Search - Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66 :: Ye-Me-Le

A high energry treat from beginning to end

Gregg B. Holycross | Granger, IN USA | 01/16/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

""Ye-Me-Le" was almost a return to the original group sound heard on "Herb Alpert Presents" and "Equinox" and, in my opinion, is a much better album than its 2 predecessors, "Fool on the Hill" and "Crystal Illusion".



The album starts out with a bang with a cover of Glen Campbell's "Wichita Lineman" that puts the original to shame. Mendes follows this with a mind blowing cover of "Norwegian Wood". Very seldom does a cover of a Beatles song come even close to the original, but this one does. "Moanin'" and "Masquerade" are great high energy songs combining a touch of R&B with the bossa nova. The title song sounds like a Brazilian street carnival with the band approaching from a distance and then suddenly exploding right in front of you. This song is guaranteed to make anyone smile. The album finishes with a great cover of "What The World Needs Now".



This is indeed a group album with all members participating and orchestrations kept to a tolerable level. Mendes and company sound like they really enjoyed recording these songs and they are a treat to listen to."

This album is one of my desert island favorites.

J. Scott Edwards | Salt Lake City, Utah USA | 08/11/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have had a copy of Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66's Greatest Hits on vinyl since the early 70's and always enjoyed it. But I had never heard any of their other albums until I was in a used record store in the 80's and bought a used Ye-Me-Le LP on a whim. I absolutely fell in love with this album. "Masquerade" is now my favorite Sergio Mendes and Brasil '66 song. "Some Time Ago", "Moanin'", "Look Who's Mine", and "Ye-Me-Le" are all wonderful songs.



I usually don't go much for cover songs, Glen Campbell's "Witchita Lineman", the Beatles' "Norwegian Wood", and Three Dog Night's "Easy to be Hard" are among my favorite songs, but the cover versions on here are excellent renditions as well. I enjoy them as much as I enjoy the originals.



And finally, the version of "What the World Needs Now" on this album is perhaps not my favorite version the Bacharach/David tune, I still quite enjoy listening to it because of the unique treatment.



I waited for years for this album to come out on CD and I was so happy when it did. If you like Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66 you should definitely have this CD.

"

Dead center in the middle of the raod always equals bullseye

William R. Nicholas | Mahwah, NJ USA | 04/16/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"You have to hand it to Herb ALbert. He had increadible taste. Back in the late 60s there was not a bad band on the A&M roster, and boy, did he know how to pick them when it came to Sergio Mandez and Brizil '66.



On this album, all their albums, Brizil could make bad materiall great and great material even better. (Check out their version of "Can't take my eyes off you." They take Letterman tortured sap and turn it into a fantastic jazz piece ripe for FM radio.)



Here, the brilliant bossa bandits tackle higher end fair, such as "Witchita Lineman," and "Norwegian Wood." They remake and remodal this work, adding keybord solos, and brass.



It is usless and beside the point to compare Mendes' covers to the origionals. Mendes stokes the melodic elements of every song he

makes-this guy could cover Cradle Of Filth and it would be melodic- changes keys, and adds wonderful pollyrythms to otherwise maudlen



This music will bring tears to your eyes, but never through callowness or manipulation. The tender parts are so genuine, and the not so tender parts so melodcally strong, the songs work the emotions. But subtlely, tastefully. Just listen to "Some Time Ago" and you'll instinctively agree.



In a sense, if you have listened to one of the 60s A&M albums, you have the basic idea of all of them. Yet, you really should get all the albums. Sergio may play the same card each time out, but you know what? It ALWAYS works. You don't have to even think about how---just let your spine tingle.





I wonder how he would redeem Brittney Spears songs................"