This two-fer from WEA International features a pair of out of print Sergio Mendes LPs: Great Arrival and Beat of Brazil. Originally issued on Atlantic Records in 1966 and 1967, respectively, these 22 easy listening, Latin pop songs include "Monday, Monday," "Desafinado," "Garôta de Ipanema (The Girl from Ipanema)," and "Here's That Rainy Day." This is a nice sampler of familiar items that should satisfy the needs of casual fans.

In 1965, Sergio Mendes and his trio conducted their first out-of-Brazil experiment: They recorded in L.A. for the first time in what proved to be their first major move into the U.S. market and their embrace of the new bossa nova sound. Accompanying the Mendes band were then-great vocalist Wanda de Sah and guitarist Rosinha de Valenca. This is deeply swinging bossa; it is crisp and pops out at the listener in every conceivable way. It features exotic and pioneering rhythmic work, smooth accessibility, and sophisticated melodies, many of which were written by the hottest talents in Brazil, such as Marcos Valle ("Samba de Verão" [aka "So Nice"]), Baden Powell and Vinícius de Moraes ("Berimbau"), João Donato ("Muito a Vontade"), Edú Lobo ("Reza"), and of course Antonio Carlos Jobim ("One Note Samba" and "She's a Carioca"). Also adding to the jazzed-out nature of the new bossa flavor was Bud Shank blowing alto on "So Nice" and other cuts…

Released along with a slew of other A&M greatest-hits collections, 1970's Greatest Hits takes listeners through a dozen Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66 tunes from the albums Herb Alpert Presents through Crystal Illusions. Not all of these were hits - indeed, not all of them were singles - and they are not representative of the wide range of Brazilian material that Mendes cut during this period. But listeners do get a good idea of how Mendes' winningly sexy blend of American female voices, simplified bossa nova rhythms, and lavish Dave Grusin orchestrations captivated mainstream America in the late '60s. Look Around receives by far the most attention, with five tracks - which is only fitting, since in retrospect it appears to be Mendes' most irresistibly memorable album.

Equinox continues the scrumptiously winning sound that Sergio Mendes cooked up in the mid-'60s, this time a bit more fleshed out with John Pisano's guitar, a slightly thicker texture, and even an imitation sitar (this was, after all, 1967). Again, the mix of American pop tunes old and new and Brazilian standards and sleepers is impeccable (although it didn't yield any substantial hits), and the treatments are smooth, swinging, and very much to the point. While Mendes reaps a predictable harvest from Antonio Carlos Jobim - he was one of the first to discover and record "Triste" and "Wave" - he also likes to explore the work of other outstanding Brazilian writers like Jorge Ben, Joao Gilberto, and especially Edu Lobo (whose "For Me," with its bright flashes of combo organ, is one of the album's highlights)…

Covering the extent of Brasil '66's output from 1966-1972, Four Sider is the best available retrospective for those new to Mendes' successful Brazilian outfit. Typical of the band's original albums, Four Sider includes a mix of Brazilian material and '60s pop hits. Also on display is Mendes' winning blend of bossa nova rhythms and lounge-a-go-go elements (churning organ riffs and rock basslines), complimented by a variety of percussion, airy vocal harmonies, and his own jazz-informed keyboard contributions and horn charts. Highlights include renditions of the Beatles' "Nowhere Man" and Joni Mitchell's "Chelsea Morning," in addition to several Brazilian hits, like Jorge Ben's "Mais Que Nada" and Antonio Carlos Jobim's "Wave." Other Brazilian luminaries are represented as well, including Edu Lobo, Dori Caymmi, and Oscar Neves, not to mention Mendes himself…

UK split release from two Brazilian music legends. Dance Moderno by Sergio Mendes, is the acclaimed debut from a musician who would form the bridge between Bossa Nova and '60s Pop. Pianist and master stylist of the Hammond B3 organ, Ed Lincoln served a singular musical apprenticeship in the 1950s, working with Luiz Bonfa, Baden Powell, Claudette Soares, Luís Eça, Maestro Radames Gnattali, Nara Leao, Carlos Lyra and Roberto Menescal. Fate led him to concentrate on the organ and what followed was a sequence of LPs that would showcase his irresistible style. His second album, Orgao Espectacular, is one of the best; full of the urbane, quirky, party style music often deployed by Ennio Morricone in his '60s scores.

