''Copacabana'' is a 1979 album by

Sarah Vaughan Sarah Lois Vaughan (March 27, 1924 – April 3, 1990) was an American jazz singer. Nicknamed "Sassy" and " The Divine One", she won two Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, and was nominated for a total of nine Grammy Award ...

. It was Vaughan's second album of

bossa nova Bossa nova () is a style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a "different beat" that altered the harmonies with the introduction of unconventional chords and an innovat ...

following '' I Love Brazil!''; her third album of Brazilian music, '' Brazilian Romance'' followed in 1987.

Reception

Although the contemporaneous review by ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...

'' jazz critic

Leonard Feather Leonard Geoffrey Feather (13 September 1914 – 22 September 1994) was a British-born jazz pianist, composer, and producer, who was best known for his music journalism and other writing. Biography Feather was born in London, England, into an u ...

was somewhat mixed, he did not fault the featured artist:

''That this set does not reach the consistent heights of its predecessor, "I Love Brazil," cannot be blamed on Vaughan. The difference lies in the accompaniment, which this time is spotty. Who needs that unison choir background on "Smiling Hour"? Vaughan is not
Mitch Miller Mitchell William Miller (July 4, 1911 – July 31, 2010) was an American choral conductor, record producer, record-industry executive, and professional oboist. He was involved in almost all aspects of the industry, particularly as a conductor ...
. The simplistic percussion on "Bonita" could be a metronome. Still, Hélio Delmiro's guitar, an unidentified cello and the incomparable Vaughan contralto applied to "
Dindi "Dindi" ( - which sounds like Jin-jee in English) is a song composed by Antônio Carlos Jobim, with lyrics by Aloysio de Oliveira. It is a world-famous bossa nova and jazz standard song. Jobim wrote this piece especially for the Brazilian singer ...
," "Gentle Rain" and Jobim's "Double Rainbow" (English lyrics by
Gene Lees Frederick Eugene John Lees (February 8, 1928 – April 22, 2010) was a Canadian music critic, biographer, lyricist, and journalist. Lees worked as a newspaper journalist in his native Canada before moving to the United States, where he was a music ...
) elevate this to 3½ stars.

The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings ''The Penguin Guide to Jazz'' is a reference work containing an encyclopedic directory of jazz recordings on CD which were (at the time of publication) currently available in Europe or the United States. The first nine editions were compiled ...

'' awarded the album a maximum four-star rating, and commented that the bossa nova and samba repertoire on it was “unexpectedly strong for Vaughan.”

Track listing

# "Copacabana" (Joao DeBarro, Alberto Ribeiro) - 3:39 # "The Smiling Hour (Abre Alas)" (

Ivan Lins Ivan Guimarães Lins (born June 16, 1945) is a Latin Grammy-winning Brazilian musician. He has been an active performer and songwriter of Brazilian popular music (MPB) and jazz for over thirty years. His first hit, "Madalena", was recorded by ...

, Vítor Martins, Louis Oliveira) - 4:19 # "To Say Goodbye (Pra Dizer Adeus)" (Hall, Lobo, Neto) - 3:49 # " Dreamer (Vivo Sonhando)" (

Antônio Carlos Jobim Antônio Carlos Brasileiro de Almeida Jobim (25 January 1927 – 8 December 1994), also known as Tom Jobim (), was a Brazilian composer, pianist, guitarist, songwriter, arranger, and singer. Considered one of the great exponents of Brazilian mu ...

Gene Lees Frederick Eugene John Lees (February 8, 1928 – April 22, 2010) was a Canadian music critic, biographer, lyricist, and journalist. Lees worked as a newspaper journalist in his native Canada before moving to the United States, where he was a music ...

) - 3:41 # " Gentle Rain" (

Luiz Bonfá Luiz Floriano Bonfá (17 October 1922 – 12 January 2001) was a Brazilian guitarist and composer. He was best known for the music he composed for the film ''Black Orpheus''. Biography Luiz Floriano Bonfá was born on October 17, 1922, in ...

, Matt Dubey) - 2:50 # "Tetê" (Boscoli,

Ray Gilbert Ray Gilbert (September 5, 1912 – March 3, 1976) was an American lyricist. He grew up in Hartford, Connecticut. Career Gilbert is best remembered for the lyrics to the Oscar-winning song " Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" from the film ''Song of the South'', ...

, Menescal) - 4:41 # "

Dindi "Dindi" ( - which sounds like Jin-jee in English) is a song composed by Antônio Carlos Jobim, with lyrics by Aloysio de Oliveira. It is a world-famous bossa nova and jazz standard song. Jobim wrote this piece especially for the Brazilian singer ...

" (Gilbert, Jobim) - 5:32 # "Double Rainbow (Chovendo Na Roseira)" (Jobim, Lees) - 3:34 # " Bonita" (Lees, Gilbert, Jobim) - 3:54

Personnel

;Performance *Sarah Vaughan -

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or withou ...

* Hélio Delmiro -

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...

Andy Simpkins Andrew Simpkins (April 29, 1932 – June 2, 1999) was an American jazz bassist. Born in Richmond, Indiana, he first became known as a member of the group The Three Sounds, with which he performed from 1956 to 1968.allmusic biography/ref> After ...

double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox additions such as the octobass). Similar i ...

*Wilson DasNeves - drums *

Grady Tate Grady Tate (January 14, 1932 – October 8, 2017) was an American jazz and soul-jazz drummer and baritone vocalist. In addition to his work as sideman, Tate released many albums as leader and lent his voice to songs in the animated ''Schoolhou ...

*Edson Frederico - arranger ;Production *Luiz Garrido - photography *Tamaki Beck - mastering *

Aloísio de Oliveira Aloísio or Aloysio de Oliveira (December 30, 1914 – February 4, 1995), also known as Louis Oliveira, was a Brazilian record producer, singer, actor and composer. A key figure in the internationalization of Brazilian popular music, he contribute ...

- producer

References

{{Authority control Pablo Records albums Sarah Vaughan albums Bossa nova albums 1979 albums