Céu e Mar

Leila Pinheiro has an amazing CV; over 30 years she has recorded 16 albums; she has collaborated with the likes of Tom Jobim, João Donato, Ivan Lins, Pat Metheny and Roberto Menescal; she’s toured Brazil, Europe, Asia and the US, where she performed at the Carnegie Hall; and she’s had gold records in Japan and her native Brazil. It’s fair to say she is more than overdue her first worldwide release, arriving in the shape of Céu e Mar, a sparse album in which her voice is complemented by guitarist Nelson Faria.

This is bossa nova in classic voz e violão style. Pinheiro’s voice rises effortlessly to the occasion with a studied performer’s knack for getting the tone of the song just right; she’s wise and purposeful on Gilberto Gil’s ‘Cada Tempo em Seu Lugar’; impassioned on Tom Jobim’s ‘Sucedeu Assim’; bouncy and full of vim for a bluesy rendition of ‘Bala Com Bala’ (made famous by Elis Regina). Nelson Faria adds adequate if underwhelming support that suffers slightly in the production. A warm acoustic guitar would have suited these songs far better than the muffled electric delivery we get. Céu e Mar is an album full of charm and great songs, with all the nuances you’d expect from such an established performer. It just lacks the inspiration that could have really projected Pinheiro onto the world as a great bossa nova singer.