Personalidade

Elis Regina, Personalidade (Series) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 23, 1993)
• Original Release Date: February 23, 1993
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Polygram Records
• ASIN: B0000046MS
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #267,676 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential recording

With a temperamental personality and crystalline voice, Elis Regina became a beloved national symbol of Brazil in the early 1960s when she was 21 years old. She sang with the clarity of glass in a naturally risqué tone that spilled forth with little effort, a reposed style shared by Astrud Gilberto. Though she sang much music unrelated to the bossa nova, her best-known albums include the legendary collaboration with Antonio Carlos Jobim, Elis & Tom, as well as this collection in the Personalidade series. Oozing with samba rhythms and bossa nova sensuality, Elis takes listeners to the lounges of Brazil with such classics as "Aguas de Marco" and "Triste." Regina is intimately romantic and charismatically mysterious, and early into the album it's easy to see how an entire country could fall in love with her. She even escaped the political exile suffered by other artists during Brazil's rigid military rule in the 1960s. Tragically, though, the singer died from a cocaine overdose in 1982. This compilation serves as a lovely remembrance of the magnetic singer who set Brazilian hearts on fire. --Karen K. Hugg

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The soft side of Brazilian spice- leaves the heart dancing!, July 7, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Personalidade (Audio CD)

This is the perfect CD for those who enjoy the softer bossa nova side of Brazilian music. This easy- listening adventure embraces the heart of the listener with jazzy overtones, whimsical gimmicks and bittersweet poignancy all from the magical voice of Elis Regina. One need not understand Portuguese to enjoy this music as it weaves itself around the listener. This is the cheapest vacation you will ever get to Brazil - with your tour guide leading you through clever musical passages with her voice. You will feel the pride, the gaiety, the passion and disappontment of lifes little turns in classic songs written by the "best of the best" Latin songwriters. There are few voices more beloved in the world of Brazilian music than Elis Regina. The clarity and emotion her voice delivers is unsurpassed and contagious. This CD transports you to a beach in Rio, where life shows its beauty, sensuality, sadness and vitality. This is what Brazil is really like! Not to be missed by those who like to dust off their souls with a little spice and spontaneity!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful, Sizzling Elis Regina Performances., August 4, 2004

By 

RBSProds "rbsprods" (Deep in the heart of Texas) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Personalidade (Audio CD)

Five Stars!! The legendary Elis Regina is a Brazilian National and World Music Treasure over 20 years after her accidental death and this CD tells you why!! There was simply no other to whom she could be compared. She's an idiom unto herself, instantly recognizable, and one who always demands our complete attention.

This CD is simply wonderful and loaded with 'Pieces D'Resistance'. From the joyful "Voce" (taken from the amazing CD "Aquarela do Brasil" with Toots Thielemans in 1969); to the definitive "Madalena", complete with strings and 'whistlers'; to Milton's "Nada Sera Como Antes", chalk up yet another Five Star winner. And don't miss her outstanding performances of Jobim staples "Triste" (from "Elis & Tom") and the sizzling version of "Aguas De Marco" is without Jobim. "Mucuripe" is amazingly beautiful, as is the show stopper "Como Nos Pais" (Like Our Parents).

"Atras Da Porta" (Behind the Door) is the mesmerizing original version, where Elis hums the unwritten Chico Buarque final verse from the unfinished manuscript. It's hauntingly beautiful and Elis infuses it with so much overpowering emotion. Small wonder it sets the standard for all of the following attempts by other singers who do sing a final verse.

Two more gems are the breezy "Me Deixa Em Paz" (Leave My Alone), tightly arranged and deftly performed faster than the version on Milton's "Clube da Esquina" CD, and the awesome, crystalline beauty of "Dois Pra La, Dois Pra Ca" (Two Steps This Way, Two Steps That Way) with Elis obviously enjoying and joining the wonderful background vocal group. This is Elis at her wonderful best and each song is a winner.

Ella Fitzgerald, a music legend herself, liked Elis' artistry. And Elis' awesomely talented singing daughter, Maria Rita, is influenced mainly by Ella: and so the artistic wheel goes 'round and 'round. If you love Elis and Ella, you'll love the triple Grammy winning CD "Maria Rita".

BTW, "Romaria" and the uptempo "Vou Deitar E Rolar", with the familiar "Quaquaraquaqu'a" verse, are bonus songs, not found on the original Philips vinyl LP. This CD also overlaps alot with the import "Perfil". Buy and enjoy this wonderful recollection. Five Stars!