The Shadow Of Your Smile – ASTRUD GILBERTO****

The Shadow Of Your Smile/(Take Me To) Aruanda/Manha de Carnaval/Fly Me To The Moon/The Gentle Rain/ Non Stop To Brazil/O Ganso/Who Can I Turn To/Day By Day/Tristeza/Funny World

The second solo album from Brazilian vocalist Astrud Gilberto, The Shadow Of Your Smile, is more mainstream easy listening than her earlier bossa nova style material. (US:68)

"The Shadow Of Your Smile is a heavenly listening experience from the first note to the last, brimming with innocence, sadness and beauty. Particularly fascinating is the unity which the record manages to achieve. It mixes together then current American songs with a few by Brazilian masters Luiz Bonfa and Carlos Lyra. Somehow, it all fits together into one coherent whole, with each opposing influence synergistically complementing the rest."

"Lovely is one of those words foreigners use to describe something they think is wonderful but they don't really know about it. I personally have a love affair for Astrud's exotic and distantly beautiful voice. She will forever hold a special place in my heart."

"This is a good one, as Astrud breaks free of bossa nova typecasting and emerges as a full-fledged '60s songbird, with her near definitive version of The Shadow Of Your Smile. A special hybrid, she's neither a Brazilian nor an American singer, and not really an 'international' one either. Her wistful, amateur sound has worn extremely well however - it has the virtue of simplicity and honesty."

"Gilberto's voice is so cool and collected that it's hard to believe that she basically walked into the studio and cut these and her other classic tracks without any formal training. All the tracks here are worth a listen. My only complaint is that there weren't more of them, and that most of them don't run a little longer."

"Great easy listening with soothing and pretty female vocals. The songs are quite emotional, with a beautiful sadness to them that only the mid to late 60s could bring. Just fantastic."

"Some of the songs here are utterly confident and among the best Astrud ever recorded. Manha De Carnaval floors me with its beautiful guitar arrangement and simply wonderful unadorned vocals."