Ithamara Koorax e Luiz Bonfa - Ithamara Koorax Sings the Luiz Bonfa Songbook (1996)

According with several discographies, this is the last Luiz Bonfa recording participation. This is a 1996 album, out of print and very recent to be available at Loronix. However, this is a really worthwhile album and as a Luiz Bonfa tribute we should also make our modest celebration to this great artist.

Ithamara Koorax pays her tribute to the genius recording this album on a interval of eleven months between Rio de Janeiro, Los Angeles and London. Several renowned guest were invited: Nelson Angelo (guitar), Shigeharu Sasago (guitar), Larry Coryell (guitar), Torcuato Mariano (guitar, keyboards), Eumir Deodato (keyboards), Paulo Malaguti (keyboards, percussion), Sadao Watanabe (alto sax), Jamil Joanes (bass), Ron Carter (bass), Carlos Bala (drums), Ivan Conti (drums), Sidinho Moreira (percussion), and Arnaldo DeSouteiro (percussion).

A truly wonderful tribute to Luiz Bonfa, released in Brazil as Almost in Love and internationally as Ithamara Koorax Sings the Luiz Bonfa Songbook. zecalouro includes AMG review for this album and track list.

01 - Almost In Love (Luis Bonfá / R. Starr) [LB]
02 - Non-stop To Brazil (Luis Bonfá / Norman Gimbel / M. Dubey) [LB]
03 - Amor Sem Adeus (Luis Bonfá / Tom Jobim) [LB]
04 - Menina Flor (Luis Bonfá / Maria Helena Toledo) [LB]
05 - Samba De Orfeu (Luis Bonfá / Antônio Maria) [LB]
06 - Perdido De Amor (Luis Bonfá) [LB]
07 - The Gentle Rain (Luis Bonfá / M. Dubey) [LB]
08 - Correnteza (Luis Bonfá / Tom Jobim) [LB]
09 - Say Goodbye (Luis Bonfá / C. Sigman) [LB]
10 - Empty Glass (Luis Bonfá / D. Manning)
11 - Manhã De Carnaval (Luis Bonfá / Antônio Maria) [LB]
12 - Vida (Luis Bonfá) [LB]
13 - Samblues For Mr. Coryell (Luis Bonfá) [LB]
14 - Empty Glass (Luis Bonfá / D. Manning)

[LB] Bonfá guitar can be heard on these tracks.

AMG Review by Alex Herdeson

If Antonio Carlos Jobim was the George Gershwin of Brazil, the prolific Luiz Bonfá is the Brazilian equivalent of Cole Porter or Irving Berlin. An expressive interpreter of lyrics - both English and Portuguese - Ithamara Koorax pays tribute to the Brazilian icon on Almost in Love: Ithamara Koorax Sings Luiz Bonfá (which percussionist/arranger Arnaldo DeSouteiro produced in 1995 and 1996). This Brazilian release wasn't the first time that a singer - Brazilian or otherwise - paid homage to Bonfá, and it won't be the last. But Almost in Love isn't a run-of-the-mill, dime-a-dozen tribute album. Whether she is singing in Portuguese or English, Koorax invests a great deal of emotion into these gems - emotionally, she really goes that extra mile. Portuguese, which is Koorax's is primary language, is the language she embraces on memorable interpretations of "Vida," "Correnteza," "Amor Sem Adeus," "Menina Flor," and "Perdido de Amor." However, Koorax is equally convincing when she sings in English on "The Gentle Rain," "Almost in Love," "Non-Stop to Brazil," and "Say Goodbye." Some Bonfá treasures have both Portuguese and English lyrics; two examples are the haunting "Manhã de Carnaval" and the charming "Samba de Orfeu," both from the 1959 Brazilian film The Black Orpheus. Koorax probably would have excelled on "Happy Samba" (the English-language version of "Samba de Orfeu") or "A Day in the Life of a Fool" (the English-language version of "Manhã de Carnaval"), but she chooses the Portuguese lyrics instead and gives first-rate performances. Although many of these songs are standards, Koorax also unearths some treasures that haven't been heard as often - "Empty Glass," for example, is a lesser-known ballad that was written for Peggy Lee in the '60s. From well-known standards to overlooked gems, this superb CD is among Koorax's finest accomplishments.