Review: Sérgio Mendes “Encanto”
“Sérgio Mendes certainly knows how to fine-tune an idea…Since [the] previous star-studded album, Mendes focuses more on the bossa nova tradition than the hip-hop mixture…Ledisi’s Waters Of March joyously jiggles forward with a message of survival and struggle. Natalie Cole elegantly blesses the proceedings with a pleasant whimsy that is all too rare in contemporary music; her kaleidoscopic tone is haunting.
Herb Alpert blows clouds of comfort into the gentle Dreamer…This album is certainly Timeless… It’s the sound of summertime sunshine.”
Sérgio Mendes made a big comeback to the international music scene with 2006’s Timeless. Now the old smoothie Mendes gets jiggy on a selection of bossa-favourites with a raft of guest stars and he certainly knows how to fine-tune an idea. The alternately phenomenal, tolerable and impossible Will.I.Am’s pop aspirations permeate their second collaboration with less intrusion and more beautiful infusion, excelling where they stalled last time.
While well-known artists such as Natalie Cole, Fergie, and Herb Alpert guest on the album, lesser-known (at least in America) international artists largely dominate Encanto. Latin superstar Juanes from Colombia; Carlinhos Brown and Vanessa da Mata from Brazil; Belgium’s Zap Mama; and Italian rapper Jovanotti are just a few of the talented artists that help Mendes rejuvenate many Brazilian classics.
“Odo-Ya” deftly merges samba with funk, accented with Brown’s smooth vocals. Another highlight is “Somewhere in the Hills (O Morro Nao Tem Vez),” featuring guest vocalist Natalie Cole. Cole’s jazzy style meshes perfectly with Mendes’s piano improvisation, making for a sensual samba.
Brasil ’66 fans will appreciate “Dreamer,” a reunion of sorts with Alpert (who discovered Mendes) and Alpert’s wife, Lani Hall, an original ’66 vocalist. While “Dreamer” may not hold up with Brasil ‘66’s classic catalog, it marks the welcome return of these Brazilian legends. “Morning in Rio” also harkens back to classic Mendes, with a touch of Alpert-like trumpet.
Interestingly two versions of Antonio Carlos Jobim’s classic “Waters of March” and “Y Vamos Ya (Let’s Go)” are included on the album. The listener may also enjoy hearing the songs in different languages and with slightly different feels. For example, the mainly instrumental version of “Y Vamos Ya” leans toward jazz, while Juanes’s vocal take propels the song into the pop category.
This being a Will.I.Am production, Encanto includes the obligatory Fergie guest vocal. A new version of Burt Bacharach’s “The Look Of Love” which opens the album and finds Mendes teaming up with both Will.I.Am and Fergie to put a fresh spin on things. Hence, the alluring melody of the original has been preserved, along with the crisp drum programming of Will.I.Am and a sexy rap from Fergie. It’s quite alluring and a nice start to proceedings.
Will.I.Am and Seidah Garrett also work some nice vocals into “Funky Bahia”, which is as feel-good and, well, funky, as its name suggests and a remake of “Agua de Beber,” which most resemble the hip-hop feel of Timeless.
The recordings were made partly in Rio and Bahia and partly in California, where the studio band included Alphonso Johnson.
Encanto improves upon Timeless in that Sérgio Mendes remains more of a presence on this album. Wisely Will.I.Am keeps the exotic percussion in the forefront instead of burying it in heavy electronic beats.
The result is a very pleasant album of bossa and samba with some contemporary pop touches. Whether dabbling in hip-hop or evoking classic Brazilian jazz rhythms, Mendes shows that age need not stifle creativity and vitality.
Sérgio Mendes remains a master of the Rhodes and he’ll once again provide a soundtrack to cocktails and tapas. This is a great album from a super professional!
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