Valle, Marcos: Samba '68 (Verve Vault) LP

Samba '68, released on Verve, introduced Brazilian singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Marcos Valle to a wider international audience. Already established in Brazil through songs such as “Samba de Verao” (“Summer Samba”), Valle worked here with producer Creed Taylor on a recording that pairs Brazilian rhythmic forms with contemporary American studio orchestration. The sessions include vocals by Anamaria Valle and arrangements by Eumir Deodato. The repertoire features English-language versions of compositions co-written by Valle, including “So Nice (Summer Samba),” “Chup Chup, I Got Away,” and “Safely in Your Arms,” alongside additional material that reflects his economical writing and feather-light rhythmic approach. The album documents a meeting point between Brazilian popular music and international pop-jazz studio practice at the end of the 1960s.