Ithamara Koorax - Autumn In New York

Styles: Vocal
Year: 2004
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 71:09
Size: 163,1 MB
Art: Front

(6:55)  1. I Fall In Love Too Easily
(6:28)  2. Walking Down The Street
(9:01)  3. Autumn In New York
(7:14)  4. You Were Born To Be Mine
(6:24)  5. She Was Too Good To Me
(8:08)  6. How Insensitive
(4:33)  7. Unisphere
(8:17)  8. You Don't Know What Love Is
(6:39)  9. Goodbye
(7:27) 10. You Were Born To Be Mine

Ithamara Koorax has a beautiful voice and a wide range. She often emphasizes long tones on this set, picking the best note for the right moment and holding it. The music alternates between heartfelt slow ballads and a more medium-tempo pace, with Koorax's haunting voice usually in the forefront. The trio is excellent, pianist Jurgen Friedrich has many short solos, and the repertoire is strong. This Japanese release has an alternate version of Jobim's "You Were Born to Be Mine" at the set's conclusion. Highlights include a slow "I Fall in Love Too Easily," the happy "Walking Down the Street," Dave Brubeck's "Unisphere," and a coolly emotional "Goodbye." Ithamara Koorax deserves to be much better known, for she has a sound of her own. ~Scott Yanow https://www.allmusic.com/album/autumn-in-new-york-mw0001374909

Autumn In New York

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Ithamara Koorax - Rio vermelho

Styles: Vocal
Year: 1996
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 67:37
Size: 155,4 MB
Art: Front

(3:50)  1. Sonho de um sonho
(5:38)  2. Retrato em branco e preto
(6:41)  3. Correnteza
(4:54)  4. Preciso aprender a ser so
(5:26)  5. Tudo acabado
(3:48)  6. Ternura antiga
(4:27)  7. Nao sei
(3:37)  8. E preciso dizer adeus
(6:06)  9. Cry me a river
(7:05) 10. India
(3:44) 11. Rio vermelho
(8:14) 12. Se queres saber
(4:02) 13. Empty glass

Any American who is seriously into Brazilian music knows that he/she cannot rely on U.S. labels alone; it is important to look for CDs that come out on Brazilian labels but make it to the U.S. as imports. Ithamara Koorax is a perfect example of a Brazilian pop-jazz vocalist who was well-known in Brazil before she had any North American releases. Although she didn't have anything out in the U.S. until Fantasy licensed Serenade in Blue from Brazil's Jazz Station label in 2000, she had provided several excellent albums for Brazilian and Japanese labels in the '90s. One of them was 1995's Rio Vermelho, which came out on Imagem in Brazil and Paddle Wheel in Japan. Emphasizing ballads, this pop-jazz effort is a fine example of Brazilian torch singing Rio Vermelho is mood music with a very Rio de Janeiro-ish sound. Rio de Janeiro, in fact, is where percussionist/arranger Arnaldo DeSouteiro produced this CD. Saying that Rio Vermelho is mood music isn't saying that Koorax's performances should fade into the background quietly she brings so much soul, depth, and emotion to the lyrics (most of them in Portuguese) that listeners would be doing themselves a disservice if they didn't turn up the volume and pay very close attention. And all of the songs that Koorax picks are perfect for a torch album, including Antonio Carlos Jobim's "É Preciso Dizer Adeus," the title track (a Milton Nascimento gem), and Arthur Hamilton's "Cry Me a River." The latter is one of only two English-language performances on this CD; the other is Luiz Bonfá's "Empty Glass," which also appears on Koorax's superb Bonfá tribute, Almost in Love: Ithamara Koorax Sings Luiz Bonfá. But whether she is singing in Portuguese or English, Rio Vermelho is a first-rate torch album. ~ Alex Henderson https://www.allmusic.com/album/rio-vermelho-mw0000538470

