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Paul Desmond's first genuine all-Brazilian album under the Creed Taylor signature was a beauty, a collection of songs by the then-moderately known Edu Lobo and the emerging giant Milton Nascimento, then only in his early twenties. All Desmond has to do is sit back and ride the Brazilian grooves while lyrically ruminating on whatever pops into his head. It sounds so effortless -- until you try it yourself. The swirling, often gorgeous orchestral arrangements are by Don Sebesky (one CD edition mistakenly gives Claus Ogermann credit on the cover), Airto Moreira leads the samba-flavored percussion forces, and Lobo and his wife Wanda de Sah appear on three of Lobo's four songs. Lobo's "To Say Goodbye," "Circles," and "Martha and Romao" have exactly the brand of wistful sadness that Desmond could communicate so well; on the former, de Sah has to sing well below the register with which she is comfortable, and the strain is painfully obvious. Some of Nascimento's best early tunes are here, including the tense title track, the popping "Catavento," and "Canto Latino." "Catavento" inspires a particularly inventive solo from Desmond where he pulls out one of his age-old tricks, quoting "St. Thomas." The recent Verve By Request edition adds no less than six alternate takes to the package. - by Richard S. Ginell, AMG

All the featured performances are excellent, Paul Desmond's playing is superb, taking a little more of a back seat, but with some beautiful, memorable phrasing. Not mentioned in other reviews are three vocal tracks featuring Wanda de Sa, "To Say Goodbye", "Circles" and "Crystal Illusions". In "To Say Goodbye", she was forced by the recording schedule and low register of the instrumental part to sing well below her normal register, producing a striking and sultry version of this song, a must-have for her fans. Edu Lobo may not be Jobim, but "Crystal Illusions" is perhaps his best known work. He performs on the track and Wanda (his wife) sings it beautifully. The swirling '70s orchestation suits the song very well, the edgy chord shifts provide Paul with a challenging backdrop for his solos; this is probably my favourite version. This is an easy listening classic which is head and shoulders above others in the genre and has the power to move you with some exceptional performances by several icons of jazz and the '60s "Bossa" sound. - by Ricardo, Amazon.com

Tracks:
01] Outubro (October)
02] Gira Girou (Round 'n' Round)
03] Faithful Brother
04] To Say Goodbye
05] From The Hot Afternoon
06] Circles
07] Martha & Romao
08] Catavento
09] Canto Latino (Latin Chant)
10] Crystal Illusions
11] Gira Girou (Round 'n' Round) (Alternative Take)
12] Faithful Brother (Alternative Take)
13] From The Hot Afternoon (Alternative Take)
14] Catavento (Alternative Take)
15] Canto Latino (Latin Chant) (Alternative Take)
16] From The Hot Afternoon (Alternative Take)

Personnel:
Paul Desmond (Alto Saxophone)
Patrick Rebillot (Piano and Elelctric Piano)
Dorio Ferreira (Guitar) - 1-5,8,9,11-16
Edu Lobo (Guitar and Vocal) - 6,7,10
Ron Carter (Double Bass)
Airto Moreira (Drums and Percussion)
Don Sebesky (Arrenger and Conductor)
Wanda De Sah (Vocal) - 4,6,10
Marky Markowitz (Trumpet)
Marvin Stamm (Trumpet and Flugelhorn)
Paul Faulise (Bass Trombone)
Jimmy Buffington (French Horn)
Don Hammond (Flute)
Hubert Laws (Flute)
Stan Webb Jr. (Flute and Percussion)
Phil Bodner (Saxes, Clarinet and Oboe)
George Marge (Saxes, Clarinet and Oboe)
Margaret Ross (Harp)
Jack Jennings (Percussion)
with strings