The New Bossa Nova finds Souza applying her interpretative skills to material drawn from a diverse array of sources, including Joni Mitchell ("Down To You"), Leonard Cohen ("Here It Is"), Sting ("When We Dance"), Elliott Smith ("Satellite"), Steely Dan ("Were You Blind That Day"), Brian Wilson ("God Only Knows"), Randy Newman ("Living Without You"), Michael McDonald ("I Can Let Go Now") and legendary bossa nova master Antonio Carlos Jobim (the standard "Waters of March"), along with a pair of memorable new songs written for the project, "You and the Girl," written by Souza and producer Larry Klein, and "Love Is for Strangers," by Klein and Steely Dan's Walter Becker. The set also features a memorable guest appearance by James Taylor, who joins Souza for a soulful duet reading of the Taylor composition "Never Die Young." The New Bossa Nova marks an exciting new chapter for the Brazilian-born vocalist and three-time Grammy® nominee, who's already widely acknowledged as one of jazz's most respected and accomplished vocalists. The 11-song album finds the artist crafting a fresh and highly personal variation on the beloved bossa nova style, matching Souza's exquisite, deeply-felt performances with spare, eloquent arrangements that place the emphasis squarely on the songs' timeless emotional truths.The album confirms Souza's reputation as both a world-class vocalist and a versatile, consistently adventurous creative force. The project is Souza's first collaboration with her husband, producer/musician Klein, whose extensive resume encompasses work with artists as diverse as Joni Mitchell, Freddie Hubbard, Peter Gabriel and Wayne Shorter. The New Bossa Nova also features a stellar cast of players including tenor saxophonist Chris Potter, guitarist Romero Lubambo, pianist Edward Simon, bassist Scott Colley, vibraphonist Matt Moran and drummer Antonio Sanchez.
Brazilian bossa nova has been called the "whisper heard around the world." But when a small cadre of Rio-based intellectuals mixed American jazz with local sambas, little did they know that it would prove so durable. The initial international craze, spearheaded by Astrud Gilberto's version of "Girl from Ipanema" (Garota de Ipanema) and the movie Black Orpheus (Orfeo Negro), faded gently into a shadowy but still-beloved presence. But whenever a modern Brazilian needs a good cry in his or her cerveza, it is still to these swaying, sublimely passive-aggressive tunes that he or she will turn. Luciana Souza, a São Paulo native with three Grammy nominations under her belt, is particularly adept at performing these wistfully poetic microcosms or, as she has done here, recognizing in works by non-Brazilian composers a particular kind of restrained yet insistent longing mixed with sensual sadness and nostalgia, an emotion Brazilians call saudade. That she has located it in some very unexpected places makes the album even more magical. Her richly female, woodwind-like alto floats over a sultry, sax-infused jazz combo, transforming tunes by Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen, Sting, Elliot Smith, Randy Newman, and James Taylor (who sits in on his own "Never Die Young"). But the most perfect, if previously unimaginable, transformation is her take on the Beach Boys' "God Only Knows"--a startling but utterly ideal encounter. Fittingly, Souza ends the program with an English-language version of one of Antonio Carlos Jobim's most beloved songs, "Waters of March" (Águas de Março), a legendary bossa nova that brings the set full circle. --Christina Roden
