Tropical Heat Meets The Hottest Brazilian Beats.
Hot Brazilian Summer Sambas! Turn up the heat with ten of summer’s best Brazilian tunes, plus the stories behind them.
Presented by AccuRadio
Hot Brazilian Summer Sambas
It’s true. We chase summer all year long, to bring you the best music this side of Rio de Janeiro. And when the Brazilian sun settles over our collective zips, it’s time to gather the best Brazilian hits to keep that summertime vibe, year-round.
From breezy Bossas and sun-kissed sambas to Brazilian jazz, pop, and MPB, here are ten songs that will keep you basking in that Brazilian glow long after summer ends.
So, add them to your personal playlists, or take us along and we’ll stream them for you with our live-streaming station on Live365 and our growing network of music channels via AccuRadio. Explore it all here. You’ll find apps for Apple, Andriod, Alexia, and more.
Scott Adams, Midday Host
The Sounds of Brazil’s streaming station at Connect Brazil
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Hot Brazilian Summer Sambas
Eliane Elias | ‘Making Honey’ from Time And Again
How can you tell whether you’re enjoying a Brazilian summer? Well, Eliane Elias releases a new Brazilian jazz album every other year, and happily, 2024 is one of them.
In fact, Time And Again (recorded in São Paulo) paced summer’s arrival this year with eight original vocals in Portuguese and English. Djavan joins the project as a special guest, as does guitarist Bill Frisell. Take Six arranger Mark Kibble returns with his trademark sound first heard on Elias’s Made In Brazil album. You’ll hear him on this video track, too.
Favorites? We like the opening track ‘At First Sight’, first released in 1989 as an instrumental on So Far, So Close. “I decided to write lyrics for a song that’s been a fan favorite. I was 27 years old when I wrote it!”
‘Sempre’ (Elias’s duet with Djavan), and ‘It’s Time’ are pure Brazilian Soul. ‘Falando Do Amor’ is made for beachside fun.
- Read our review of Time And Again here.
Sounds:
Connect With Eliane Elias’s music:
- Buy Here | Amazon | Apple Music | Spotify | Bandcamp
Listen free: Brazilain Jazz | New Music: Brazil | Women Of Brazilian Song | Sunday Brazilian Brunch | Bossa Nova Love Affair | Our Streaming Station
Cecy Santana | ‘Italia’
Creating a great Brazilian song takes time. It can take months, from songwriting and lyrics to the arrangement and recording. But how about a hundred years? And three continents?
That’s the story behind Cecy Santana’s ‘Italia’, nominated for the Josie Music Awards’ Video Of The Year.
It began last summer with an invitation to perform at an Italian Jazz Festival. That’s when Cecy felt a generational tug from her Italian family tree.
Cecy’s great-grandmother emigrated from Tuscany to São Paulo in the 1920s. Then, Cecy’s family moved to Chicago when she was a teen.
So, anticipation was the inspiration for this song and while there, in the Calabria region of southern Italy, she shot this video.
Recently, Cecy sat down with us to talk about her nomination journey, and what it’s like to experience her family’s ‘hand me down’ stories of Italia… by being there.
- Read about Cecy Santana’s ‘Italia’ video in her own words.
Connect with Cecy Santana’s music:
- Watch Cecy Santana’s award-winning video for ‘Sao Paulo’.
- Cecy Santana Charts A Latitude Adjustment
- 10 Questions with Cecy Santana
- Cecy Santana’s ‘Sem Voce’ – The Best of Brazil ’19
- Website | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram
Buy Here | Amazon | Apple Music | Spotify
Listen free: XODO | New Music: Brazil | Women Of Brazilian Song | Our Streaming Station
Claudia Villela | ‘Bolero’ from Cartas Ao Vento
Paul Simon says: “Improvisation is too good to leave to chance.” But it’s not by chance that you are reading these words. It’s because Grammy-nominated vocalist and songwriter Claudia Villela, one of Brazil’s most talented improvisers, has a story to tell. One that’s best told by others.
For that, we’ve turned to top scribes, critics, and reviewers.
Born in Rio, Villela settled in Santa Cruz, California, and got to work perfecting her craft.
JAZZIZ, Downbeat, Jazz Times, and the San Francisco Chronicle took notice. Storied venues, including SF Jazz and the Monterey Jazz Festival. Critics Scott Yanow, Música Brasileira’s Egídio Leitão, and Raul da Gama.
Musicians Kenny Werner and Bela Fleck offer praise. Both Brazilian pianist Andre Mehmari and the legendary Hermeto have used the word genius to describe Claudia Villela’s musical gift.
Villela’s album Cartas Ao Vento is picking up Latin Grammy buzz. That’s part of her story, too.
- Read the opinions of top music reviewers, here.
