Bebel’s music always carries a charismatic tone, but now you can add ‘intimacy’ to your list for this, her fourth album. Recorded in the US, Brazil and Jamaica, her unique role as a femme fatale/Brazilian crooner comes via her familial birthright, her NYC birthplace and teen years in Rio de Janeiro. Whatever, because when she begins to sing, you can’t help but get caught up in it. With Daniel Jobim, Carlinhos Brown and Didi Gutman of the Brazilian Girls.

Brazilian Music Profile: Bebel Gilberto

Quotes

"There couldn’t be a more apropos title than the one Bebel Gilberto has given her fourth album. All in One is just that: the place where the singer, born in NYC to Brazilian royalty (dad is iconic guitarist João Gilberto, mom is singer Miúcha), puts all her eggs in one basket.

Gilberto could easily anoint herself keeper of the bossa nova flame and be done with it; when she keeps it simple and classic, as on the opening “Canção de Amor” and “Nossa Senhora” (both produced by Carlinhos Brown), no one swings so cool and sways so gently. But she’s never been a pure traditionalist: her comfort zone encompasses electronic spicing (Brazilian Girls’ Didi Gutman and Dust Brothers’ John King are among the other producers) as well as acoustic guitars, and All in One ups that ante. Stevie Wonder’s “The Real Thing,” produced by Mark Ronson and Tom Brenneck and one of several tunes sung in English (the others are in Portuguese), rocks out, and her take on the old Carmen Miranda staple “Chica Chica Boom Chic” borders on the surreal, like some lost Os Mutantes track.

Despite its disparate influences and multi-handed production approach, All in One never feels less than cohesive. Coated throughout in a romantic patina (credit Gilberto’s recent marriage), the record oozes warmth not only from the soft and sensual tracks (“Secret (Segredo),” “Far from the Sun”) but from the groovers (“The Real Thing”), too."

- The Phoenix

"Gilberto’s fourth album All In One is her debut album for Verve, which means she now shares a label with Diana Krall (who released her own take on the Anglo-Brazilian tradition earlier this year) and Melody Gardot (whose laidback vocals have a warmness not dissimilar to Gilberto’s). Like those artists, Gilberto delivers an album that seems designed for comfort and easy listening, featuring slow-to-medium tempo songs which are unchallenging but beguiling. All In One opens with ambient noises and the soft sound of a distinctively Brazilian guitar, Gilberto’s voice immediately velvety and inviting as she delivers a “canção de amor” (love song). A piano enters later, introducing a sound that is central to what will prove to be the softest of the singer’s albums."

- Popmatters.com

"Summer may have unofficially ended but listen to Bebel Gilberto's new album All In One and you'll preserve your sweet thoughts of summer all year long. All In One is mostly sung in Portuguese and like her previous work, Bebel offers the heart and soul of traditional Brazilian music with a twist of modern sounds. A fresh blend only a Gilberto knows how to serve best.

The exotic Brazilian singer enlisted an all-star team of collaborators to help make her vision a reality. Expect songs with Mark Ronson (Amy Winehouse), Didi Gutman (Brazilian Girls), Carlinhos Brown (Caetano Veloso), Daniel Jobim (grandson of Antonio Carlos Jobim), and John King (the Dust Brothers)."

- Sharinglemons.com

Introduction

Bebel Gilberto is in love. And the warmth and sweetness of that newfound romance can be felt throughout All In One, her seductive debut for Verve.

“I am really loved. I’m getting married. My future husband was also the sound engineer and executive producer, and he helped me a lot,” says the New York-born Brazilian vocalist. “I believe being loved helps a lot when you’re making music, especially when you’re making music with the person that you love. That I never had in my life. It was amazing.”

Known for her adventurous blends of Brazilian, European and electronic pop styles, Gilberto continues to blur musical boundaries on All In One. But the sensual rhythms of her native country dominate the production courtesy of Carlinhos Brown, Didi Gutman (Brazilian Girls), Mark Ronson, Daniel Jobim and John King of the acclaimed Dust Brothers. Some arrangements, particularly on “Far From the Sea,” “Port Antonio” and “Secret,” dazzle with sensitive instrumentation, folding in strings and woodwinds. Or they thump with irresistible beats.

Unlike her previous albums, All In One is a more personal endeavor. Most of the love songs are rendered beautifully in Portuguese, Bebel’s native language. Parts of the album were conceived, developed and recorded in Gilberto’s home studio. “That for sure made it more personal and technically more available for me,” the artist says. “You can always change and add.”

That suited Gilberto well, given that she prefers to record as the inspiration hits. “I only like to work whenever I want. It’s kind of difficult to get me in a room and get me writing, writing, writing,” she says. “I always like to write when songs come to my head. Unexpectedly, I get a song. I can be in a restaurant. I can be sleeping. I can be coming back from drinks. And I immediately record my ideas.

There’s no real method. I’m a totally, totally spontaneous artist, unpredictable. I’ve always been that way.” Yet the feel of All In One is romantic and fluid. Inspiration for the album came early this year while Gilberto was on vacation in Jamaica. She recorded a few tracks there with Didi Gutman and her longtime guitarist Masa Shimizu at the famed Geejam Studio in Port Antonio, Jamaica.

Although different producers contributed to All In One, the album maintains a cohesive feel throughout. But it was when Bebel went to Bahia to work with Carlinhos Brown that things really began to gel. Brown’s percussive-heavy arrangements, a hallmark of traditional Brazilian music, can be heard on “Chica Chica Boom Chic.” Brown especially shows his mastery of subtle Brazilian rhythms on “Canção de Amor” and “Nossa Senhora,” and the importance of his role in the project cannot be overstated.

Just before the album was complete, Gilberto met Mark Ronson, perhaps best known for his work with Amy Winehouse. He produced the Stevie Wonder-penned “The Real Thing,” a club-ready highlight on All In One. The Dap Kings, the dynamite band best known for supporting Sharon Jones and Winehouse, lay down the propulsive groove on “The Real Thing.”


“I love Stevie Wonder and with this song I had to explore a different way of singing. It sounds new and it sounds old. It’s timeless. It won’t be old in 10 years – hopefully,” she says with a chuckle.

In addition to silky originals, the album includes other imaginative covers, such as Bob Marley’s “Sun Is Shining” (produced by Didi Gutman and John King) and Carmen Miranda’s “Chica Chica Boom Chic” (produced by Didi Gutman, Carlinhos Brown and mixed by Mario Caldato). The latter song is Gilberto’s tribute to Miranda, the Brazilian legend of stage and screen who would have turned 100 this year.

Gilberto also remakes “Bim Bom,” a song first recorded by her father, bossa nova guitar great João Gilberto. It’s done as a duet with the song’s producer, Daniel Jobim, the grandson of bossa nova king Antônio Carlos Jobim.

The thoughtful artistry and sensitive vocal execution heard throughout All In One are culminations of a lifetime of performing. Music, the stage – it’s all in Gilberto’s blood. Her mother is also a well-regarded artist, the beloved Brazilian singer Miúcha. Gilberto’s parents remain her biggest influences. “My father’s guitar playing is like hearing an orchestra,” Gilberto says.

“From him, I learned all about music and what I want. I know exactly the chord changes I want, which instruments. I’m sure I learned this from my dad because of his intense guitar playing when I was a child. I woke up to his guitar. I went to sleep to his guitar. We didn’t live all the time together, but all the time I was with him it was all about the guitar.”