Encanto

Brazilian music legend Sergio Mendes spins his remarkable magic on his newest recording, a bona fide classic! This is a kaleidoscopic album that underscores the maestro's ear for addictive melodies, as well as his ability to cast incredibly talented singers and musicians from all over the world
Customer Review: a review for Brasil '66 fans
It's been around 40 years since Mendes reached an artistic and commercial peak with several classic albums that successfully mixed bossa nova, jazz, and pop music. Those albums still sound fresh today, thanks to the terrific songs, latin rhythms and some sparkling arrangements. Since then, Mendes has experimented with mixing his Brazilian sound with folk rock, funk, dance music, hip hop, and on "Encanto," some r&b. As someone who prefers the work he did with Brasil '66 to anything more recent, to my ears the album is pleasant though generally forgettable with the exception of a few wonderful tracks. Unsurprisingly the best tracks are those with strong melodies by Antonio Carlos Jobim, in particular "Somewhere in the Hills" and "Dreamer," both of which are direct descendants of the sound of Brasil '66. "Dreamer" includes both Herb Alpert and Lani Hall, who sounds remarkably like she did when she was fronting Brasil '66. This is a genuinely stunning track and easily the best on the album. Natalie Cole sings "Somewhere in the Hills" which is appropriately jazzy and is one of Jobim's strongest melodies. Other Jobim tracks include "Waters of March" which Mendes has covered several times in the past. It's a singer's song, and sounds a little rhythmically stiff here, as it has in his previous efforts. "Morning in Rio" is also good, with a more Brazilian styled melody and a nice trombone solo. The rest of the CD is listenable, but not such that I ever want to hear most of it again. "The Look of Love" is an unnecessary remake of a good song. What made the original great was a sensational big band arrangement which has been dropped in favor of a hip hop arrangement. I liked the Brazilian styled funk of "Odo-ya" and the mellow "Catavento" with Mendes' wife on lead vocals. On the other hand, "Funky Bahia" and "Lugar Comum," the latter of which features an Italian rapper doing a little snippet of "Volare," are disposable pop/hip hop songs. If I could get into Mendes' head, I would try to convince him do an album of Jobim and Marcos Valle songs with Herb Alpert and Lani Hall and a small jazz/bossa combo. It might not sell a million copies, but it would be an artistic triumph. If you're an unreconstructed fan of Brasil '66 as I am, I can recommend this with reservations. You might be better off just downloading a handful of tracks. But "Dreamer" should not be missed.
Customer Review: Summery and enchanting.
"Encanto" follows the highly acclaimed 2006 collaboration with will.i.am Timeless and with this latest release, Sergio takes us even deeper into Brazil, having recorded all the basic tracks in Rio and Bahia and finally finishing up in in California, where the studio band included Alphonso Johnson. For "Encanto" (in Spanish for Enchantment), Mendes has also enlisted the formidable and enchantingly diverse talents of an array of guest musicians who hail from the world over. Latin superstar Juanes from Colombia and multi-talented Carlinhos Brown & Vanessa da Mata from Brazil jostle alongside the foremost Japanese pop group Dreams Come True, Belgium's Zap Mama and Italian rapper Jovanotti. This international cast is completed by the American stars Fergie, Siedah Garrett and Herb Alpert who is accompanied by his wife, original Brasil '66 singer, Lani Hall. Old smoothie Mendes gets jiggy on a selection of bossa-favourites with a raft of guest stars including the ubiquitous Will.i.am and Fergie from the Black Eyed Peas, Natalie Cole and Herb Alpert et all... This new album essentially is a cross between Mendes' soft, salsa-tinged melodies and modern day R'n'B. The opening track, "The Look of Love" with rap/vocals by Fergie, is a deliciously moreish funky-fusion, and for the first third or so, the combination of Sergio's Rhodes with the hip-hopped production style is terrific. Perhaps this new version of Burt Bacharach's "The Look Of Love", which Mendes had originally transposed to bossa nova heaven in 1967 is the boldest track on "Encanto". This new interpretation, produced by Black Eyed Peas will.i.am, preserves the alluring melody of the original while bringing the song into the new millennium with crisp drum programming and a sexy rap by Fergie. Then it goes all smooth jazz on you. Not bad, though. Whether you are a Sergio Mendes fan especially the earlier stuff, Brasil 66, Equinox, etc or a Black Eyed Peas fan, or indeed R&B then there's something on this album to please everyone. I'd say for such a challenging album there are only a couple of songs that are just to heavy hip hop for me. The rest is a joy to listen to, if you are open minded about remixes and love to see what Sergio has been up to. This album is a grower. The more I listen to it, the better it gets. You will like it. Picks of the album: "The Look of Love", "Waters Of March", "Dreamer", and "Somewhere In The Hills (O Morro Nao Tem Vez)". Equinox Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66 - Greatest Hits The Very Best of Sergio Mendes & Brazil 66

