ASTRUD GILBERTO — Beach Samba (review)

ASTRUD GILBERTO — Beach Samba album cover Album · 1967 · Bossa Nova Buy this album from MMA partners
3/5 ·
Matti P
The Brazilian singer ASTRUD GILBERTO (March 29, 1940 – June 5, 2023) was a key figure in making the bossa nova music style internationally popular in the mid-sixties. For her the success and fame started almost accidentally as she sang additional vocals on a couple of tracks on the album Getz/Gilberto (1964), a collaboration between American saxophonist Stan Getz and Brazilian guitarist João Gilberto. (The pianist Antonio Carlos Jobim, another key figure of bossa nova, wrote most of the pieces of the album and yet he was only "featuring" on it.) João Gilberto had so lousy English pronunciation that his wife Astrud was invited to sing the English parts on 'Garota de Ipanema/The Girl from Ipanema'. The song became a world-wide hit -- and the rest was history. Astrud had immigrated permanently to USA in 1963. João and Astrud divorced in December 1964.

Beach Samba is her fifth album. All Music Guide considers it more mediocre than for example the preceding album Look to the Rainbow (1966), "primarily due to the more pop-oriented song selection", but it's included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. I'm not going to rank Astrud's albums, I just happened to pick this one as her very first JMA review altogether. The arrangements were done by Eumir Deodato and Don Sebesky, and the album was recorded in summery New York.

There are twelve tracks on this short, roughly 28-minute album. 'Stay' is a forgotten gem with its genuine bossa nova percussion, flute and vibes. Tim Hardin's 'Misty Roses' has a laid back bossa interpretation here. 'The Face I Love' has a charming waltz flavour, but 'A Banda (Parade)' is a downright irritating circus march. The course is safely steered back to bossa nova with Luiz Bonfa's vivant 'Oba Oba' and Deodato's speedy 'Canoeiro'.

Side two starts with a pleasant tune 'I Had a Craziest Dream'. The harpsichord is a nice vintage element. 'Bossa Na Praia (Beach Samba)' may be a bit naiive with its "daabadaa" singing, but I truly enjoy the summer feel. 'My Foolish Heart' represents the great American Songbook while 'Dia das Rosas (I Think of You)' is another nice Bonfa piece, with a bit cheesy arrangement featuring strings. And speaking of cheesiness, The Lovin' Spoonful song 'You Didn't Have to Be So Nice' is nearly irritating as a duet of Astrud and her 6-yr old son, plus Toots Thielemans on harmonica. The final track is another "daabadaa" semi-instrumental, and rather forgettable.

Indeed this album is quite uneven, but for a good deal it is enjoyable for anyone who likes Astrud Gilberto, one of the most charming female voices ever.
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