A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness

by Walter Wanderley, Astrud Gilberto

Overview

In 1966, the bossa nova craze was at a peak, and A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness marked a collaboration between two of its biggest stars -- vocalist Astrud Gilberto, brought to fame by her classic rendition of "The Girl from Ipanema," and organist Walter Wanderley. Even though the album is good, it is not as exciting as one might hope. While the music is remarkably innocent and sweet, with just a little underlying touch of sadness beneath the joyous, even naive, surface, Gilberto and Wanderley do not always seem to work together on these tracks -- it often appears as if each is performing in a universe of his or her own. That being said, there are many bright sides to the album, too: Wanderley's organ playing is as enthusiastic and fluffy as ever, while Gilberto's singing (in both English and Portuguese) remains smile-inducing. Both manage to create an incredibly warm sound, and when Wanderley plays some piano (as on the beautiful "A Certain Sadness"), you can sense a spark between the two. So, while A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness might not be the most successful album of all time, it is still a nice record that fans of either Gilberto or Wanderley will want to have. And -- even though one tends to use the word "cocktail lounge music" -- their rendition of "Tristeza" is simply irresistible, easy listening or not. ~ Christian Genzel

Product Details

Release Date:	04/28/2023
Label:	Universal
UPC:	4988031558119
Rank:	66267

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Astrud Gilberto   Primary Artist,Vocals
Walter Wanderley   Primary Artist,Organ,Piano
Walter Wanderley Trio   Primary Artist
Joao Gilberto   Guest Artist,Guitar
Claudio Slon   Drums
Jose Marino   Bass
Bobby Rosengarden   Percussion

Technical Credits

Sammy Fain   Composer
Marcos Valle   Composer
Norman Gimbel   Composer,Translation
Johnny Burke   Composer
Charles Stewart   Cover Photo
Chuck Stewart   Photography
Sung Lee   Design,Art Direction
Suzanne White   Design Coordinator
Tony Hatch   Composer
Paulo Sergio Valle   Composer
Terri Tierney   Production Coordination
Chuck Briefer   Liner Notes
Chris Herles   Mastering
Rubens Soares   Composer
Paulo Sergio   Composer
David Nasser   Composer
Roger Lucchesi   Composer
Hollis King   Art Direction
Cesar Portillo De La Luz   Composer
Isabelle Wong   Design
Deborah Hay   Text Editor
Niltinho   Composer
Dorival Caymmi   Composer
Kevin Reeves   Mastering
Irving Berlin   Composer
Creed Taylor   Producer
Carlos Lyra   Composer
Carlos Kase   Production Assistant
Dori Caymmi   Composer
Luiz Bonfa   Composer
Vinicius de Moraes   Composer
Walter Wanderley   Leader,Performer
Jerry Rappaport   Supervisor
Richard Seidel   Executive Producer
Val Valentin   Director of Engineering
Rudy Van Gelder   Engineer
James Van Heusen   Composer
Tom Greenwood   Production Coordination
Quincy Jones   Composer
Haroldo Lobo   Composer
Bryan Koniarz   Production Coordination
Harry Weinger   Reissue Supervisor
Cameron Mizell   Production Coordination
Andre Popp   Composer
Paul Francis Webster   Composer
Ben Young   Research,Restoration
Howard Greenfield   Composer
Edu Lobo   Composer
John Court   Composer