The Music of Antonio Carlos Jobim (162)

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[00:00:00]
Jason Croft: It's the Atomic Age Cocktail Party. I'm Jason Croft, and this week it's the music of Antonio Carlos Jobim.

[00:00:15]
Speaker 1: Quiet nights and quiet. Chords from my guitar. Floating on [?] and quiet dreams. Quiet walks by quiet streams. Climbing hills where lovers go. Watch the world below. In this [mood of reverence?] away from all the earthly cares. The world was dull each minute. I [came?] these quiet nights of [?] by quiet streams climbing hills this mood of reverence from all the earthly [?] was dull each minute. Until I I knew came these quiet nights of loving.

[00:02:55]
Jason Croft: Welcome to the Atomic Age Cocktail Party featuring music from the golden age of the hi-fi and beyond. Blossom Dearie from her 1964 release, May I Come In, and a nice bright and breezy take on the bossa nova classic, Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars, AKA Corcovado. It's a song that came from Brazilian songwriter and performer Antonio Carlos Jobim, also known as Tom Jobim. One of the founding fathers of the cool samba sound known as the bossa nova. It's a sound that was all the rage in the 1960s.

Along with frequent collaborator lyricist Vinicius [J.] Moraes, Jobim created a vast catalog of bossa nova standards that are still popular today. This time in the program we're spotlighting Antonio Carlos Jobim and his many popular tunes, specifically looking at how artists of the hi-fi era approached his music. We'll also have a set featuring the man himself on the way. Rosemary Clooney does some meditating. Mel Tormé catches a wave, and George Shearing hits the beaches of Brazil.

Right now, another big name when it comes to the bossa nova, it's singer Astrud Gilberto. Here she is with the tune Dindi, and it's right here on the Atomic Age Cocktail Party.

[00:04:17]
Speaker 2: [Sky as the sky with far away just wondering. Oh, I don't don't know that speaks to the darling. Belong to you. Jean if I when you're with me love you. Yes I do. If you take without you.]

[00:11:46]
Speaker 3: [But I can't.]

[00:15:07]
Jason Croft: It's the perfect garnish for your late night nightcap. It's the Atomic Age Cocktail Party. I'm Jason Croft. We're looking at the music of Antonio Carlos Jobim this week and the many classic bossa nova numbers that he penned.

Sax player Stan Getz along with guitarist and singer João Gilberto and O Grande Amor. That's from that monster of an album, Getz/Gilberto, recorded in 1963 and released in 1964. It wasn't the first bossa nova album, but it was the one that cemented the genre in American popular culture. Most of the tracks were written by Jobim, including what we just heard, and Jobim himself played piano on the album. And it's no hyperbole to say that this album opened the floodgates when it came to the bossa nova. And the album itself hit it big in the 1965 Grammy Awards, winning five statues, including Best Album of the Year, Record of the Year, and a few other awards as well. Yeah, it was kind of a big deal.

Before [that was] Getz/Gilberto, we had piano player Vince Guaraldi and [Outra Vez]. This comes from his in-person record released in 1963, and Guaraldi was obviously a fan of Jobim's works, recording many of his songs on several albums. What we heard was a live track recorded at the Trident Jazz Club in Sausalito, California in December of 1962.

And we started with singer Astrud Gilberto and the song Dindi. And her style really helped define what a female bossa nova singer should sound like.

We're featuring the music of Antonio Carlos Jobim this week, and by the mid-1960s, the bossa nova craze had swept all corners of the hi-fi world. Lots of established singers and performers were trying their hands at this breezy style from Brazil. Case in point, here's trumpeter Al Hirt and Desafinado, and it's right here on the Atomic Age Cocktail Party.

[00:20:02]
Speaker 4: [When you're and I need your just think of you. And the thought of you holding me makes loneliness disappear. You're far and you are back to just close my eyes. And the sadness that missing you brings is gone and this heart of mine sings. And that for me is all we'll wait for you. Till the suns for what else can I do? We'll wait for you. Meditating how sweet life will be when you come back to me. For you till the suns for what else we'll wait for you. Meditating how sweet life will be when you come back to meditating how sweet life will be when you come back to me.]

[00:24:46]
Speaker 5: [Sad is to live in solitude. Far from your tranquil altitude is to know that no one ever can live on will never re awake wake up and you heart that stops when you only to cause me pain. Solid you can't bear the heart that stops when you pass by. To cause me pain. Is to.]

[00:27:10]
Jason Croft: A tremendous team up there for you, Antonio Carlos Jobim and Frank Sinatra right here on the Atomic Age Cocktail Party. The spotlight this week is on the music of Antonio Carlos Jobim and the world of Brazilian bossa nova music that he helped bring to American hi-fis. Triste is what we heard from that pair, Jobim and Sinatra. That of course is a Jobim composition, as are all the tunes this week. This is from their second collaboration, Sinatra Jobim. Which was only released on an eight-track and then quickly pulled. The tracks from this recording session did find their way back on a Sinatra album. It was the A-side for Sinatra's 1971 release, Sinatra and Company.

Before that, the great Rosemary Clooney and her version of Meditation, featuring the cool sounds of Cal Tjader on vibes. This is some later music from Clooney. It's from her 1981 album With Love, filled with lots of great standards, as well as some pop tunes of the day. Clooney still sounding great 35 years into her professional career.

And we started with trumpet player Al Hirt and Desafinado, AKA out of tune or also translated to off-key. Yeah, normally Hirt is known for his big and brassy Dixieland style. But here, keeping it cool and mellow for the bossa nova. Latin in the Horn from 1966 is the album this came from.

