Bossa Nova Stories

The music of Eliane Elias is deeply harmonic and sensual. At its heart is utterly superb jazz piano - rhythmic, gently propulsive and essentially (though not overtly) Brazilian. Elias infuses her sonorous, vibrant playing with some pleasingly melodic, whispery-delicate vocals - always pitch-perfectly complementing her sumptuous piano verve.

'Bossa Nova Stories' combines loving interpretations of Brazilian jazz classics with some popular American standards, all quality-assured by the formidable rhythm section of top-level bassist Marc Johnson (her husband) and percussionist Paulo Braga. About half the tracks are enriched by subtle orchestral arrangements conducted by Rob Mathes - reminiscent to me of those that embellish Diana Krall's 'The Look of Love'.

'Bossa Nova Stories' is essential listening to all who like, or certainly who love, Brazilian jazz. Track no 6, 'Estate (Summer'), can only be described as sublime - one of the most exquisite of jazz-samba...Read more

"I grew up in Sao Paulo in the 60s hearing the Bossa Nova. It was all around us. This was the popular music of our day, with its infectious rhythm and poetic lyrics; romantic, cool, jazzy, sensuous, sublime. I lived and breathed this music. It's in my DNA." ~ Eliane Elias ~

I have enjoyed Bossa Nova music as far back as I can remember. How I love its enthralling sounds. About four years ago, while I was searching at Amazon for some new Bossa Nova albums that would appeal to my ears, I came across Dreamer and after listening to snippets, I was pleased with what I heard and immediately placed my order on "one-click." And that was my first exposure to Eliane Elias. That album triggered me to explore her discography and have since added to my collection...Read more

After Something For You, the very nice tribute album to Bill Evans, Eliane Elias releases Bossa Nova Stories, another all-singing album resembling the concept of Dreamer (actually Dreamer contains a very touching instrumental version of A House Is Not A Home as the closing track). Not all the tracks are Bossa Nova tunes but they are interpreted in such a style.

Her singing is surely in top form, but the music lacks the magic slightly as compared to Dreamer. One of the reasons may be that the jazz trio element has been suppressed. Meanwhile, Elaine Elias' idiosyncratic "Merry-Go-Round" type solo lines are mostly missing. While she redoes a number of Jobim tunes in this album, the results are not as tasteful as her previous attempts. Take Chega de Saudade for example, the treatment is much fresher in her earlier album Three Americas.

Listeners who would like to experience the best singing of Eliane Elias, I strongly recommend Dreamer (check comments from the...Read more