Customer Reviews

Segundo

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Five AMAZING Stars! WOW! Maria Rita is a true MPB SUPERSTAR, like her mom! Her voice is pure velvet MAGIC! My friend says Maria RIta has the whole country of Brazil SPELLBOUND. This CD reportedly went platinum the first day and a year later won the 2006 Latin Grammy for MPB, making Maria Rita 'two for two' in Latin Grammies for her first 2 CDs. Track 1, "Caminho das Aguas", won the 2006 Latin Grammy for Best MPB Song. Maria Rita is HOT! 'Middle-aged fans' of the late Super Diva, Elis Regina, and ace pianist/arranger Cesar Carmago Mariano are now 'groupies' of their daughter. Younger fans are calling her "our Elis".

This CD, recorded live in the studio, catches her rising star in mid-flight, after a great personal tragedy: the death of her mentor, Producer Tom Capone, to whom it is dedicated. Her selection of talented musicians and interesting songs continues to be flawless and perfect to her needs. And she has become more daring: in this case, ramping down to just VOICE AND TRIO. Tiago Costa on piano, Sylvinho Mazzucca on bass, and the muscular drummer Cuca Teixeira complete the group. Daring, indeed for a sophomore effort! Songs are emotionally captivating, rhythmically sophisticated, and repeated hearings reveal HIDDEN TREASURES. Jazzy and tropical like her triple Latin Grammy winning debut CD: "Maria Rita", she has created her own niche in MPB with a voice and style that's instantly recognizable.

'Pieces D'Resistance', the best of the best, are everywhere.
"Caminho das Aguas" (Path of Waters), so reminiscent of songs her mother sang, is a wonderful kick-off song showing her clear voice and nuances. It became a hit single and took the Latin Grammy as Best MPB Song in 2006 for composer Rodrigo Maranhao. "Recado" (Message) shows her vocal gymnastic capabilities and Tiago lays down a 'killer' solo and 'comping' behind her. The ballad "Casa Pre-Fabricada" is almost beautiful beyond words. On the DVD, composer Marcelo Camelo is visibly overcome by this performance, holding MR in a long, long embrace. Heck, it wiped me out, too. "Muito Pouco" is a tango-like 'Tour De Force' which, along with "Despidida" and "Mal Intento", may be the three best performances of all. "Minha Alma" (A Paz Que Eu N'o Quer) (My Soul (The Peace I Don't Want) rocks hard and sweeps us away as she demonstrates her wonderful articulation. "Feliz" (Happy) is really a jumping blues, a form at which she excels. The bonus track 12 "Conta Outra" (Tell Me Another One) is a live recording catching her clear voice and spellbinding approach to MPB in front of an appreciative crowd. It's the first real hard nod to the samba on the CD and she shows she's a master at the whole Brazilian spectrum. (Leave the CD running on Track 12: at 5 minutes and 26 seconds, there is a hidden bonus song, "Mantra", that is 4 minutes of MESMERIZING singing.) Bravo, Maria Rita and producer Lenine.

Hint to Maria & producers: we're ready for a 'family CD' with Maria, dad Cesar, and the brothers. Instant Platinum CD!!

(Note:
* We all know of the death of Maria Rita's mentor, super producer Tom Capone, in Los Angeles in a traffic accident on the very night of her 3 Latin Grammy triumph for the CD "Maria Rita". Just hours after MR and Tom embraced on stage in triumph. Maria was able to recover and respond with this fabulous CD, a great musical dedication to Capone's memory. Her future is bright and she's taking us with her. I'm sure dad Cesar Camargo Mariano and her brothers are so proud, as Elis and Tom Capone would have been of her award-winning sophomore effort and her amazing career as arguably the most sought-after Brazilian female singer.
* BTW, "Rita" is from her namesake, close family friend & famed rocker Rita Lee and is pronounced "HEE'-Ta".)

I had been looking forward to this CD for months after seeing her in concert. The style of this record is a bit softer and more romantic than the first CD; Maria Rita's style is a bit more refined than before. At first, I was a bit surprised because I really liked the variety of the first CD, but after listening to this one a few times I really like it.

