Bossa Nova

The movie Black Orpheus was a samba and bossa nova phenomenom when it came out in the late 1960s. For years, my "morning tape" started my day with "Manha de Carnaval", the breakout hit from the movie. It's easy to understand why the haunting song, literally translated as "Carnaval Morning" captivated the world; it's less easy to understand why, when translated into English, the tune became "A Day in the Life of a Fool".

Black Orpheus and the Jobim hit "The Girl From Ipanema" hallmarked the beginning of the bossa nova craze outside of Brazil. Interestingly, today bossa nova is more popular outside of Brazil than in the country itself.