Album review: Sergio Mendes - Magic

The artist's new album is a collaborative effort.

Magic by Sergio Mendes. Courtesy OKEH Records

Sergio Mendes

Magic

(OKeh)

Three stars

The Brazilian bossa nova king Sergio Mendes, next year's Abu Dhabi Festival headliner, returns with the new collaborative album, Magic. At 73, Mendes doesn't indulge in nostalgia, instead offering mostly new songs blending contemporary styles with Brazilian rhythms. Will.i.am produces the funky My, My, My, My Love, mixing electronic percussion with Mendes's hard-driving acoustic piano. John Legend chips in with his smooth R&B vocals on Don't Say Goodbye over Mendes's bossa nova arrangement, while Janelle Monáe easily adapts to the style with some airy vocals on Visions of You. Mendes's wife, the singer Gracinha Leporace, shines on a cover of Toninho Horta's When I Fell in Love, a percussive tribute to Brazil's African-influenced Bahia state. Milton Nascimento's trademark falsetto can be heard on a new playful take of his tune Olha a Rua, while the gravel-voiced Seu Jorge sings/speaks his way through Sou Eu, a samba track composed by Moacir Santos. Mendes wears many hats here – a pianist, vocalist, composer, bandleader and producer – yet adeptly weaves it all together in a release confirming his late-career revival.

* AP