Editorial Review:

Amazon.com essential recording:
Antonio Carlos Jobim--the Brazilian composer, arranger, singer, and pianist and one of the creators of bossa nova--left an extraordinary legacy when he died of heart failure in 1994 in New York at age 67. Many of his songs--including 'The Girl from Ipanema,' 'Chega de Saudade' ('No More Blues'), 'Samba de Uma Nota So' ('One-Note Samba'), 'Corcovado' ('Quiet Nights'), and 'Insensatez' ('How Insensitive')--were not only hits in their day, but have become part of the American pop-music canon. Often easy on the ear, this is music of deceptive simplicity. In fact, a closer listening reveals sophisticated miniatures full of subtle power and grace, combining poetic lyrics, willfully naive melodies, and cool-jazz harmonies played to highly stylized, oblique variations of the samba beat. Packaged like a spiral notebook, this three-disc set, while neither complete nor definitive, offers useful, intriguing insights into the man and his music. The notes include a biography and interviews with Jobim, producer Creed Taylor, and arranger and producer Oscar Castro Neves. Musically, the 55-song collection is organized in three parts: a disc of vocal performances (revisiting classics such as Jobim's duet with Elis Regina in 'Aguas de Marco'), a disc of instrumental versions, and a volume featuring several readings, by different groups, of some of Jobim's best-known works. Even after countless lounge cover versions, even after countless soul-deadening arrangements for background music in dentist offices, supermarkets, and elevators seemingly the world over, Jobim's work remains a pop rarity: a music of beauty, substance, and intelligence that rewards repeated listening. --Fernando Gonzalez

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Disc 1:

1. Passarim
2. So Danco Samba (Jazz Samba)
3. Aguas De Marco (Waters Of March)
4. Amor Em Paz (Once I Loved)
5. Lamento
6. Luiza
7. Chovendo Na Roseira (AKA Double Rainbow ...)
8. Anos Dourados (Looks Like December)
9. O Grande Amor
10. Agua De Beber
11. Modinha
12. Borzeguim
13. Soneto Da Separacao
14. Gabriela
15. Retrato Em Branco E Preto (Portrait In Black...)
16. Dindi
17. Inutil Paisagem (Useless Landscape)
18. Photograph
19. Chansong
20. Meditation
21. O Que Tinha De Ser
22. O Morro Nao Tem Vez (AKA Favela)
23. Bonita

Disc 2:

1. Wave
2. Tide
3. Amor Em Paz (Once I Loved)
4. Chega De Saudade (No More Blues)
5. Sue Ann
6. Samba De Uma Nota So (One Note Samba)
7. Mojave
8. O Morro Nao Tem Vez (AKA Favela)
9. Tema Jazz
10. Meditation
11. Triste
12. Agua De Beber
13. So Danca Samba (Jazz Samba)
14. Captain Bacardi
15. O Morro Nao Tem Vez (AKA Favela)

Disc 3:

1. Desafinado (Off Key)
2. Desafinado
3. Desafinado
4. The Girl From Ipanema
5. The Girl From Ipanema
6. The Girl From Ipanema
7. The Girl From Ipanema
8. Corcovado (Quiet Nights Of Quiet Stars)
9. Corcovado
10. Corcovado
11. Insensatez (How Insensitive)
12. Insensatez
13. Insensatez
14. Insensatez
15. Vivo Sonhando (Dreamer)
16. Vivo Sonhando
17. Vivo Sonhando

Rating: - Everything you'll ever need from Jobim is here and more...
This was my first Antonio Carlos Jobim album, in fact it was my first real Bossa Nova album (its not exactly an album, but my first Brazilian Jazz CD anyhow). After this one I've heard and bought some other Bossa Nova albums by the Gilberto pair and Jobim himself only to find out that most of the songs were already present in this collection.
Let me tell you one thing, this collection is a must if you like this genre. If you're a hardcore fan, you'll surely want more, but this contains all the essencials from Jobim and Joao Gilberto, and much much more.
The first disc is simply the "big hits" (if it may be called so) of Jobim and company (featuring Stan Getz on many).
The second disc has the best cuts of Jobim's solo works "Tide" and "Wave". I've bought both seperately, they are both amazing, and this one simply has the finest cuts out of them. These cuts are so beautiful and emotional that surely words cannot express them. The former reviewer who said this disc was nice listening to while doing some housework hasn't obviously given this any serious listening.
The third disc has many rare versions of famous Jobim works, and in addition to that some of those works in their original forms such as Desafinado, Corcovado and Vivo Sonhando. I believe this disc would be of most interest to serious fans of the genre.
All in all, this is a great collection, and should be sufficient for most people since it really captivates the best moments of Jobim in particular and Bossa Nova in general.
A best buy in my opinion for anyone who likes this genre, ranging from amatuer to serious listeners.

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Rating: - AMAZING
The organization of this set was really nice. The inside essays and track notes were awesome. I enjoyed hearing different versions of songs. This is an essential for any Jobim/bossa nova fan!!!

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Rating: - Antonio Carlos Brasileiro de Almeida Jobim - romantic Master
This compilation and the care with which it was put together by Oscar Castro-Neves, himself one of the finest Bossa Nova/Samba masters alive, is a joy. The interviews and photographs, provided by Creed Taylor, Gene Lees, and Ana Lentra Jobim are delightful, as is the spiral-bound booklet which is presented in Brazilian motif. In a 3 CD compilation of an entire career such as this, there are bound to be tracks that not everyone likes. I have read where some listeners are put off by the way in which Castro-Neves presents tracks of the same song over different periods and artists in a 'back-to-back(-to-back') segue - indeed, a few of the Astrud Gilberto tracks sound to me like chalk on a blackboard coming on the heels of such a master singer as Elis Regina - however, I find the contrast to be enlightening as well as entertaining. I am also willing to bet that even the greatest lovers of Jobim find a moment or two on this compilation which they have not yet heard, or have perhaps forgotten..and it will be worth the price of admission, which I grant may be a bit steep for some. The "Aguas de Marco" out-takes at the conclusion of Disc 3 are, along with the gorgeous booklet and sleeves, in my opinion, worth the price of the 3 CD package. You will be taken on a Jobim ride throughout: from the Getz/Gilberto session all the way up until Jobim, alone with Pat Matheny, live. Even if you only find two-thirds of the tracks to your liking, this is a loving tribute to a musical genious who certainly deserves every bit of it.

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Rating: - True classic
This CD set is simply a must for any dicophile. If you have at list 3 CDs and do not have these 3, you are missing on some of most intelligent, simple, emotional, swinging, cool, hot, you-name-it latino music ever written. Period.

I especially liked the different recordings and interpretations in CD 3. Not to mention the "bonus" at the end of the last track on the same CD. The bonus is some "dry" studio recordings of Águas de Março. If there wasn't for 'retransfer' of analogue tape, I'd swear that the girl was sitting right next to me.

Recordings and mixing is different on each track (after all, it's a compilation), but you can hear which have been recorded with the same team. Some tracks are "extreme stereo", which was popular in the early days of "stereo", therefore there is not much sense of real space around performers. But that's a 'trade mark' of the old style. If you want audiophile grade stuff, buy Ana Caram recordings from Chesky records.

A true classic, that makes my eyes wet every time. Thank you, Jobim.

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Rating: - Simply the Greatest man from Bossa tunes
I am simply glad for being allowed to write about this compilation CD, the greatest stuff in the Bossa Nova years can be found in this collection. For most of the collectors might be just a simple Bossa Nova compilation, but if you try to see through the booklet you'll find something more than a simple piece of the greatest Bossa Nova Master... just leave your soul taken over by the beat...