The In Crowd

When I first started playing Timeless, the recently released CD of Sergio Mendes samba and bossa nova classics remixed by Black Eyed Peas producer Will.i.am, my immediate thought was, "I'd much rather be listening to the originals."

But in this day and age of reengineering and remakes, if it takes adding hip hop beats and guest raps and singing by the likes of Q-Tip, Stevie Wonder, Jill Scott, John Legend, Erykah Badu, Justin Timberlake, Pharoahe Monch, Chali 2na, Black Thought (of The Roots) and others to expose younger and less open-minded listeners to the sensual genius and perfection of Mendes' music, who am I to fight it? Learn more:

"Sergio Mendes is one of the most enduring artists to hail from musically and culturally rich Brazil. His signature blending of Brazilian music with American pop—as epitomized by his Brazil ’66 band and such mega-hits as “Mas Que Nada”—have made him one of the most popular and beloved Brazilian artists of all time.

Time and time again, Mendes has proven that creative innovation and musical accessibility needn’t be mutually exclusive. Rather, they can blend artfully in a celebratory musical style that invites everyone to the party. Speaking of innovation and inclusiveness, if there’s anyone knows how make music that will get a party started it’s Black Eyed Peas’s refreshingly eclectic mastermind/rapper/producer Will.i.am.

Melding Sergio Mendes’s classic, infectious mix of Brazilian bossa nova and samba rhythms, jazz, and pop music with the fresh-as-tomorrow, modern hip-hop production flavor of will.i.am, this constantly grooving mix of classic and modern sounds is—in a word—Timeless." (Click here for more)

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Click here for a fuller Sergio Mendes bio.