More than
forty years after his genre-bending – and ultimately
groundbreaking – work with Brasil 66, Brazilian
producer/keyboardist/composer/bandleader Sergio Mendes
continues to borrow elements of traditional as well as
contemporary styles from either side of the Equator and
all points on the globe and seamlessly graft them to his
deep Latin jazz foundations. “Every time I make a new
album,” says Mendes, “it’s a new musical adventure.”
His latest adventure is Bom Tempo, an album that
represents the next artistic step on his prolific
Concord journey that began with Timeless in 2006,
followed by Encanto two years later. Borrowing from the
songbooks of great Brazilian composers like Antonio
Carlos Jobim, Gilberto Gil, Milton Nascimento and others
(plus one offering penned by American pop icon Stevie
Wonder), Bom Tempo expands Mendes’ use of color, texture
and street-derived energy, highlighting his mastery of
authentic Brazilian rhythms and composition. The
Portuguese title succinctly captures the spirit of the
music within, says Mendes: “This is bom tempo music,
good times music.”