The Very Best of Sergio Mendes & Brazil 66 [Import]

Sergio Mendes, Sergio Mendes & Brasil 66 | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 12, 2003)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: 101 DISTRIBUTION
• ASIN: B000024TH2
• Also Available in: Audio CD
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,455 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #3 in Music > Imports > Jazz
  • #4 in Music > Pop > Easy Listening > Lounge
  • #4 in Music > World Music > Latin Music > Samba

Track Listings

1. Mas Que Nada

2. So Many Stars

3. Viola

4. With A Little Help From My Friends

5. Wichita Lineman

6. Batacuda (The Beat)

7. The Fool On The Hill

8. You Stepped Out Of A Dream

9. Moanin'

10. Salt Sea

11. For Me

12. Stillness

13. Cinnamon And Clove

14. Wave

15. What The World Needs Now

16. For What It's Worth

17. Where Are You Coming From?

18. Chelsea Morning

19. Lost In Paradise

20. The Joker

See all 43 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Outstanding two CD collection featuring 48 of the act's finest Easy Listening/Bossa Nova tracks recorded for A&M records from 1966-71, During the late '60s, Mendes was the most popular Brazilian artist in the U.S., and has remained a musical icon internationally for decades. More than two hours of solid Latin-tinged Lounge nuggets including the top 40 hits 'The Fool On The Hill', 'The Look Of Love' and 'Scarborough Fair/ Canticle', Other tracks featured include 'Mas Que Nada', 'With A Little Help From My Friends', 'You Stepped Out Of A Dream', 'Wichita Lineman', 'What The World Needs Now', 'For What It's Worth', 'Stillness', 'Agua De Beber' and many more. A&M.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The K-Man was right., April 25, 2002

By 

darragh o'donoghue - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Very Best of Sergio Mendes & Brazil 66 (Audio CD)

This CD is a timeless, time-capsule treasure trove of pure pop pleasure. Sergio Mendes is a bossa nova Bacharach - not just because he covered both types of music, but because he shares whith the American an interest in revivifying the aesthetic of Tin Pan Alley, tempering it with a 60s pop melancholy (both especially cherish the inherent sadness of brass), and, in Mendes' case, cooling it with jazz discipline gleaned from his association with Jobim. The half century of melodic miracles on this CD may be divided into three types:

1. Cover versions of pop standards so annoyingly familiar you never want to hear the originals again. Mendes takes songs by the likes of the Beatles, Bacharach, Jimmy Webb and Simon & Garfunkel, re-arranges and re-imagines them in a samba mode, convincing you that they were originally written in Brazil after all. 'The Fool On The Hill' nearly collapses under its visionary excess; 'Day Tripper' becomes alive through slick jazz rhythms; 'What The World Needs Now' throttles at a frightening pace; 'Cheslea Morning' and 'Night and Day' exude sunny Rio rays; 'Norwegian Wood' brings out the yo-yo intensity buried in the original.

2. Arrangements of bossa nova classics by Mendes' old jamming cohorts. These are less radical than the above, and the attempts by anonymous, if proficient, session singers to replicate the idiosyncratic Astrud/Joao vibe don't always work; but the subtle reworkings offer new takes on old favourites - 'Bim Bom' is especially definitive, Mendes mining the wistfulness in the most frivolous of songs, sensing the music's soul in the piano. 'One Note Samba', which segues here into 'Spanish Fly', shouln't work, and doesn't, but is invigorating nonetheless.

3. Less familiar covers and original songs (written by Mendes and friends), which rarely equal the emotional depth of Jobim or Bonfa, but offer groovy bliss, warm generosity, bouyant fun and reflective sorrow in equal measures. 'Sometimes In Winter' is a pretentious epic with the most glorious melodic bridge; 'Pretty World' is one of the few songs that knows what being rapturously in love actually sounds like; 'Cancao Do Nosso Amor' and 'Pradizer Adeus' know the same despondancy that provoked Jobim's 'Insensatez'.

This division is, of course, arbitrary and artificial - unique production, settings and instrumentation mean each and every song sounds like a Mendes original. Cosmo Kramer was right - some people can still go wild for Sergio Mendes.

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars the only difinitive collection, March 25, 2002

By 

tompan "tompanus" (CARLSBAD, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Very Best of Sergio Mendes & Brazil 66 (Audio CD)

Of all the other compilations of Brasil 66 & 77, this 2 disc set covers all the different styles and the full range of evolution they explored. I used to own all their albums, losing interest after Primal Roots but this brought it all back home!!

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic Sergio Mendes and Brasil 66, March 25, 2002

By 

Liza Francis (Lancaster, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Very Best of Sergio Mendes & Brazil 66 (Audio CD)

Being that I am a die-hard fan of Sergio Mendes and Brasil 66, this CD reflects the vast majority of MY favorite tunes. Listening to Lani Hall's (lead vocalist) voice is like listening to a lifetime of beautiful sounds in my head.
I first heard Sergio Mendes when I was 19 or 20 years of age. I lived in an area ( Memphis Tennessee) that was heavily populated with rhythm and blues and rock & roll, so when I heard the bossanova latin beat I went rushing to Sears & Roebuck to purchase the beginning of great music and great arrangements. So, indeed I am delighted to once again purchase a great sound. Thank You Amazon.com!