My two favorite songs are 4) Mal Intento and 12) Contra Outra. The first is a spanish love song with a nice rhythm and the second is an upbeat live track. My first impression was that Maria Rita had done what Bebel Gilberto did - go from a varied, lively style to a mature sound that maybe didn't command as much interest. But I think that's unfair and that anyone who has learned to appreciate this Brazilian music will like this CD very much. Her voice is still amazing no matter what. I would highly recommend this CD.

Ever since buying this CD about a month ago, I just have have been playing it non-stop. Music catchy? IRRESISTABLE. There are so many other positive qualities that cannot be used to describe this album, except that it is SO cool, jazzy, and upbeat.

Maria Rita is definitely a multi-talented artist who knows how to maintain a sense of clarity as well as warmth in her music.

Tracks 1, 2, 3, and 9 are quite worth noting.

First time reviewer, but I'm feeling strongly about this.

Time and again, you will enjoy how Maria Rita takes risks with the minimal approach -- often simply "torch" piano, percussion and vocals.

She succeeds because she fills a song with her voice and expression/interpretation. This is a real artist, who grabs the listener with less and leaves them with more. The arrangements are spare and elegant.

Wow, this is some talent. Those who love her mother's (Elis Regina) wonderful contributions will find her daughter to be equally captivating as a musical force, but far more discerning. I find my ear trusting her incredible control of pitch and breath. She is expressive, but never leaves the music behind. This is an extremely intimate production.

You will listen over and over to this. It's like Brazilian jazz on haiku.

Enjoy!

Five AMAZING Stars! WOW! Maria Rita is a true MPB SUPERSTAR, like her mom! Her velvet voice is pure MAGIC! My Brazilian friend says Maria RIta has the whole country SPELLBOUND. The CD reportedly went platinum the first day and a year later won the 2006 Latin Grammy for MPB. And this CD/"Making Of" DVD went straight to the top of the charts as of October 2005. Maria Rita is HOT!!! 'Middle-aged fans' of the late Super Diva, Elis Regina, and ace pianist/arranger Cesar Carmago Mariano are now 'groupies' of their daughter. LOL. Her shows are sold out from New York City to Lisbon, Portugal to Rio De Janiero. BTW, "Rita" is pronounced "Hee-ta".

This CD catches her rising star in midflight, after a great personal tragedy: the accidental death of her mentor, producer Tom Capone, to whom this recording is dedicated. The DVD brings us right into the studio to hear the conversations (with English subtitles, among other languages) about the songs. "Despidida" was a toughie to conquer but she 'torched' it in triumph. Song lyrics are not translated, however. Her selection of talented musicians and interesting songs continues to be flawless and perfect to her needs. And she has become more daring: in this case, ramping down to just VOICE AND TRIO. Tiago Costa sizzles on piano, the bouyant Sylvinho Mazzucca on bass, and the muscular drummer Cuca Teixeira complete the group. Daring, indeed for a sophomore effort! Songs are emotionally captivating, rhythmically sophisticated, and repeated hearings reveal HIDDEN TREASURES. Jazzy and tropical like her triple Latin Grammy winning debut CD: "Maria Rita", she has created her own niche in MPB with a voice and style that's instantly recognizable.

'Pieces D'Resistance', the best of the best, are everywhere. "Caminho das Aguas" (Path of Waters), so reminiscent of songs her mother sang, is a wonderful kick off song showing her clear voice and nuances. It was a hit single in Brazil and won the 2006 Latin Grammy for Best MPB song for composer Rodrigo Maranhao. "Recado" (Message) shows her rhythmically gymnastic capabilities and Tiago lays down a 'killer' solo and 'comping' behind her. The ballad "Casa Pre-Fabricada" is almost beautiful beyond words. On the DVD, composer Marcelo Camelo is visibly overcome by the performance as he and Maria embrace. Heck, me too. "Minha Alma" (A Paz Que Eu N'o Quer) (My Soul (The Peace I Don't Want) rocks hard and sweeps us away as she demonstrates her wonderful articulation. "Feliz" (Happy) is really a blues, a form at which she excels. The bonus track "Contra Outra" (Against One Another) is a live recording catching her clear voice and spellbinding approach to MPB in front of an appreciative crowd. It's the first real nod to the samba on the CD and she shows she's a master at the whole Brazilian spectrum. (Leave the CD running on track 12, at 5 minutes and 26 seconds there is a hidden bonus song.) Bravo, Maria Rita and producer Lenine.

