Sérgio Santos Mendes, is a Grammy Award-winning Brazilian musician. The child of a physician in Niterói, Brazil, Mendes attended the local conservatory with hopes of becoming a classical pianist. As his interest in jazz grew, he started playing in nightclubs in the late-1950s just as bossa nova, a jazz-inflected derivative of samba, was taking off. Mendes played with Antonio Carlos Jobim (regarded as a mentor) and many U.S. jazz musicians who toured Brazil.I particularly LOVED his album TIMELESS that featured a wide array of neo-soul and alternative hip hop guest artists, most prominently will.i.am and The Black Eyed Peas. It was released February 14, 2006 by Concord Records. It features The Black Eyed Peas, Erykah Badu, Black Thought, Chali 2na of Jurassic 5, India.Arie, John Legend, Justin Timberlake, Q-Tip, Stevie Wonder and Pharoahe Monch. I plan to talk to Mendes when he gets to town about the influence of hip-hop and his upcoming music CD. Below is the Press release from Universal Music......Thanx Kevin!
Brown Eyes Entertainment in association with GLGG proudly present the return of bossa nova legend Sergio Mendes to Toronto on Saturday, June 28, 2008 at The Music Hall. Mendes will showcase some of his classic interpretations of the Brazilian songwriting tradition with a vivid display of the exciting, modern approach taken on his forthcoming release Encanto (Enchantment).
Sergio Mendes is arguably the most internationally successful Brazilian music artist of all time. Having started his career as a professional musician in the late 1950s, Mendes was soon appearing alongside the likes of bossa nova music royalty Antonio Carlos Jobim, Stan Getz and João Gilberto at Rio clubs. With both musician and arrangement credits on recordings for the heavyweights, Mendes in turn fused Brazilian, jazz and American popular styles becoming a respected artist and innovator in his own right, and his US-based group Brasil '66 rapidly became known for their unique, innovative sound. Their first four albums charted and assured them of international fame with hits like "Mas Que Nada" (1966), "The Look of Love" (1967) and "Pretty World" (1969). After several releases for a variety of big labels in the 70s and for much of the 80s and 90s, he continued to tour and record, achieving great international acclaim and licensing deals; he also continued to brilliantly fuse bossa nova with Bahian hip-hop and American pop, and was even featured in the popular television series Seinfeld.
Fast forwarding through the maestro's illustrious career to 2006, Mendes (already famous for collaborations and bossa fusions with American producers from Herb Alpert to Stevie Wonder) then partners up with Black Eyed Peas producer Will-I-Am to thrill his legions of older fans and garner many new younger enthusiasts with the Latin Grammy Award-winning album Timeless. His upcoming (June 10) release Encanto (Enchantment) will be Mendes' 39th album. In its creation, Sergio made a trip around the world, recording in Rio, Bahia and LA, and again he enlisted several multinational guest musicians including Latin superstar Juanes from Colombia, the multi-talented Carlinhos Brown and Vanessa da Mata from Brazil, Belgium's Zap Mama as well as American stars like Fergie, Natalie Cole, Herb Alpert and his wife, original Brasil '66 singer, Lani Hall. The collection exalts Sergio's singular blend of infectious rhythms and irresistible melodies from the great Brazilian canon, with his always thoroughly modern arrangements, sensual touch and masterful production approach.
One element unifies all the songs on Encanto (Enchantment) and that is the joy that can be heard in the voices of Mendes' collaborators. No matter what country, demographic or genre they belong to, they are all thrilled to record with the maestro, which speaks volumes about the timeless appeal of Sergio's unique style.
Please join us on Saturday, June 28th to experience why this man is hailed as a lifelong ambassador and true maestro of the Brazilian canon…
Co-sponsored by Brahma and CIUT 89.5FM.
SERGIO MENDES
Saturday, June 28, 2008
The Music Hall (147 Danforth Ave., Toronto, ON)
Tickets on sale Saturday, May 10, 2008 @ 10am
Tickets available at all Ticketmaster outlets, or call (416) 870-8000 to charge by phone. Order on-line at www.ticketmaster.ca.
*Tickets (incl. GST): $49.50 & $59.50; Reserved Seating (plus CRF and service charges)
Doors: 8:00pm • Show: 9:00pm
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