Aquarela do Brasil
Studio album by
Dionne Warwick
ReleasedOctober 18, 1994
Length91:05
LabelArista
ProducerTéo Lima
Dionne Warwick chronology
Friends Can Be Lovers
(1993)		 Aquarela do Brasil
(1994)		 Dionne Sings Dionne
(1998)
Singles from Aquarela do Brasil
  1. "Captives of the Heart"
    Released: 1994

Aquarela do Brasil is a studio album by American singer Dionne Warwick. It was released by Arista Records on October 18, 1994, in the United States. A collection of Brazilian jazz and pop tunes, ranging from bossa nova to samba, the album consists of original songs as well as several cover versions, including standards such as "Caravan" and its title track. Warwick paired herself with Téo Lima to produce the entire album which was recorded in Brazil and Los Angeles, involving help from Dori Caymmi, Oscar Castro-Neves, Brenda Russell, and Patrick Williams, among others.

Background

In 1993, Arista Records released Warwick's Friends Can Be Lovers, her tenth album with the label.[1] A commercial flop, it reached number 82 on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums only.[2] The same year, Warwick bought an old Spanishstyle castle in Bahia in the northeast of Brazil and began recording her next project, a collection of Brazilian jazz and pop tunes, with producer Téo Lima.[3] Unlike her previous project, which she "hated,"[4] Warwick enjoyed the album recordings for Aquarela do Brasil,[4] during which she was coached by her background singer Eliana Estevao in Portuguese pronunciation.[4] While the rhythm tracks and vocals were in finished in Brazil, Lima flew to Los Angeles where the strings, horns, and backgrounds were recorded and arrangers Dori Caymmi, Oscar Castro-Neves, Brenda Russell, and Patrick Williams joined the team.[4]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[5]
Rolling Stone Album Guide[6]

Allmusic wrote that "wisely downplaying the overexposed standards, Warwick sings, in both English and Portuguese, with just the right amount of swing and ease. The gorgeous title track is a sublime highlight, as is an intriguing cover of Juan Tizol and Duke Ellington's massively influential "Caravan." The arrangements are a little fussy at times, but overall, this is one of the best Brazilian crossover discs of its era."[5] The St. Louis Post-Dispatch called Aquarela do Brasil "Warwick's musical statement for the '90s. Who would have expected she could pull off such a diverse piece of work after making a career out of middle-of-the-road pop ballads [...]."[7] The Rolling Stone Album Guide found that Aquarela do Brasil turns Warwick "loose on an excellent, and apt, set of bossa nova tunes."[6]

Commercial performance

Aquarela do Brasil failed to chart or sell noticeably and became Warwick's first album since Love at First Sight (1977), her final album with Warner Bros. Records, to miss any Billboard chart.[2] Disappointed with its commercial performance, Warwick attributed its low sales to Arista Records' promotion team and label head Clive Davis' lack of support.[4] In her 2011 autobiography My Life, As I See It, Warwick wrote that she regretted not having played a larger part in the promotion of Aquarela do Brasil.[4] With Arista going through internal changes then, she left the label shortly after the release of the album, making it her final project with Davis.[4]

Track listing

All tracks produced by Teo Lima. Credits lifted from the liner notes of Aquarela do Brasil.[8]

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Jobim Medley"
5:52
2."Virou Areia"
  • Braulio Tavares
  • Dionne Warwick
  • Lenine
4:13
3."Oh Bahia"
5:25
4."Piano Na Mangueira"
  • Jobim
  • Buarque
2:48
5."Captives of the Heart"
4:48
6."Samba Dobrado"
4:22
7."Heart of Brazil"
4:37
8."Afrika"/"So Bashiya Bahlala Ekhaya"
3:48
9."Brazil (Aquarela Do Brasil)"
3:59
10."Caravan"
3:55
11."Flower of Bahia"
4:16
12."10,000 Words"
4:26
Déjà Vu – The Arista Recordings (2020) bonus tracks[9]
No.TitleLength
13."To Say Goodbye" (featuring Edu Lobo)4:20
14."Love Me"4:40
15."Lullaby"4:32
16."Bridges (Travessia)"4:11
17."Rainy Day Girl" (featuring Ivan Lins)4:13

Notes

References

  1. ↑ Waldron, Clarance (March 29, 1993). "Dionne Warwick Celebrates 30th Year in Music With Sizzling New Album". Jet. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
  2. 1 2 "Dionne Warwick Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
  3. ↑ "Drum: A Magazine of Africa for Africa". Drum. 1995. p. 85. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Warwick, Dionne; Freeman Wooley, David (2011). My Life, as I See It – An Autobiography. Atria Books. ISBN 978-1439171356.
  5. 1 2 "Aquarela do Brasil". AllMusic. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  6. 1 2 Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian David (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon and Schuster. p. 860. ISBN 9780743201698. Retrieved April 24, 2021. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  7. ↑ "Dionne does Brasil". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. January 5, 1995. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
  8. ↑ Aquarela do Brasil (booklet). Dionne Warwick. Arista Records. 1994.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  9. ↑ "Dionne Warwick: Déjà Vu – The Arista Recordings (1979–1994), 12CD Boxset". cherryred.co.uk. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
  10. ↑ "Tropical Love (EP)". iTunes (US). Retrieved April 21, 2021.
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