Hint to Maria & producers: we're ready for a 'family CD' with Maria, dad Cesar, and the brothers. Instant Latin Grammy!!

(Note: We all know of the death of Maria Rita's mentor, super producer Tom Capone in a traffilc accident in Los Angeles early in the morning after her 3 Latin Grammy triumph for the CD "Maria Rita". Just hours after Tom and Maria embraced on stage in truimph. Maria was able to recover and respond with this fabulous CD and DVD, a great musical dedication to Tom Capone's memory. The future is so bright and she's taking us with her. I'm sure dad Cesar Camargo Mariano and her brothers are so proud, as Elis and Tom Capone would have been.)

Maria Rita's "Segundo" is - simply stated - a must for anyone who enjoys music. In this release she seems to set a particular mood, and then pushes and pulls it in slightly different directions. Perhaps those who expect each new CD by a particular artist to be "ground breaking" will be disappointed, and sadly that often seems to be the prevailing attitude of the consumer public. Primarily made up of somewhat relaxed Brazilian and jazz grooves, "Segundo" does a great job of taking a musical snaphot of Maria and her talented musicians. Since this release version contains both the DVD and the CD version, it is quite a bargain for just a few dollars more than the CD alone. Maria Rita has definitely become one of my favorite artists, and I look forward to the opportunity to hear her live one day; in the meanwhile, I'll anxiously await future releases.

Second album I buy of her and equally impressed!! This one seemed to be more focused on her vocals however, WOW!!!! I absolutely loved the album. Every bit of it. I wish she would come to the Cincinnati area, I would love to see her. This album definetely blew me away. Check out track number 6....NOBODY can make that track sound any better!!! The term "Bring it" is fitting for Maria on that song. She fully delivers on that one.

It's uncanny. When Down Beat Magazine rates a vocal jazz c.d. 4 stars, invariably I love it. (Jackie Ryan's "This Heart of Mine", Lorraine Feather's "Such Sweet Thunder" and Dee Dee Bridgewater's "Jai Deux Amours" immediately come to mind). When they rate one higher than that (such as Diana Krall's "The Girl in the Other Room", Lisa Sokolov's "Presence" and Ann Dyer's "When I Close My Eyes", for example), I tend to raise an eyebrow and say, "eh?"

Down Beat recently rated this one at 4 stars. And I am absolutely knocked out by it.

Truthfully, there are singers out there with timbres of voice I prefer listening to. (Ms. Rita's countryperson, Luciana Souza, comes to mind) But with the possible exception of Kate Bush, I cannot think of a popular singer in the world who gets more out of her voice than Maria Rita.

In this c.d., Ms. Rita hits about every conceivable human emotion. Whether sadness, elation, longing, pensivity, sultriness, or raucousness, it's all here. And you can hear every color in the rainbow in her voice as well.

Consequently, to talk about individual track selections defeats the purpose. You have to go for the gestalt. And the gestalt is like being bathed in a warm flow of love.

How can I not recommend this to all? I like to feel like I'm being bathed in a warm bath of love. Don't you? RC

Has not left my CD-player since it arrived two weeks ago. For the record: recordings are mint quality.

if you love music you will love and cherish this. she is the finest vocalist i've ever heard. you will listen to it over and over. then comes the realization nobody has ever been half as good. just heard her this weekend for the first time. i am forever a fan. you will be too. she has a way of letting a note be a note that is unique and never bothersome. there is not one bothersome sound on this albumn whether you like brazilian jazz or jazz or rap or heavy metal or ... hate jazz or whatever hate brazilians it won't matter you will love every second of this. she has completely perfected her craft, sings like an angel.