Customer Reviews

Bossa N Beatles

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As a lover of Beatles and Brazilian Music, this album has become one of my all time favorites. Rita Lee's smooth, sultry vocals blend perfectly into the excellent musical arrangements. The percussion, strings and piano are subtle yet not simple. The Bossa Nova tempo gives this music an incredible twist and warmth.

This CD creates a lounge atmosphere just in the playing. Rita Lee is a sultry female vocalist and the arrangements of these old Beatles tunes are more jazz than 1960's rock and roll.

The Beatles were before my time, but the familiarity of the lyrics and the translation into another genre held a strong and instant appeal. I ran out to MusicMundo in Buenos Aires and bought this CD the day that I heard it for the first time and I have been playing it ever since.

Perfect for a dinner party or just mellowing out on a couch, this title should be in every CD library.

Lennon and Mc Cartney embraced the hypnotic Bossa Nova mood. Harrison replaced the gentle weep of the guitar by the agile pace of samba rock and Ringo came across the simple yet seductive nature that lingers in every dancey beat of forr?. Today, The Beatles come from Brazil.

As legitimate heiress of the Tropicalia movement, Rita Lee has earned her own space in the rich Brazilian music world. Showing off an unparalleled talent, she has gotten used to defy boundaries and has turned in as many colors as possible. She is a popular bossa-nova voice; she is as romantic as ballads can be; she can be extremely pop; but also she can rock harder than men.

Born in Sao Paulo on December 31, 1947, Rita Lee represents many eras in Brazilian music, as she's been a strong presence for the last four decades. Following an early passion about piano, and music in general, she quickly forgot dreams about becoming a vet, or an actress, and focused on music.

After creating the girl group Teenage Singers in school in 1963, and participating in some other bands, things got seriously experimental for Rita by the end of 1965, as she prepared to join the now legendary and highly psychedelic band Os Mutantes, where she enlisted between 1966 and 1972. Os Mutantes are considered among the fathers of Tropicalia, right next to Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, Gal Costa, and Tom Z?.

Before, and especially during her time with Os Mutantes, she discovered and fell in love with The Beatles. In her own words, "In 1962, my sister got married and went to London for the honeymoon, and she brought me back the first Fab Four's single, Love Me Do/PS I love You. That's how I got hooked. From 1963 to 1970, I drank, ate, smoked and breathed Beatles. I was forever drawing their silhouettes everywhere, but my very best pictures of the four were the ones I draw using a pencil, on the best quality paper I could get: the sort bakers wrapped the bread my father used to buy every morning."

Her take on ten Beatles classics, plus three Portuguese versions of songs also sung in English, ended up in Bossa'n Beatles, an album that showcases Rita unplugging her well known Brazilian pop sound to offer a different take on some of the most beautiful music the lads from Liverpool wrote.

To get a completely different approach and hoping even better results, Rita added her unique bossa-nova feeling, bits of electropop, and some samba-rock to the already proven formula, and what came out of the experiment was, to say the least, worth listening.

Produced and arranged by Rita's husband -reputed musician Roberto de Carvallo, her partner for the last 30 years- Bossa'n Beatles features special appearances by Paralamas do Sucesso's drummer Joao Barone, and the renowned pianist and arranger Joao Donato.

"I can't say they were my first boyfriends," concedes Rita Lee before giving up her latest love confession, "but at least I can say that they were the biggest passion of my life. The kind of passion that makes people love, work, and be happy forever. To me The Beatles are like a good vice, one of those that are worth relapsing, over and over." - Roman Kutnowski

There is nothing special here. Certainly nothing approaching Bossa Nova.
Stick with the real thing. No need to detour.

I had the pleasure of premiering this album in the U.S on my radio show. It is a blend of classy Brazilian bossa-nova and carefully chosen Bealtes favorties that lend themselves perfectly to the mix.

Whether you are a die-hard Beatles enthusiast or a casual listener, Bossa'n Beatles will be a great addition to your library.

Rita Lee has been a fan of the Beatles since the 60's and always dreamed of paying a musical tribute to her heros. She has finally succeeded.

Bravo, Ms. Lee!

This is an AWESOME CD for people who loves Beatles and / or Bossa Nova. For the rest it is as good as you'll get from a brazilian lady singing Beatles songs. Absolutely great gift. Just relax, get a drink and let the music play!!

Not available in Brazil anymore, I found this record at Amazon.com. Rita Lee is a mutant singer and composer, her husband Roberto Carvalho, an outstanding musician. What they did together with Beatles'songs is pure poetry.

Where should I begin? Hmmm.....I guess I should probably stop playing this album if I want to be able to finish this review! It's just so beautiful! From a Bossa Nova Music lover's perspective....this is as good as it gets. Rita has the most touching voice. If I were to dream of what a female Brazilian singer sounds like....she is it. Not being a typical Beatles fan (they wouldn't be in my playlist), I still believe I am qualified to say that she more than does these Beatles songs justice!