A lovely little record from the man who helped Stan Getz find his bossa – and a set that's done with just a bit more backing than usual from Byrd for the time! The album makes nice use of additional percussion, vibes, cello, and a bit of flugelhorn to back up Byrd's work on acoustic guitar – never in a way that dominates too strongly, with just enough added sound to color in the grooves with a slightly deeper tone. Titles include "Presente De Natal", "Three Note Samba", "Limehouse Blues", "Cancao De Nimar Para Carol", "Chega De Saudade", and "Anna". (Jazz, Brazil) LP, Vinyl record album

Killer modern mixes of tracks from Azymuth's great Woodland Warrior album! Like the other titles in this series, this one takes a core of basic Brazilian jazz tracks – then gives them a modern production twist, with help from remixers like Jazzanova, 4 Hero, Roc Hunter, Yellow Productions, Flytronix, and others! The original album's a killer, and the remixes open it up even more by giving the tracks a cool abstract junglist quality that emphasizes their darker sides. Azymuth's always been a forward-thinking combo, and it's great to hear their work taken to the next level on tracks like "Amazon Adventure", "Ah Voce Nao Sabe", "Chameleon", and "The Quest"! CD