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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "M," and among my most recent haul of vinyl from my neighbor were a couple Sergio Mendes albums. Today's selection is the 1966 album Herb Alpert Presents Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66.
Mendes is perhaps Brazil's most famous musical export, giving bossa nova to the rest of the world. This was his first album with his band Brasil '66, and it was also the first album Mendes made for Herb Alpert's A&M label. With then-unknown American singer Lani Hall (who has been married Alpert since 1973) and Bibi Vogel on vocals, Mendes on keyboards, Bob Matthews on bass, José Soares on percussion, and João Palma on drums, the group broke through internationally with this album, which is a combination of songs in English and Portuguese. There are some bossa nova songs, as well as some Latin-infused covers of popular songs of the day, like The Beatles' "Day Tripper," Little Anthony & The Imperials' "Goin' Out of My Head."
The song "Mais Que Nada" was the group's biggest hit, going to #47 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #4 on the Billboard Easy Listening (now Adult Contemporary) chart. You may remember it from the first Austin Powers movie or a 1998 Nike commercial with the Brazilian soccer team. Mendes also re-recorded the song in 2006 with the Black Eyed Peas, and that version was a big hit all over the world and ended up on the soundtrack to the 2011 animated film Rio.
The album itself went to #7 on the Billboard album chart and #2 on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart. All in all, it's a pleasant listen.
Favorite Song on Side 1: "Tim Tim Dom"
This song feels very Brazilian, and that's probably because it is. I imagine some jet-setter listening to it on his fancy hi-fi back in the late '60s, while mixing a cocktail.
Favorite Song on Side 2: "Day Tripper"
A bossa nova Beatles song? Sure, why not.
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