Personnel:  Bass – Jamil Joanes, Ron Carter;  Clarinet – Paulo Sergio Santos;  Drums – Pascoal Meirelles;  Flute – Carlos Malta;  Guitar – Luiz Bonfá, Maurício Carrilho;  Lead Vocals – Ithamara Koorax;  Piano – Antonio Carlos Jobim;  Piano, Synthesizer – Paulo Malaguti;  saxophone – Carlos Malta, Daniel Garcia (9), Sadao Watanabe

Rio vermelho

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Ithamara Koorax - Brazilian Butterfly

Styles: Vocal, Brazilian Jazz
Year: 2006
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 79:38
Size: 185,7 MB
Art: Front

( 8:24)  1. O Vento
( 6:38)  2. Escravos De Jo
(10:23)  3. Amor Em Jacuma
( 6:06)  4. Lamento Negro
( 6:45)  5. Butterfly
( 6:29)  6. Fica Mal Com Deus
( 8:49)  7. Noite De Temporal
( 4:11)  8. A Lenda Do Abaete
( 5:52)  9. Coco Penerue
( 7:05) 10. Carinhoso
( 8:52) 11. Frenetico

Except for two ballads the cosmopolitan "Carinhoso with her Brazilian jazz fusion compatriots Azymuth, and Herbie Hancock's title track Ithamara Koorax's ninth album is her most adventurous release. It seems constructed to honor legendary Brazilian vocalist Flora Purim and her husband/bandleader/percussionist Airto. This Brazilian Butterfly soars and flutters while multiple percussionists (often as many as four on the same song, most often led by the late and legendary Dom Um Romão, with Koorax frequently flailing away among them) knit together, pull apart, then reweave hot thick blankets of Brazilian rhythm. Romão's "Amor Em Jacuma occasions an international jazz jam as Ron Carter's thoroughly upright acoustic bass and Cuban pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba's roiling piano set table for a solo helping of meaty trombone from Raul de Souza of Brazil. Pianist Francesco Gazzara lovingly renders Hancock's title tune, especially in his solo, which builds up chords then reconsiders their construction in equal parts musical architecture and alchemy. Koorax breathes her most romantic vocal, and it's hard to imagine that many mortals can resist her languid invitation to "Stay awhile... which just seems to float throughout the air forever, like... a Brazilian butterfly.  

The remaining material seems specifically composed and arranged to stress test Koorax's four-octave range. She swings joyously from the framework of Milton Nascimento's "Escravos de Jo, a melodic abstraction airy and inscrutable not packed full but no less complex as Joni Mitchell's Shadows & Light collaborations with Pat Metheny and Jaco Pastorius. Her voice soars above the Afro-macumba chant "Lamento Negro and streams bright as dawn to open "Fica Mal Com Deus, then completely changes tone and color by digging into the low notes with the growling fury of a blasting trumpet. The opening "O Vento and closing "Frenetico drive Koorax's Brazilian journey further into outer space: Her voice intricately navigates the thorny, shimmering thicket of electric piano and four percussionists in "O Vento and hangs in "Frenetico, where the background frame of congas, bass drum and cymbal (not her voice) emerges as the lead instruments. Each is an excellent vehicle for discovering, then remembering, that Brazilian Butterfly is Koorax's most fertile adventure in exploring the boundaries of contemporary Brazilian vocal music. ~ Chris M.Slawecki https://www.allaboutjazz.com/brazilian-butterfly-ithamara-koorax-irma-molto-jazz-review-by-chris-m-slawecki.php

Personnel: Ithamara Koorax (vocals, percussion); Eloir de Moraes (vocals, rap vocals, bass drum, cymbals, percussion); Thiago de Mello (vocals, acoustic guitar, berimbau, piano, percussion); Dom Um Romao (vocals, drums, percussion); Nelson Angelo (guitar, acoustic guitar); Francesco Gazzara (guitar, nylon-string guitar, piano, electric piano, Fender Rhodes piano, keyboards); José Ramos (flute, baritone saxophone); Carlos Malta (bass flute); Raul de Souza (trombone); Carlos Fuchs, Gonzalo Rubalcaba (piano); José Roberto Bertrami (electric piano, Fender Rhodes piano, keyboards); Paula Faour (electric piano, keyboards); Manuel Gusmao, Massimo Sanna (acoustic bass); Jorge Pescara (electric bass, fretless bass); Alex Malheiros (electric bass); Ivan Conti (drums); Marcelo Salazar (congas, bongos, percussion); Sidinho Moreira (bongos, percussion); Mauro Mirti, Eduardo Piloto Barretto, Jadir de Castro, Gaudencio Thiago De Mello, Laudir DeOliveira, Arnaldo DeSouteiro (percussion).

