Nate Najar - Jazz Samba Pra Sempre (2022)

2022 marks 60 years of Jazz Samba - the landmark 1962 album by Charlie Byrd and Stan Getz that launched Bossa Nova to international stardom. Nate Najar pays homage to the spirit and iconic repertoire of Jazz Samba with Jazz Samba Pra Sempre (Jazz Samba Forever!), a loving “reimagining” of this seminal album. Playing Charlie Byrd’s own guitar, Najar is joined by Jeff Rupert on tenor sax, Herman Burney on bass (playing Keter Betts’ bass played on the original Jazz Samba) and Chuck Redd on drums (previously of the Charlie Byrd Trio) navigating the track list with equal parts reverence and invention. Brazilian vocalist Daniela Soledade guests on two tracks, Joao Gilberto’s O Pato and Ary Barroso’s É Luxo Só, with her own unmistakeable warmth and intimacy.