Fortunately,
Walter Wanderley sticks mostly to Brazilian standards on
Batucada, and though his lounge-organ sound occasionally veers close to the edge where cool jazz becomes easy listening, the album is well-recorded. His organ is occasionally more reminiscent of a hockey rink accompanist than a jazz improviser, but he slips and slides around on the keys and employs an endearing and quintessentially Brazilian less-is-more approach. Brazilian mastermind
Marcos Valle guests on guitar, and percussion is well-handled by Paulinho,
Dom Um Romao, and Lu Lu Ferreira. Talya Ferro's vocals on "Wave" are solidly in a jazz vein, though rather transparently postured to captivate an American crossover audience. Obviously, an album like
Batucada isn't a prime example of Brazilian pop, but fans of
Wanderley's work on
Astrud Gilberto's
A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness will enjoy this as background music. ~ John Bush