rhythms crisp and refreshing, the sound soft as can be. this is one of my favorite albums.

Joao Gilberto (b. 1931) first came on to the scene with his debut album of 1958 titled "Chega de Saudade", introducing a new style of jazz samba called bossa nova. Gilberto is credited as the innovator of the bossa nova sound that sprung to life out of Brazil. We all likely own the 1965 classic Getz/Gilberto album, featuring his then wife Astrud on vocals along with Stan Getz and Antonio Carlos Jobim.

This album is good to own because you get two albums for the price of one, Gilberto's "Amoroso" (1976) and "Brasil" (1981). These albums showcase Joao in his prime, vibrant and full of life. "Brasil" is a much more accessible album to listen to than the previous selection, and showcases fellow Brazilian musicians Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso. What an album to relax to and forget about life.

This cd was the first of many brazilian bossa novas I've bought. I heard the Girl from Ipanema on a complilation jazz cd and was hooked then. I don't aggree w/ the above reviewers who don't like the orchestral arrangements? Are you nuts? This album is fantastic! Its actually two albums, and I love every song. I grew up listening to mostly r/b and this style is second only to that for me.
I had never heard music so beautiful as in (portueguese'.) One of my professors suggested that I give a listen to international music, boy was she right.
I have migraines so I put on Joao/Astrud/Stan Getz to relax and release the pain. They are all so soothing and enjoyable. I also suggest you get" Getz/Gilberto: live at Carnegie Hall" Astrud appears on it as well. Antonio Carlos Jobim: Wave, "Brazilian Romance" all by Verve records.

This bottom line about Joao Gilberto is that no one will ever stop anything from rushing a melody like his voice can.

If that wasn't enough, his guitar and his glorious compositions are stellar, his renditions of Brazilian classics and Claus Ogerman's strings, in Amoroso, are without a blemish.

This is two-albums-in-one kind of thing, and for a change, you get two momentous albums. The second half, Joao shares the studio with Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, Gal Costa and Maria Bethania, which guarantees that Brasil--the second album--is a treat, one of those occasions that thankfully gets recorded.

As big as Caetano and the rest of Tropicalia's first row are, the music is a pledge to Gilberto, nothing is more important than the Bossa he sings, right now, so many years ago.

Fantastic CD. Great orchestrations and concept. Wonderful songs. Singer creates a nice mood and has interesting rhythmic concept of deliberately not staying exactly with the beat at times.

i will focus on the brasil part in this review. as other reviewers have noted, joao was at his finest on some amoroso tracks but the production is unbearable at times.
the voices on brasil are familiar to anyone who is a fan of brazilian music: gilberto gil, caetano veloso, joao gilberto, and maria bethania are among the greatest superstars all time of brazilian music individually. and on this album they all come together to play joao gilberto's style of music. i'm not sure about bethania but gil and caetano were avid joao fans. however they had never tried to replicate his sound. tropicalia's musical influences certainly included joao but were nothing like his music. in this 1981 release, we here straight bossa nova. joao plays beautifully. the production at times is not optimal but at other times is excellent. hearing gil and caetano sing in such a restrained, soft fashion is impressive considering the vocals that they had used in their career up to that point.
anyways, this album certainly pays tribute to brasil and brazilian music. disse alguem, the simons and marks jazz standard all of me in portuguese lyrics, is the one exception. the vocals are stunning, the bossa rhythms crisp and refreshing, the sound soft as can be. this is one of my favorite albums.

Joao Gilberto (b. 1931) first came on to the scene with his debut album of 1958 titled "Chega de Saudade", introducing a new style of jazz samba called bossa nova. Gilberto is credited as the innovator of the bossa nova sound that sprung to life out of Brazil. We all likely own the 1965 classic Getz/Gilberto album, featuring his then wife Astrud on vocals along with Stan Getz and Antonio Carlos Jobim.

This album is good to own because you get two albums for the price of one, Gilberto's "Amoroso" (1976) and "Brasil" (1981). These albums showcase Joao in his prime, vibrant and full of life. "Brasil" is a much more accessible album to listen to than the previous selection, and showcases fellow Brazilian musicians Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso. What an album to relax to and forget about life.

