Bossa Nova translated as the "new beat" or "the new style", grew out of Rio De Janeiro in 1958. The instigators were a handful of artists with a desire to break from tradition, developing the samba rhythms with the influence of cool American jazz to find a music with such a warm soul and natural rhythm that no-one can help but tap and sway to its beat. Bossa Nova is palm trees swaying, it is like melting sugar in hot coffee, it is the setting sun and warm sand underfoot. It is the sound and beat of Brazil, it is one of the world's coolest musical styles and it remains to this day one of the world's great musical treasures.

One of the most personal of the Brazilian drummers, Wilson das Neves has also been celebrated as a composer since 1997, having received the Sharp prize for his album O Som Sagrado de Wilson das Neves. Wilson das Neves took the drums at 14, initiated by Bituca, who, later, took him to the Flor do Ritmo school in the Carioca suburb Méier. At 21 das Neves debuted as a drummer at the Orquestra de Permínio Gonçalves. From 1957 to 1958 he backed up the pianist Carolina Cardoso de Meneses, and in 1958 he joined the Ubirajara Silva group. In 1959 he recorded for the first time as a session man. In that period he was a member of several groups like Steve Bernard's, the Orquestra de Astor Silva, the Conjunto de Ed Lincoln, the Orquestra da TV Globo do Rio de Janeiro and the Orquestra da TV Excelsior de São Paulo. In the decade of 1960 he became a busy session man and sideman, having worked for Copinha, Elza Soares, Elis Regina…

"Txai" is described as a term of respect for those who are allies of the forest – and such is the focus of this concept album, the end result of a fact-finding voyage through part of the northern Brazilian watershed. Utilizing forces ranging from a simple dialogue between Milton Nascimento's baritone and percussion to a large orchestra and chorus (often arranged by Wagner Tiso), Nascimento shares his thoughts about the rivers and nature, ultimately warning us not to let the forces of capitalism destroy the Amazon rain forest (reinforced by a spoken passage written and narrated by actor River Phoenix). The songs are separated by wild-sounding interludes of folk music from the peoples of the region, and there is a fascinating vocal/percussion arrangement of Heitor Villa-Lobos' "Nozani Na."

Legendary Brazilian singer and activist. Her inventive style interpreting classic bossas and sambas justice have made her a national icon.
Owner of a distinctive, harsh voice, Elza Soares is one of the most swinging samba singers. From the time she issued her debut single - "Se Acaso Você Chegasse" in 1959, and on which she introduced scat singing à la Louis Armstrong, to samba - she became a successful recording artist. Her second album, A Bossa Negra, from 1961, is considered a treasure of Brazilian music at home and abroad. With her voice and songs, Soares has always celebrated the gritty aspects of peasant life. It is her birthright, as she was born in a favela…

The Goma Gringa EU reissue of the legendary Brazilian psyche-funk-samba cross-over mega rarity 'Estrelando Embaixador' from 1972. Highly recommended!

Legendary Brazilian singer and activist. Her inventive style interpreting classic bossas and sambas justice have made her a national icon.
Owner of a distinctive, harsh voice, Elza Soares is one of the most swinging samba singers. From the time she issued her debut single - "Se Acaso Você Chegasse" in 1959, and on which she introduced scat singing à la Louis Armstrong, to samba - she became a successful recording artist. Her second album, A Bossa Negra, from 1961, is considered a treasure of Brazilian music at home and abroad. With her voice and songs, Soares has always celebrated the gritty aspects of peasant life. It is her birthright, as she was born in a favela…

Finally Blue Note issues a Latin collection from its Italian (Italiana SPA) and Brazilian (EMI-Odeon) vaults that reveals the true diversity of its catalog and exploits some of the serious sensuous grooves that DJs have been spinning for over a decade. This is the first of three volumes, all of which feature the rarest most representative tracks from the various trends in jazz that grew out of Brazilian pop in the '60s, '70s, and even '80s. For starters, there's the mean brass swagger of Luis Amuda Perez on "Upa Neguinho," which was written by Edu Lobo. Besides being a popular dance tune (you can hear that in the opening measures), it is a masterpiece of Brazilian big band arrangement. Also featured is the stellar "Noa Noa," a trademark of Sergio Mendez. This is a tough bossa nova trio jam, with arpeggiated piano figures cutting right through the rhythms in the tune. In addition, Mandrake Som's "Beriambu" was the first to utilize in a swinging pop jazz context the use of the one string percussion instrument – there's also a very soul-jazzy sax solo in the break. This set's full of warm, frighteningly good examples of bossa, samba, and even the MPB and Joven Guarda rhythms as they inform folk and jazz melodies and modal figures.

The Story of Bossa Nova features 20 remastered original recordings from the late '50s/early '60s combined with a few modern interpretations of the genre, including 14 tracks written by composer Antonio Carlos Jobim. Taken from the vast EMI-Odeon archive of classic Brazilian music, this introductory set includes Marcos Valle's "Samba De Verao," Sylvia Telles' "Dindi," and the pre-Astrud Gilberto version of "Girl From Ipanema" by Pery Ribeiro.

A formidable couple! Guido Di Leone and Francesca Leone represent one of the most successful and significant artistic partnerships not only in Italy in the field of Brazilian music, bossa nova. With the previous album (CORAÇÃO VAGABUNDO), also by Abeat, they had great success with the public and critics. This new release has all the ingredients to repeat this excellent result.