Bossa nova legend Sérgio Mendes dies

Brazilian musician Sérgio Mendes, who helped popularise bossa nova and samba with Western audiences, has died on the age of 83, his circle of relatives has showed.

The bandleader and composer is absolute best identified for the buoyant Latin pop hit Mas Que Nada, and placing Brazilian twists on English songs comparable to The Glance Of Love and The Beatles’ The Idiot On The Hill.

Mendes recorded greater than 35 albums, a lot of which went gold or platinum in the United States; and won an Oscar nomination in 2012 for co-writing the track Actual in Rio from the animated movie Rio.

A commentary from his circle of relatives mentioned Mendes “gave up the ghost peacefully” on Thursday in Los Angeles, surrounded by way of his spouse and youngsters.

No reputable explanation for dying used to be given, alternatively the circle of relatives mentioned Mendes have been struggling with long-term Covid, and the musician used to be identified to have suffered breathing issues for the reason that finish of 2023.

The circle of relatives’s commentary mentioned Mendes “introduced the joyous sounds of his local Brasil to the arena”.

“Mendes final carried out in November 2023 to offered out and wildly enthusiastic homes in Paris, London and Barcelona.

“For the final a number of months, his well being have been challenged by way of the results of long-term COVID.”

The commentary concluded by way of pronouncing Mendes “leaves us with an out of this world musical legacy from greater than six a long time of a singular sound”.

The son of a doctor, Mendes used to be born in Niteroi, Brazil, and to begin with studied classical piano, with the aim of changing into a live performance pianist.

However his existence modified in 1956 when he heard his first jazz report, Take 5 by way of the American musician Dave Brubeck, and deserted his research.

“For me that used to be like, I might say, probably the most fantastic moments of my existence,” he instructed US radio station NPR in 2014, “as a result of once I heard that, I had no concept about jazz or the rest”.

He began enjoying in nightclubs in Rio de Janeiro, simply because the bossa nova craze hit – and started to immerse himself in that scene, along different luminaries comparable to Antonio Carlos Jobim and João Gilberto.

His first recording, Dance Moderno, used to be launched in 1961 at the Philips Data label.

3 years later, he left Brazil for america to flee the army dictatorship – however it used to be no longer a very easy transition.

His Brazilian bandmates returned house, forcing Mendes to shape a brand new staff. Known as Brasil ’66, it featured two American singers, Lani Corridor and Karen Philip.

Signed to A&M Data, they hit on a successful components – jazzy renditions of common Brazilian songs along samba-enriched variations of the hits of the day.

They scored their first primary hit with Mas Que Nada, a sun-kissed quilt of a Jorge Ben unique, filled with finger clicks, shimmying shakers and an ebullient refrain that sings of the urge to bop.

There may be “one thing very magical about that chant”, Mendes later recalled. “Other folks love that track – all over on this planet.”

It used to be the primary Portuguese-language track to turn into a world hit; and propelled Brasil ’66’s self-titled debut album into the highest 10 of the United States charts.

Later data noticed Mendes very best his mix of Western melodies and Brazilian rhythms, protecting Simon & Garfunkel’s Scarborough Truthful, and Otis Redding’s (Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay.

When he lined The Beatles’ The Idiot On The Hill at the 1967 album Glance Round, Paul McCartney wrote Mendes a letter, telling him it used to be his favorite model of the track.

Despite the fact that his tune used to be pushed aside as “simple listening” on the time, he used to be massively common, enjoying area excursions and acting on the White Space for presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon.

He used to be a normal on TV displays along artists comparable to Perry Como, Jerry Lewis, Fred Astaire and Frank Sinatra, with whom he struck up an in depth friendship.

Within the Nineteen Seventies, he relaunched his band as Brasil ’77, however his business fortunes waned till the 1983 comeback album, Sergio Mendes, gave him the most important chart hit of his occupation – a canopy of the Dionne Warwick vintage By no means Gonna Let You Pass.

The luck happened virtually by chance, as Mendes handiest added the track to his repertoire on the final minute.

“The entire different songs at the album had been up and festive. I wished a ballad at the album, simply to switch the tempo a little bit,” he mentioned in an interview for The Billboard E-book of No. 1 Grownup Fresh Hits.

In 1992, he received a Grammy for his album Brasileiro, which featured a number of tracks with the younger percussionist and singer Carlinhos Brown – now one in every of Brazil’s maximum distinguished musicians.

Amongst their collaborations used to be Magalenha – a joyous track powered by way of the vigorous sounds of Bahian percussionists from the streets of Rio – that briefly turned into a Latin usual.

20 years later, in 2012, the duo won an Oscar nomination for his or her paintings at the Rio soundtrack.

The inclusion of Mas Que Nada at the soundtrack to Mike Myers’ Austin Powers movie offered Mendes to a complete new target audience in 1997, and by way of the early twenty first Century, maximum of his again catalogue have been reissued for brand spanking new enthusiasts.

Round the similar time, Mendes started to include parts of hip-hop into his sound, participating with the Black Eyed Peas on a brand new model of Mas Que Nada, and recording songs with rappers together with Commonplace and Q-Tip.

Mendes additionally made a cameo within the 24-hour-long video for Pharrell Williams’ Glad; and received a life-time fulfillment award on the 2005 Latin Grammys.

A movie of his existence, Sergio Mendes In The Key Of Pleasure, used to be launched together with a brand new album in 2020 – and he persisted enjoying are living till very just lately, together with an look on the London Jazz Pageant final October.

Summing up his philosophy of tune, Mendes as soon as mentioned: “After I take into accounts Brazilian tune the primary phrases that will come to my thoughts could be pleasure, birthday celebration, birthday celebration… I feel it’s within the spirit of the folks generally.”

The musician is survived by way of by way of his spouse, Gracinha Leporace, who sang on a lot of his data. He additionally had 5 kids.