Connect with Claudia Villela’s music:
Sounds:
Contact Claudia Villela
- Website | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram | X (Twitter)
- Buy Here | Amazon | Apple Music | Spotify | Bandcamp
Listen free: XODO | New Music: Brazil | Women Of Brazilian Song | Our Streaming Station
Enjoying The Hot Brazilian Summer Sambas Showcase? Let us know!
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Hot Brazilian Summer Sambas
George Duke | ‘Summer Breezin’ from Brazilian Love Affair
“I love Brazil! There truly is music in the air. It seems to me that the people breathe music, not air.” That’s George Duke, reflecting on his favorite album from 1979.
It’s one of our favorite jazz albums, too. Duke recalled that he wanted to put his signature on an authentic Brazilian sound, so he convinced Epic Records to fly his band to Rio de Janeiro. No small task.
They arrived in March, headed for the studio, and… waited. “I was furious,” said Duke. But after the first few notes, I learned to relax and go with the flow.”
Easy to do with Milton Nascimento, Simone, Flora Purim and Airto, guitarist Toninho Horta, and drummer Robertinho Silva.
Here’s Duke again. “One regret I have is not using a young unknown singer that I met on the beach named Ivan Lins. I had dinner at his home. The material for the record was set, so I didn’t add any of his material. This was a mistake!”
Our list of Hot Brazilian Summer Sambas wouldn’t be complete without George Duke’s Brazilian Love Affair!
And now you know the story.
Connect With George Duke’s music:
Buy it here: Amazon Music
Listen free: Bossa Nova Love Affair | Brazilian Jazz | XODÓ! The Rhythm Of Life! | Our Streaming Station
Lee Ritenour & Dave Grusin | ‘Catavento’ from Brasil
One of 2024’s greatest surprises comes to us from Lee Ritenour and Dave Grusin, who returned to their love of Brazilian jazz with Brasil. Longtime fans remember their Harlequin album from 1985.
Around the time George Duke met Lins, Ritenour was walking the same mosaic-tiled sidewalks. “Ivan had just taken off and you would hear [his] music on the streets of Rio and Sao Paulo. I suggested to Dave we should do an album, and Harlequin was the result.”
Today, Ritenour’s and Grusin’s Brasil finds these two in a different place.
Yes, Lins returns to sing his ‘Vitorioso’ with Tatiana Parra, but Brasil’s nine songs showcase a contemporary vision for Brazilian Jazz from two of its biggest fans.
Favorites include ‘Stone Flower’, Celso Fonseca singing his own ‘Meu Samba Torta’, and two Milton Nascimento tunes. Parra sings ‘Cravo e Canola’ while ‘Catavento’ comes as a smooth samba instrumental.
“It was such a lifesaver when I first got involved in the Brazilian music scene and so much fun to get back into it,” says Grusin. “We were two gringos thrown into their world and that’s the dynamic we wanted to happen!”
- Read our complete review – and the story behind Brasil – here.
Connect With Lee Ritenour’s and Dave Grusin’s music:
Buy Here | Amazon | Apple Music | Spotify | Bandcamp
Listen free: Brazilian Jazz | New Music: Brazil | Bossa Nova Love Affair | Women Of Brazilian Song | Our Streaming Station
Casey Abrams featuring Mae Mae | ‘Gloomy Day’
During one of my early visits to Rio de Janeiro, I asked a top Brazilian record exec what Brazil’s most popular music was. “Samba!” he said. I offered Bossa Nova as Brazil’s most popular. I even suggested that Bossa Nova is a genre, like Rock or EDM. That’s why we capitalize it here.
And even though Bossa Nova is well into its sixth decade, it never fails to surprise me. So, when ‘Gloomy Day’ arrived, I fell in love with it.
Abrams made his name as a runner-up on American Idol. Mae Mae comes from the Alternative/Indie scene. Her love-not-love relationship with… stuff(!) makes the lyrics for ‘Gloomy Day’ a perfect fit:
“She only likes the sun. I only like the rain. She’s out there having fun. She said she’d come but she never came. It’s a gloomy day and you got me dancing in the pouring rain. And I feel the sun coming through the clouds again.”
But isn’t that pretty much Bossa Nova’s thing? Fall in love and fall right back out. I think you’ll enjoy ‘Gloomy Day’ rain or shine.
Connect With Casey Abrams’s music:
Buy Here | Amazon
Listen free: Bossa Nova Love Affair | Brazilian Jazz | XODÓ! The Rhythm Of Life! | Women Of Brazilian Song | Our Streaming Station
Enjoying The Hot Brazilian Summer Sambas Showcase? Let us know!