It's the music of Tom Jobim this week. And what sort of program would it be if we didn't play a few tunes from the man himself? Let's start with something from his 1965 release, The Wonderful World of Antonio Carlos Jobim. It's arranged and conducted by Nelson Riddle. It's the tune A Felicidade, and it's right here on the Atomic Age Cocktail Party.

[00:29:13]
Speaker 6: [Triste felicidade ja.]

[00:36:10]
Jason Croft: Thanks for tuning in. It's the Atomic Age Cocktail Party. The music of Antonio Carlos Jobim is what we're doing this week, looking at one of the key figures in the bossa nova world and his impact on the hi-fi era. And they're a set of tunes from the man himself.

That was the tune How Insensitive. Another bossa nova standard from Jobim. This is from the album that composer of Desafinado plays from 1963. Which was his debut, and he also played piano and guitar on the album.

We also had the number Look to the Sky, another wonderful bit of light and breezy bossa nova. This is from Jobim's album Wave from 1967, his fifth studio album featuring a selection of standout American musicians. It's an album that really starts easing his sound into the easy listening era.

And we started with A Felicidade from Jobim. It's from his big album, The Wonderful World of Antonio Carlos Jobim from 1965. And it's a record which I mentioned earlier, saw him paired up with legendary arranger Nelson Riddle. And here you get Jobim providing the vocals, which seem so wonderfully grounded compared to the soaring strings and winds that Nelson adds to the number.

Well, let's get back into the music with another Antonio Carlos Jobim standard. It's some live music for you from the Velvet Fog himself, Mel Tormé from later in his career. It's the number Wave, and it's right here on the Atomic Age Cocktail Party.

[00:37:39]
Mel Tormé: So close your eyes. That's a lovely way. Aware of things your heart alone was meant to see. The loneliness whenever two can dream a dream. Jeez, what a range on this song. You can't deny, don't try to fight the rising sea. Don't fight the moon, the stars above and don't fight. The fundamental loneliness goes whenever two can dream a dream.

When I first saw you, the time was 3:30. It was and we know the wave was on its way. Just catch the wave. Don't be afraid of loving me. The fundamental loneliness goes when — when I first saw you. The time was 3:30. When your eyes met. The wave was on its way to just catch the wave. Don't be afraid of loving. Loneliness whenever two can dream a dream.

Wherever we go, whatever we do, we're going to go through it together through thick and through thick. Call out [or rollin] we're going to go through it together. We stroll the [?] laughed at the rain. [Dotted rhythm vocals] y [?] when twilight is deep in the skies yay.

[00:41:48]
Speaker 8: [Dotted rhythm vocals.]

[00:44:21]
Speaker 9: [Scat vocals.]

[00:46:54]
Jason Croft: It's the Atomic Age Cocktail Party. I'm Jason Croft, and we're focusing on the music of Antonio Carlos Jobim this week. Music from one of bossa nova's best.

We just heard from the multi-talented Caterina Valente putting tons of oomph into that take of One Note Samba. It's a nice, high-powered version of that song. It's a song that Valente often put on her setlists. She first recorded it in a slower version in 1962. What we heard was [for] many years later, it was recorded in 1990.

Before that, horn player Shorty Rogers and His Giants with Chega de Saudade. No More Blues. This is from the album Bossa Nova from 1962. One of those albums that was in front of the curve when it came to the bossa nova craze of the 1960s.

And we started with one of the coolest cats to ever get in front of a microphone, that would be the Velvet Fog Mel Tormé. Having lots of fun with a live and lively take on a Jobim classic, Wave. Also dropping in bars from another Jobim tune, Água de Beber. That and a couple other classics as well. This is from a 1981 double album that he put out called Mel Tormé and Friends, recorded live at Marty's in New York City.

Well, you're listening to the Atomic Age Cocktail Party celebrating the golden age of the hi-fi and beyond. If you like what you're listening to, don't forget to stop by our website at atomicagecocktailparty.com for playlists, show archives, and a lot more. If you have any show ideas or comments, you can get a hold of us there as well. Atomicagecocktailparty.com.

One more set left in our program looking at the music of Antonio Carlos Jobim, and here's one of his biggest numbers in the hands of the silky smooth piano player, George Shearing. It's the Girl from Ipanema, and it's right here on the Atomic Age cocktail party.

[00:52:28]
Jason Croft: Wrapping up our program on Antonio Carlos Jobim here on the Atomic Age Cocktail Party, and they're a fun modern take on one of his classics, that's Água de Beber, Water to Drink. English lyrics by Norman Gimbel. Yeah, we heard a sample of that song a little earlier from Mel Tormé. Well, here we get the full version from the world's best, if not only lounge theremin band, Project Pimento out of the West Coast. This is from their second release, Magical Moods of the Theremin from 2003.

And we start[ed] with the silky and satiny smooth stylings of George Shearing, along with his quintet and string choir, with a lush take on the big bossa nova number, The Girl from Ipanema. Yeah, that's Brazilian heat replaced by Cosmopolitan Cool. That can be found on the album Here and Now, released in 1965.

Well, that just about does it for our show this week. Make sure you're here again for more fun from the golden age of the hi-fi and beyond. Gonna leave you with one more. And when it comes to the wide range of artists of the hi-fi era who covered Jobim's music, well, even the king of space age bachelor pad music, Mr. Juan Garcia Esquivel, had to get into the action. From the album, The Genius of Esquivel from 1967, here's the Antonio Carlos Jobim tune, Surfboard.

Until next time, this is Jason Croft saying, Keep swinging.

The Atomic Age Cocktail Party is a production of Illinois Public Media.