Brazilian Butterfly

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Ithamara Koorax - Love Dance - The Ballad Album

Styles: Vocal Jazz
Year: 2002
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 53:41
Size: 124,9 MB
Art: Front

(5:15)  1. Ligia
(2:17)  2. I loved you
(7:21)  3. Love Dance
(4:15)  4. La Puerta
(9:54)  5. Man Alone
(5:36)  6. Amparo
(4:20)  7. Someday
(4:58)  8. Flame
(2:12)  9. April in Paris
(7:30) 10. Blauauge

Ithamara Koorax has released several albums in Brazil and Japan, but Love Dance is only the second US album for this star from Rio, the follow-up to her debut Serenade in Blue. With her unmistakable voice, Koorax sings English, Portuguese, and Spanish love songs composed by such masters as Antonio Carlos Jobim, Luiz Bonfá, Marcos Valle and Ivan Lins, plus songs by Claus Ogerman and Jurgen Friedrich (in German). Her voice manifests this diversity to its advantage: Koorax does not sound like a Brazilian singer or an American singer or a jazz singer or a pop or Latin singer. She sounds like she can sing just about anything. Subtitle this set “The Dedication Album”: the soothing and seductive opening version of Jobim’s “Ligia” is dedicated to Stanley Turrentine; “Man Alone” to Jimmy Scott; “Blauauge,” a duet with composer Friedrich on piano, to Art Farmer; and the title track to Mark Murphy (whose 1988 Milestone session, September Ballads, inspired this Dance ). With "Love Dance," performed with Azymuth, Koorax transforms one of Brazilian composer Ivan Lins’ finest moments into one of her own finest moments, too. 

She sails with this smooth fusion band, letting the last few notes of a phrase throatily fade in a husky whisper (like Stan Getz on sax), sharpening and rounding notes’ edges, then exploding like brilliant sunlight to close. Love Dance also features John McLaughlin’s first date supporting a vocalist (“Man Alone”) and album notes by Ira Gitler, neither honor a small one. ~ Chris M.Slawecki https://www.allaboutjazz.com/love-dance-the-ballad-album-ithamara-koorax-fantasy-jazz-review-by-chris-m-slawecki.php

Personnel: Personnel: Ithamara Koorax (vocals); Nelson Angelo (acoustic guitar, piano); Luiz Bonfá (acoustic guitar); John McLaughlin (electric guitar); Jose Carlos Ramos (flute); Juarez Araújo (clarinet); Mario Castro-Neves (piano, keyboards); Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Jurgen Friedrich (piano); Marcos Valle (keyboards); Manuel Gusmao, Sergio Barroso (acoustic bass); Jorjao Carvalho, Alex Malheiros (electric bass); Jorge Pescara (fretless bass); Cesar Machado, Ivan Conti, Joao Palma (drums); Sidinho Moreira, Dom Um Romao, Arnaldo DeSouteiro (percussion).

Love Dance - The Ballad Album

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Ithamara Koorax - Got To Be Real

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 59:21

Size: 135.9 MB

Styles: Jazz vocals

Year: 2013

Art: Front

[4:49] 1. Got To Be Real

[3:16] 2. Up, Up And Away

[5:11] 3. Never Can Say Goodbye

[3:11] 4. Goin' Out Of My Head

[5:32] 5. Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You

[5:06] 6. Butterfly

[3:19] 7. I Get A Kick Out Of You

[5:38] 8. Toque De Cuica

[4:12] 9. Negue

[2:13] 10. My Favourite Things

[4:35] 11. Ho-Ba-La-La

[4:47] 12. Pigmaliao

[4:07] 13. Vesti Azul

[3:18] 14. Got To Be Real (Radio Mix)

