Search - Maria Bethânia :: Mel

Honey indeed

Antonio M Vazquezpausa | Miami, Fl United States | 02/15/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It's late 1979.Your multimillionseller Alibi has been on the charts for months while the show supporting it has been a smash as well.What do you do to keep riding this high wave of success?You team up with the same songwriters that generated the gems from the previous LP.You see them through and interpret them like no one else.That is what Maria Bethania did upon begetting Mel.The album starts off with Caetano Veloso's title track and follows with Caetano's love song Ela e Eu.The word Honey(mel)is a recurring theme throughout the record and often equated with passion and sex.Bethania championed then-new songwriter Angela RoRo by including the intense Gota de Sangue and topped the singles charts with Gonzaguinha's Grito de Alerta which to this day is one of her signature songs.Chico Buarque is represented with Amando sobre os jornais(Loving among the newspapers)a tale of two lovers copulating out in the country.The album closes with Caetano's ode to a waterfall in which Bethania gets to sing about his memories of her near the water,Queda d'Agua.Overall,a gem of Brazilian popular music."

Excelente

Jorge Velasco Cruz | Santiago, Chile | 10/10/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"¡Una delicia! Un gran álbum. Si bien al principio no me gustaba mucho, con el tiempo supe apreciarlo. Maria Bethania demuestra aquí que es una gran intérprete, versátil, capaz de darle un tono triste o alegre a una canción según sea el caso. Grandes canciones, grandes melodías, grandes arreglos y notables músicos de acompañamiento.Mel asoma como un clásico de Maria Bethania y de la Música Brasileña."

Bethania at the peak of her powers

Joe Sixpack -- Slipcue.com | ...in Middle America | 01/05/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"A great studio album, similar to 1978's beautifully-produced "Alibi." Very slick and technique-heavy, but pleasant and engaging. Some interesting choices for instrumentation, including pedal steel guitar. Admittedly, the popping bass and drifting keyboards come straight out of the '70s AOR handbook, but they are balanced by tasteful post-bossa woodwinds and an upbeat string section, none of which interferes with her lovely vocals. Sounds like she's smiling the whole time she's singing, a sensation which becomes infectious. Highly recommended."