Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66 - 1967 - Equinox

Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66

1967

Equinox

01. Constant Rain (Chove Chuva)

02. Cinnamon And Clove

03. Watch What Happens

04. For Me

05. Bim-Bom

06. Night And Day

07. Triste

08. Gente

09. Wave

10. So Danco Samba (Jazz 'N' Samba)

Bass – Bob Matthews

Drums – Joao Palma

Guitar – John Pisano

Percussion – Jose Soares

Piano – Sergio Mendes

Vocals – Janis Hansen, Lani Hall

The second album by Sergio and crew – and a real push forward for the group! The basic format of two-female harmony leads is still in place – but for some reason, this album gives a bit more of a nod to Brazilian roots than before, and really spices things up with an even more interesting array of songs! There's a bit less of the pop/cover style than before, and a bit more of a nod towards the hipper side of Brazilian music – especially the modernists of the bossa nova generation.

Equinox continues the scrumptiously winning sound that Sergio Mendes cooked up in the mid-'60s, this time a bit more fleshed out with John Pisano's guitar, a slightly thicker texture, and even an imitation sitar (this was, after all, 1967). Again, the mix of American pop tunes old and new and Brazilian standards and sleepers is impeccable (although it didn't yield any substantial hits), and the treatments are smooth, swinging, and very much to the point. While Mendes reaps a predictable harvest from Antonio Carlos Jobim -- he was one of the first to discover and record "Triste" and "Wave" -- he also likes to explore the work of other outstanding Brazilian writers like Jorge Ben, Joao Gilberto, and especially Edu Lobo (whose "For Me," with its bright flashes of combo organ, is one of the album's highlights). Lani Hall's star was just rising at this time, and it is her cool, clear voice that haunts the memory most often. Like its predecessor, Equinox is exceedingly brief in duration, yet not a motion is wasted.