Early bossa jazz from Sergio Mendes – recorded with his famous Bossa Rio combo, in the years before he moved to America! The album's a classic in Brazilian jazz – a tight album of bossa-inflected jazz tunes played with razor-sharp precision, handled with a style that went on to influence countless other Brazilian groups at the time. Mendes is in the lead on piano, and other players include Edison Machado on drums, Raul De Souza on trombone, and Hector Costita on tenor sax. The whole thing's great – a masterpiece of both jazz and bossa – and it's filled with classic tunes arranged by Jobim, Moacir Santos, and Sergio himself. Titles include "Nana", "Primitivo", "Desafinado", "Ela E Carioca", "Amor Em Paz", "Noa Noa", and "Neurotico". LP, Vinyl record album

Brazilian singer Momo might well be taking the title of this album seriously – as the whole thing's got a nicely stripped-down vibe that's somehow even more powerful than before – like those mid 70s moments when Cateano Veloso dropped out some of the instrumentation, and let all the charms of his vocals really shine through! That's definitely the case here – as Momo's raspy appeal somehow makes us feel as if we can understand the Portuguese lyrics of the tunes – not that we know the language, but his way of putting over a song is wonderful – and the instrumentation changes up in subtle ways from track to track, really keeping things interesting – on titles that include "Sereno Canto", "Marigold", "Diz A Verdade", "For I Am Just A Reckless Child", "Mon Neant", "Vida", and "Mes Yeux Creves". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Airto's greatest records ever – a really hard hitting batch of tracks that mix sharp-edged fusion lines with some earthier Brazilian percussion touches – all in a way that nicely steps off of Airto's first few American releases, and warms the groove up with a nice dose of California soul! Flora Purim joins in here on both vocals and percussion – and the rest of the group features Hugo Fattoruso on keyboards and harmonica, Jorgte Fattoruso on drums, and David Amaro on both electric and acoustic guitars – shifting nicely between both instruments in a way that further underscores the blended vibe of the record! Most of these tracks are Airto classics – like "Tombo in 7/4", "San Francisco River", "Romance Of Death", "Ringers", and "Wind Chant" – and the record has a very sweet CTI production style, but is still rough enough around the edges to keep things nice and real! LP, Vinyl record album

One of Maria Bethania's first albums, and a beautiful set of live recordings – with a vibe that's a lot more uptempo and swinging than some of her later work! The style here almost has traces of bossa – a lighter, groovier feel at times than some of the more emotive modes that Bethania became known for during her run of 70s MPB. Backing here is by the bossa-esque Terra Trio, and they accompany her deep rich voice nicely on tracks like "Marina", "Carinhoso", "Marginalia II", "Ele Valava Nisso Todo Dia", and a great version of Caetano Veloso's "Baby". Very cool cover, too – with a trippy painting that has Maria's nude torso covered with flowers and bugs! LP, Vinyl record album