Customer Reviews

Antonio Carlos Jobim's Finest Hour

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Antonio Carlos Jobim's Finest Hour is an excellent collection of jazz bossanova recordings by one of the leaders of the bossanova sound. Jobim's solo and accompaniment with vocalist Astrud Gilberto and legendary saxophonist, Stan Getz, offers a melodic and sensuous effect to his lush Brazilian sound. The cd's crispsness makes the recordings timeless, but not without a thought of 1960s cocktail sounding nostalgia (dependent on your age, these are tunes you heard your father play on the good ol' hi-fi system). The songs make you imagine you're on a beach with the palm trees gently swaying back and forth, or simply lounging on the patio listening to tracks, such as the all too familiar, "The Girl From Impanema," my favorite version of "Meditation," or the delicious hipster trappings of "Desfinado" with Getz's exceptional sax solo.

Finest Hour will not disappoint those listeners looking for the quiet jazz sounds that whisper in your ear or simply let you relax. So, grab yourself a copy, and while you're at it, mix a cocktail or two and add one of those little umbrellas.

This CD covers all of Jobim's greatest tunes. A large chunk are instrumentals and with Claus Ogerman charts they are very smooth and relaxing. These songs have far more depth and beauty to them than they appear to have at first glance.

Overall, Jobim was better at composing and playing guitar than at singing plus I prefer the more lush orchestra sound over a small combo.

Finally, this CD it also provides a good time span and variety of Jobim's music (63-86).

If you're JOBIM fan, this is a great point to start at.

This compilation here is a not-very-imaginative rehash of previously released material. The reason I gave it one star is not cause it['s bad], but because ALL of the songs here one can get in more attractive/comprehensive packages, such as: "Getz/Gilberto" (a masterpiece), "Composer of Desafinado Plays" (a cool record) or "The Antonio Carlos Jobim Songbook" compilation from Verve, which is really cool. So there! If you are really interested in Antonio Brasileiro, skip this one and go for the real deal.

I got this album not by a store nor a friend; but by chance. Suddenly I started to listen to songs my dad was used to play when I was little kid. I got those memories of soft and magical music like being in a paradise, flowers, great meadows... ...when you are a little boy, you can imagine really great things. This excellent album; played by its great composer, can put you there; as it does to me... again.

For those beginning to explore the music of Antonio Carlos Jobim and Bossa Nova in general, 'Antonio Carlos Jobim's Finest Hour' is a nice first album. The classic versions of "Girl From Ipanema", "Corcovado" and "Desafinado" with Stan Getz and Astrud Gilberto are included with this compilation, but the best material on this CD are the tracks from Jobim's 1963 'The Composer of Desafinado, Plays' album, which are beautiful instrumental versions of his best-known compositions, complete with Claus Ogerman's lush orchestra. Some might think that these particular tracks sound like "Elevator Music", but listen carefully and you'll find a depth of emotion and beauty in Jobim's spare, haunting piano playing and sideman Jimmy Cleveland's trombone solos that will change your preconceptions about lush orchestral music.

One Warning: 'Antonio Carlos Jobim's Finest Hour' has a mislabeled track, "O Morro Nao Tem Vez (AKA Favela)" is actually "Amor Em Paz ("Once I Loved"). Both tracks are from the "The Composer of Desafinado, Plays" album. The latter is the more popular song, but "O Morro Nao Tem Vez" is one of the most underrated songs Jobim ever wrote and a masterpiece in its own right. The remainder of the songs on 'Finest Hour' come from Jobim's other albums dating from the late 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. These tracks do not have the same wondrous beauty as those earlier, 1960s-era cuts, (hence the four star rating) but are still worth your undidvided attention.

The late Antonio Carlos Jobim was certainly one the most innovative musicians of our time. He gave us something else to live by and for. I suggest to everyone who is feeling somewhat troubled, to put this CD on and listen to "Aguas de marco"(Waters of March). The playfulness displayed by Jobim and Elis Regina is bound to make you smile. ALso the classic Girl from Ipanema with that beautiful voice of his.... Uf! something else! What are you waiting for? go and get this album!

JOBIM struck once again the strings in my heart with this album. Listen to his natural melodic voice in "Looks Like December" and his orquestration in "Passarim". Clearly one can acknowledge his brilliance in writing great ballads and music. ANTHONY CARLOS JOBIM is talented and will always be an inspiration for musicians all over the world. Great musicians will forever be in our life and memory.

This cd compilation by Jobim has it all.Bosso nova,beautiful music(easy listening elevator music)and even some jazz.Jobim plays the piano on all 17 and sings on some tracks.Claus Ogerman does the lush background music as well as Eumir Deodato.There are 2 versions of the girl from impenema on this cd.The one on track 1 is done vocally by Astrud Gilberto and Jobim.The one on track 11 is done instrumentally.Jobim actually had 4 versions of this song but only 2 are included hear.The lush tracks are really beautiful and make it sound like you are listening to an beautiful music station in fact Jobim was played a lot on beautiful music stations in the 60's,70's and 80's.Hear is a more thural info on tracks.

1)The Girl From Impenema-Vocals by Jobim and Astrud Gilberto.They actually played this version by Jobim on Vegas Vacation when Chevy Chase and Beveraly Deangelo was on the plane going to Las Vegas.