This cd was the first of many brazilian bossa novas I've bought. I heard the Girl from Ipanema on a complilation jazz cd and was hooked then. I don't aggree w/ the above reviewers who don't like the orchestral arrangements? Are you nuts? This album is fantastic! Its actually two albums, and I love every song. I grew up listening to mostly r/b and this style is second only to that for me.
I had never heard music so beautiful as in (portueguese'.) One of my professors suggested that I give a listen to international music, boy was she right.
I have migraines so I put on Joao/Astrud/Stan Getz to relax and release the pain. They are all so soothing and enjoyable. I also suggest you get" Getz/Gilberto: live at Carnegie Hall" Astrud appears on it as well. Antonio Carlos Jobim: Wave, "Brazilian Romance" all by Verve records.

This bottom line about Joao Gilberto is that no one will ever stop anything from rushing a melody like his voice can.

If that wasn't enough, his guitar and his glorious compositions are stellar, his renditions of Brazilian classics and Claus Ogerman's strings, in Amoroso, are without a blemish.

This is two-albums-in-one kind of thing, and for a change, you get two momentous albums. The second half, Joao shares the studio with Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, Gal Costa and Maria Bethania, which guarantees that Brasil--the second album--is a treat, one of those occasions that thankfully gets recorded.

As big as Caetano and the rest of Tropicalia's first row are, the music is a pledge to Gilberto, nothing is more important than the Bossa he sings, right now, so many years ago.

Fantastic CD. Great orchestrations and concept. Wonderful songs. Singer creates a nice mood and has interesting rhythmic concept of deliberately not staying exactly with the beat at times.

i will focus on the brasil part in this review. as other reviewers have noted, joao was at his finest on some amoroso tracks but the production is unbearable at times.
the voices on brasil are familiar to anyone who is a fan of brazilian music: gilberto gil, caetano veloso, joao gilberto, and maria bethania are among the greatest superstars all time of brazilian music individually. and on this album they all come together to play joao gilberto's style of music. i'm not sure about bethania but gil and caetano were avid joao fans. however they had never tried to replicate his sound. tropicalia's musical influences certainly included joao but were nothing like his music. in this 1981 release, we here straight bossa nova. joao plays beautifully. the production at times is not optimal but at other times is excellent. hearing gil and caetano sing in such a restrained, soft fashion is impressive considering the vocals that they had used in their career up to that point.
anyways, this album certainly pays tribute to brasil and brazilian music. disse alguem, the simons and marks jazz standard all of me in portuguese lyrics, is the one exception. the vocals are stunning, the bossa rhythms crisp and refreshing, the sound soft as can be. this is one of my favorite albums.

Joao Gilberto (b. 1931) first came on to the scene with his debut album of 1958 titled "Chega de Saudade", introducing a new style of jazz samba called bossa nova. Gilberto is credited as the innovator of the bossa nova sound that sprung to life out of Brazil. We all likely own the 1965 classic Getz/Gilberto album, featuring his then wife Astrud on vocals along with Stan Getz and Antonio Carlos Jobim.

This album is good to own because you get two albums for the price of one, Gilberto's "Amoroso" (1976) and "Brasil" (1981). These albums showcase Joao in his prime, vibrant and full of life. "Brasil" is a much more accessible album to listen to than the previous selection, and showcases fellow Brazilian musicians Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso. What an album to relax to and forget about life.

This cd was the first of many brazilian bossa novas I've bought. I heard the Girl from Ipanema on a complilation jazz cd and was hooked then. I don't aggree w/ the above reviewers who don't like the orchestral arrangements? Are you nuts? This album is fantastic! Its actually two albums, and I love every song. I grew up listening to mostly r/b and this style is second only to that for me.
I had never heard music so beautiful as in (portueguese'.) One of my professors suggested that I give a listen to international music, boy was she right.
I have migraines so I put on Joao/Astrud/Stan Getz to relax and release the pain. They are all so soothing and enjoyable. I also suggest you get" Getz/Gilberto: live at Carnegie Hall" Astrud appears on it as well. Antonio Carlos Jobim: Wave, "Brazilian Romance" all by Verve records.

Sammy Figueroa is probably one of the most talented percussionists of our time. This CD is full of charm, beautiful music that involves you to ecstasy. I saw him play live in Miami Beach's Van Dyke and he's absolutely stunning.

As a latin jazz listener, it's always interesting to find a recording that exceeds your expectations. This recording by Sammy Figueroa is top notch.

This really takes me back to some carefree days spent in Miami during my youth. Fantastic arrangements with Niko's Dream probably topping it for me. Billboard has this listed as a hot jazz album, and they're right!!!

A great album from a percussionist that has had a stellar career as a sideman. The musicians are world class and the tunes are refreshing. Highly recommended!

I love this CD. It is Latin jazz at it's best. All the players sound great and the tunes are wonderful. Highly recommended!!!

Eric