Do you have the "only if" or "it always happens to me" malady? Is negative thinking getting you down? Are you constantly telling yourself things always go wrong and nothing ever goes right? Has an argument, a mishap, a bad experience with a neighbor, waiter, friend or colleague at work got you down? Are these thoughts on auto-replay in your mind three months later - a year later? And do these constant thoughts make you feel more and more anxious or depressed?

We all suffer from anxious moments and feeling down occasionally, but if these feelings are part of your daily routine, perhaps it is time to evaluate your surroundings and your thinking to see if some positive energy will help. If you continue to focus on things that make you anxious and depressed, you will continue to attract more situations and thoughts that create even more anxiety and despair. What you focus on is what you get. What you think about is what you create.

Positive Thinking = Positive Results

When Norman Vincent Peale wrote his book The Power of Positive Thinking in 1952, he understood the impact of negative thoughts versus positive thinking. He knew that if people would focus their thoughts on positive things they could change their lives for the better. This same principle is at the core of the more recent book The Secret by Rhonda Byrne. The good news is, now there is another tool you can use to enhance the ability to stay in a positive mode instead of dropping back and focusing on the negatives.

In the world of Feng Shui, balance is the ultimate objective both in your surroundings and in your mind. If you are always thinking negative thoughts and focusing on the things that have gone wrong in your life, you lose the balance and harmony in your life and attract only the negative things which snowball into more things that go wrong.

Positive Energy Surroundings = Positive Thinking

To stop the constant replay of things going wrong in your life, shift to positive energy in your surroundings and thoughts. What follows are a few easy to apply suggestions on how to create positive energy so you can permanently push the stop button on negative thinking and create a better life which goes your way more often.

1. Step into the light. Go outside where the sun is shining and take a walk. Or, open your curtains and turn on bright lights in your home. Invest in a torchiere lamp that shoots light upward in your favorite room. Light automatically raises your energy levels and thoughts.

2. Find brightly colored rooms to spend time in when feeling down. Go shopping and purchase accent pillows or a throw for the sofa in bright colors to cheer up your favorite room - it will also cheer you up. If you are feeling anxious - spend time in a room that is painted calming colors like blue and green - you will respond positively to the calming energy of these colors.

3. Wear light or bright colored clothing (yellow and orange work great) when feeling despair setting in - they will lift your spirits. Wear calming soft blues and greens when feeling anxious. These colors can change your outlook on life very quickly from negative to positive.

4. Get a notebook or a book for writing and create a Gratitude Journal. Write at least 10 things you are thankful for every day in your journal. If you can't think of anything start with things like having a roof over your head, food on the table or having the ability to walk from your bedroom to the kitchen. Anything will do until you get the hang of it. The more grateful you are for everything in your life the less time you have to feel sorry for yourself and you will find that a lot more things have gone your way than you thought.

5. Play uplifting nurturing music instead of listening to the 6:00 news. There are a lot of music options today so choose wisely - much of it can rob your spirit and create even more anxiety and depression. If you really want stir your energy - play a few John Phillip Susa marches - there is no way you can listen to them and remain down. If you are anxious play classical music like Mozart or inner peace music by artists like Steven Halpern. Music is the universal language that makes the heart dance and the spirit soar creating an abundance of positive energy.

The Feng Shui based suggestions above energize your world and not only lead to positive thinking but also reduce stress, anxiety and the feelings of despair and depression. So often the solution to having a joy-filled happy life truly is in your own back yard - in this case your own home and mind.

Many have long underestimated the power of positive thinking. When you replace the "only ifs" or "it always happens to me" thought process with positive energy, positive thinking is the result. When you think positively, you take control of your life and have a better life - and that is good.

Pat Heydlauff, all rights reserved 2008

Pat Heydlauff, President of Energy-by-Design (http://www.energy-by-design.com) and Feng Shui expert, is a consultant, speaker, columnist and award-winning artist. She has been consulting with individuals, families, and companies since the early 1990's, with clients ranging from California to Florida. In addition, she speaks at corporate and organizational functions, and gives seminars to enhance productivity. Pat Heydlauff can be reached at balancingenergy@energy-by-design.com.

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