Connect Brazil Recommends:
Hot Brazilian Summer Sambas
Antonio Adolfo | ‘I Concentrate On You’ from Love Cole Porter
Recently, we asked Brazilian jazz pianist Antonio Adolfo whether he’d consider recording an album that focused on his piano. He replied that he really enjoys exploring the harmonic possibilities of arranging for the horns and rhythm section with his current band.
And that’s been his forte, releasing an album every summer for the past several years. We’ve enjoyed them, along with Adolfo’s artistic nuance.
But this year’s album is different, perhaps the ultimate expression of Adlofo’s arranging prowess. The Dean of the Brazilian piano may have outdone himself with Love Cole Porter. On his website, he writes:
“Since I was a child, the music of Cole Porter has been a part of the soundtrack of my life. His music also captured the hearts of Brazilians, especially in the city of Rio de Janeiro, where I was born and raised. On Love Cole Porter, it’s as if his music descended on my heart and musical soul, to my present musical moment with this incredible team of musicians who have been with me in my recent recordings.”
There’s more (much more) to explore on Antonio Adolfo’s homepage.
Connect With Antonio Adolfo’s music:
Buy it here: Amazon Music | Antonio Adolfo Music
Listen free: Brazilian Jazz | Brazilian Jazz Instrumentals | New Music: Brazil | Our Streaming Station
Flora Purim with Diana Purim | ‘If You Will’ from If You Will
Years before Flora Purim’s breakout debut on Chick Corea’s Light As A Feather, plans were being laid for this album. Shortly before she left Brazil for the United States, Flora met and married Airto (“Eye-ear-toe,” he’d point, smiling!).
Airto followed Flora soon after, and not long after that they gave birth to their daughter Diana.
And it’s Diana who sings with her mom on the title track of If You Will, along with her dad’s percussion. It’s Flora Purim’s first studio album since 2006, and it will also be Flora’s last.
George Duke wrote and recorded the song six years earlier. He invited Purim to sing with him on his album, Cool.
But Flora’s vision of ‘If You Will’ turns the song into a bright and uplifting soulful samba that’s, well, as light as a feather could be.
- Breaking news: Flora Purim’s If You Will is nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Latin Jazz Album.
Finally, there’s another aspect to the title of this song. Airto’s health has taken a turn, and Flora is doing all that she can. A GoFundMe page has been set up for fans and friends worldwide to contribute.
Flora & Airto’s music has touched the lives of generations of Brazilian music lovers, so we are here to ask for your support, if you would.
Please contribute to helping Airto and Flora here, today. You’ll have our thanks.
Connect With Flora Purim’s music:
Buy it here: Amazon
Listen free: XODÓ! The Rhythm Of Life! | Women Of Brazilian Song | Brazilian Jazz | Sunday Brazilian Brunch | Women of Brazilian Song | Our Streaming Station
Brasilea | ‘Different World’ from Pura Vida Lounge
Try as we might, we can find precious little information on the backstory for this song, or even the group that recorded it. And we’re not surprised.
Brasilea’s ‘Different World’ is one wonderful example among dozens of Lounge and Chill songs that have found their way onto our live streaming station and music channels. And for good reason.
The breezy melodies and smooth samba rhythms create a relaxing vibe that is perfect for our little corner of the world. But don’t be fooled by the anonymous nature of these tunes.
Often, Record labels seek talented indie producers to create and record these songs, selecting top-notch arrangers and musicians to work their magic.
What caught our ear with ‘Different World’ is the vivid aural imagery that builds easily throughout. And here’s a musical truth. Brazilian Chill is yet another wonderfully relaxing version of Bossa Nova. And for that, we’re thankful!
Buy it here: Amazon
Listen free: XODÓ! The Rhythm Of Life! | Bossa Nova Love Affair | Cafe Copacabana | Brazilian Jazz Instrumentals | Our Streaming Station
Mariana Nolasco | Quem É Ela from Quem É Ela
Connect Brazil has been writing about (and playing!) Mariana Nolasco’s music since 2019, only a few years after she made a name for herself as one of Brazil’s most talented YouTube stars.
Her first song to make our playlists? ‘Vamos Fugir (Give Me Your Love)’, a duet in English and Portuguese with Allman Brown. Today Nolasco has more than 11 million social media followers, several albums, and a well-deserved recording deal, too.
But ‘Quem É Ela’ marks the first time one of her songs has made to our Showcases, and it is a perfect match for Hot Brazilian Summer Sambas.
Translated as ‘Who Is She’, its lyrics carry a sense of introspection that, at 25, opens up her personal life in ways rarely seen. It’s a reflection of life experiences, “a chest with memories and dreams of my childhood,” says Nolasco.
A certain sense of charm shows up in her singing, so here’s your chance to be introduced to one of Brazil’s fastest-rising Gen-Z talents!
Connect With Mariana Nolasco’s music:
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Hot Brazilian Summer Sambas
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