Jose Roberto Bertrami – organs, Rhodes, synthesizer, Jorge Pescara – bass, Haroldo Jobim – drums, Arnaldo DeSouteiro – percussion, Sidinho Moreira – percussion, Paulo Fernando Marcondes Ferraz – percussion, Marcelo Martins – tenor sax, Jesse Sadoc – trumpet, Aldivas Ayres - trombone

The song selection and the effective use of the synthesizer on Ithamara Koorax new release Got to be real gives the album a vintage 70s feel. The first half of the album starting with the slow, sexy, smooth jazz arrangement of this Disco hit "Got to be real" has a that distinct fusion jazz sound. Koorax displays her amazing range and sultry, sexy voice all throughout the album and even though all the musicians do a great job on Got to be real, Koorax and her voice are the stars here, especially on the bossa nova arrangements of "Up, up an away", and "Going out of my head".

On the second half of the album, Koorax goes into her brazilian roots in the samba "Toque de cuica", the sublime interpretation of Joao Gilberto "Ho ba la la", and the beautiful ballad "Negue". But two of the highlights of the album are Cole Porter "I get a kick out of you", where Koorax demonstrates she is a true jazz singer capable of swinging with the best, and on the ingenious samba arrangement of "My Favorite Things". On the eclectic blend of styles on Got to be real (bossa nova, samba, jazz, mpb, smooth and fusion jazz) Koorax shows once again why she is recognized as one of the best female jazz singers in recent years. ~Wilbert Sostre

Got To Be Real

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Ithamara Koorax & Juarez Moreira - Bim Bom: The Complete Joao Gilberto Songbook

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s

Time: 40:54

Size: 93.6 MB

Styles: Brazilian jazz, Bossa Nova

Year: 2009

Art: Front

[2:16] 1. Bim Bom

[4:57] 2. Hô-Bá-Lá-Lá

[4:07] 3. Forgotten Places

[2:26] 4. Minha Saudade

[3:04] 5. Você Esteve Com Meu Bem

[4:29] 6. Valsa (Bebel)

[2:52] 7. An Embrace To Bonfá

[2:22] 8. Glass Beads

[2:18] 9. João Marcelo

[5:08] 10. Undiu

[3:03] 11. Acapulco

[3:46] 12. Hô-Bá-Lá-Lá

Though guitarist and vocalist João Gilberto is acknowledged as the father of bossa nova, the song—“Chega de Saudade”—with which he ignited what would become a global bossa craze was created not by Gilberto, but by Antonio Carlos Jobim and Vinicius de Morares. On the flip side of Gilberto’s 1958 recording of “Chega de Saudade” was his own “Bim Bom” (inspired by a passing gaggle of washerwomen).

So it can be considered near-equally seminal—and it is with “Bim Bom” that vocalist Ithamara Koorax and guitarist Juarez Moreira open this first-ever complete collection of Gilberto’s compositions. They number a mere 11, written across two decades between the early ’50s and early ’70s. Yet together they capture a vital slice of Brazilian jazz history, defining a visionary genius who, as producer (and longtime intimate of the reclusive Gilberto) Arnaldo DeSouteiro notes, “inspired a complete revolution in Brazilian music, in terms of rhythm, melody and harmony.” Paying absolute respect to Gilberto, DeSouteiro was meticulous with regard to tempos and keys as he guided Koorax and Moreira through these 12 tracks (the 12th an English-language version of “Hô-Bá-Lá-Lá” crafted for Sylvia Telles in 1960).

Koorax, arguably Brazil’s finest contemporary jazz vocalist, and Moreira, a guitarist who can fairly be recognized as the João Gilberto of his generation, respond in kind. A better trio to pay such beautiful and integral homage to Gilberto could not likely be assembled. Bim Bom is not only an album of gloriously elegant reverence but also a recording of essential importance. ~Christopher Loudon

Bim Bom

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