2)Desafinado-Vocal Jobim

3)Corcovado-Vocal

4)Agua De Beber-Instrumental Lush

5)O Morro Nao Tem Vez(aka Favela)-Instrumental Lush

6)Insensatez-Instrumental Lush

7)Samba De Una Note So-Lush Instrumental

8)Mediatation-Instrumental Lush This song got a lot of play on beautiful music stations from Jobim and other artist as well.

9)Chega De Saudade-Instrumental Lush

10)Wave-Instrumental Lush

11)The Girl From Impenema-Instrumental Lush I heard this version on a beautiful music station in Atlanta GA WPCH in the 80's before they changed to soft rock.

12)Remember-Bossa Nova,Jazz,Latin

13)Un Rancho Nas Nuvens-Instrumental Lush

14)Aqueas De Marco-Vocals by Jobim and Elis Regina

15)Inutil Paisagem-Vocals by Jobim and Elis Regina

16)Passarim-Vocal by Jobim with strings and woodwinds

17)Looks Like December-Vocal by Jobim.

This is a relaxing cd to put on if you like beautiful music,latin and bossa nova.I recommend Jobim in addition to other artist like Percy Faith,John Fox,Melachrino Strings,Mantovani,Frank Chacksfield,101 Strings,Walter Wanderly,the Hollyridge Strings and others.

I am a big Bossa Nova fan, so the quality of this CD was no surprise. I have to say though, that the collection offers the best of Jobim. The music is slow, lazy and full of feeling.

One of the biggest advanatges--the majority of the lyrics are in Portugese, which for me leaves the melody and voice be the driving power behind the songs.

Excellent!

"Even if they can't name him right away as the composer, just about everybody knows some of the Bossa Nova music of Antonio Carlos Brasileiro de Almeda Jobim. His dozens of beautiful melodies have become part of standard song repertoire throughout the world." ~ Linda Dahl ~

For Brazilian jazz fans, Antonio Carlos Jobim is a musical icon. His was a name who did not need an introduction. He was the "Father of Bossa Nova" and his music is not only popular in his native hometown Brazil, but it is also much-appreciated worldwide.

This CD, "Antonio Carlos Jobim's Finest Hour," is a representation of his greatness not only in composing music, but also his adeptness in guitar and piano playing. His piano technique is so distinctive that a discerning music lover can easily identify. It is what I call "Jobim's uniquely simple piano artistry," a single-note-right-hand-style of playing. It's relatively clear-cut, effortless and very minimal.

This compilation includes his finest recordings from 1960s through 1980s under various labels such as Verve Records, A&M Records, Philips Records and AMC Records. It features guest collaborators: Stan Getz, Joâo Gilberto, Elis Regina, Astrud Gilberto, Paula Morelenbaum and arrangers Claus Ogerman, Eumir Deodato and Paolo Jobim.

What better way to start the presentation for a collection such as this than Jobim's staple and greatest hit, "The Girl From Ipanema?" It's his signature song that made him a musical icon. It became a sort of an anthem among his body of work. This track features Joao Gilberto (guitar/vocal), Astrud Gilberto (vocal), Stan Getz (sax). This song also introduced Stan Getz to a wider audience, which includes music fans not only in Brazil, but throughout the world as well. It also won the Grammy trophy for "Song of the Year" in 1965.

The second version of "The Girl from Ipanema," which I prefer, is purely instrumental and done with a different chart written by Eumir Deodato who also played the piano and conducted the String section. This session's sidemen include Antonio Carlos Jobim (guitar), Hubert Laws (flute) and Ron Carter (bass), among others. This was taken from the 1970 album Tide.

Among the disc's highlights include all-instrumental renditions of "Wave," "Chega de Saudade" and "Amor En Paz" ("Once I Loved"), which should be the correct title for track five instead of "O Morro Nao Tem Vez" as erroneously indicated on track listing.

"Corcovado," also famously titled "Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars" is one of the best tracks in this compilation that shows off the brilliance and mastery of Stan Getz in sax playing. His solo (1:53 to 2:58) is so remarkable and to my ears it is one of the most beautiful solos ever recorded in the history of jazz. This session is from the original recording of Getz/Gilberto in 1963 featuring the vocals of Joâo Gilberto for Portuguese lyrics and Astrud Gilberto for English lyrics.

Elis Regina, one of the finest Brazilian singers, graced this compilation on a refreshing duet with Jobim and lend her impressive vocal in "Aguas de Marco" ("Waters of March") from the 1974 album Elis & Tom.

This is a great introduction to the artistry of a multi-talented musician and a man who was simply in love with music and enjoyed making charming melodies with everlasting appeal. If you enjoy listening to this compilation CD and would like to explore his discography as well as tribute albums, I highly recommend some of his most remarkable recordings and compilation albums: Wave, Pure Bossa Nova, Terra Brasilis, The Best of Antonio Carlos Jobim: 20th Century Masters - The Millennium Collection, and of course, his most charming Bossa Nova album of all-time, and his most famous project with the legendary Chairman of the Board, Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim. Likewise, please check out Getz Plays Jobim: The Girl from Ipanema and The Girl From Ipanema: The Antonio Carlos Jobim Songbook, a noteworthy tribute to his music featuring such jazz legends as Oscar Peterson, Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Getz, Wes Montgomery, Ella Fitzgerald, Shirley Horn, Sarah Vaughan, Joâo Gilberto, Elis Regina, Astrud Gilberto, Billie Eckstine, Luis Bonfa and Charlie Byrd.

Happy Listening!