Sérgio Mendes & Bossa Rio's Você Ainda Não Ouviu Nada! (1964) is a true milestone in the evolution of Brazilian instrumental music post-bossa nova. Infinitely sophisticated, but still full of swing, Bossa Rio (Tiao Neto, bass; Edison Machado, batteries, Edson Maciel, Raul de Souza and Hector Costita, metals) deal here with the reinvention of bossa classics and original songs.

Sergio Mendes took a deep breath, expanded his sound to include strings lavishly arranged by the young Dave Grusin and Dick Hazard, went further into Brazil, and out came a gorgeous record of Brasil '66 at the peak of its form. Here Mendes released himself from any reliance upon Antonio Carlos Jobim and rounded up a wealth of truly great material from Brazilian fellow travelers: Gilberto Gil's jet-propelled "Roda" and Joao Donato's clever "The Frog," Dori Caymmi's stunningly beautiful "Like a Lover," Harold Lobo's carnival-esque "Tristeza," and Mendes himself (the haunting "So Many Stars" and the title track). Mendes was also hip enough to include "With a Little Help From My Friends" from the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper LP…

After bouncing around Philips, Atlantic, and Capitol playing Brazilian jazz or searching for an ideal blend of Brazilian and American pop, Sergio Mendes struck gold on his first try at A&M (then not much more than the home of Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass and the Baja Marimba Band). He came up with a marvelously sleek, sexy formula: dual American female voices singing in English and Portuguese over a nifty three-man bossa nova rhythm/vocal section and Mendes' distinctly jazz-oriented piano, performing tight, infectious arrangements of carefully chosen tunes from Brazil, the U.S., and the U.K. The hit was Jorge Ben's "Mas Que Nada," given a catchy, tight bossa nova arrangement with the voice of Lani Hall soaring above the swinging rhythm section…

Sérgio Mendes is the 1983 studio album by Sérgio Mendes on A&M Records, his first Top 40 album in nearly a decade and a half, and was accompanied by his biggest chart single ever, "Never Gonna Let You Go", a song written by Barry Mann & Cynthia Weil that reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.

The great incontrovertible truth of Brazilian vocalists in the '60s is that the more global success they enjoyed, the weaker and more insubstantial their voices. (As a test, simply compare and contrast the chart-topper Astrud Gilberto with the chart-absent Elis Regina.) Wanda de Sah was quite popular, which says most of what you need to know about her vocal prowess, both on the material she recorded with Brasil '65 as well as her solo career. But as with Astrud Gilberto, vocal weakness is hardly a barrier to entry. When given complementary musicians and arrangements - which were as common as coffee in Brazilian music circles - a thin, wispy voice could be made to sound positively radiant. DRG's 2008 pairing of Brasil '65 and Softly!, the two albums de Sah appeared on during 1965, reflects her peak year as an artist….

Three original Atlantic LPs by the biggest Bossa Nova star of the '60s - 34 tracks of Latin jazz-pop crammed into one 2-CD set! Pele is Mendes' accompanying music to the documentary about the soccer star; the other two LPs bring you live performances of Black Orpheus Medley; Samba De Jose; Noa Noa , and more and studio versions of I Say a Little Prayer; May Favorite Things; Comin' Home Baby, and more!

Sergio Mendes spent the '70s straying very far from his Brazilian roots. The Sergio Mendes album from 1975 is very much in the smooth soul/quiet storm bag and Magic Lady from 1979 is a straight disco record. Neither of the records are the disasters you might have already pegged them as. Sergio Mendes is actually a small pleasure and Magic Lady, while overly smooth, isn't an embarrassment. The best part about Sergio Mendes is the sweetly harmonizing vocals of Bonnie Bowden and Sondra Catton and the laid-back groove that percolates throughout the album. The songs are all covers. Some like the Beatles' "Here Comes the Sun" or Donny Hathaway's "Someday We'll All Be Free" have interesting arrangements, while some like Stevie Wonder's "I Believe (When I Fall in Love It Will Be Forever)" have hackneyed or meandering arrangements…