Mendes is married to Gracinha Leporace who regularly performs vocals for her husband and can also be heard on his 2006 version of the song Mas Que Nada with the Black Eyed Peas.
Early career
The child of a physician in Niterói, Brazil, Mendes attended the local conservatory with hopes of becoming a classical pianist. As his interest in jazz grew, he started playing in nightclubs in the late-1950s just as bossa nova, a jazz-inflected derivative of samba, was taking off. Mendes played with Antônio Carlos Jobim (whom he regarded as a mentor) and many U.S. jazz musicians who toured Brazil.
Mendes formed the Sexteto Bossa Rio and recorded Dance Moderno in 196. Touring Europe and the United States, Mendes recorded albums with Cannonball Adderley and Herbie Mann and played Carnegie Hall. Mendes moved to the U.S. in 1964 and cut two albums under the name Sergio Mendes and Brasil '65 with Capitol Records and Atlantic Records.
Brasil '66
When sales were tepid, he replaced his Brazilian born vocalist Wanda de Sa with the distinctive voice of Chicago native Lani Hall (who learned Mendes' Portuguese material phonetically), switched to Herb Alpert's A&M label, and released Herb Alpert Presents Sergio Mendes and Brasil '66, an album that went platinum based largely on the success of the single "Mas Que Nada" (a Jorge Ben cover) and the personal support of Alpert, with whom Mendes toured regularly.
The original lineup of Sérgio Mendes & Brasil '66 was Mendes (piano), vocalists Lani Hall and Janis Hansen, Bob Matthews (bass), Jose Soares (percussion), and Joao Palma (drums). John Pisano guested as guitarist. This lineup recorded three albums between 1966-1968 (including the best-selling Look Around LP), before there was a major personnel change for their fourth album Fool on the Hill.
Karen Philipp replaced Hansen as the second female vocalist, while veteran drummer Dom Um Romão teamed with Rubens Bassini to assume percussionist duties. Sebastiao Neto was the new bassist and Oscar Castro-Neves the guitarist. This lineup had a more orchestral and big band sound than their predecessors. Most significantly, in the early 1970s, lead singer Hall pursued a solo career and became Alpert's second wife. Some accounts claim that Mendes was upset with Alpert for years for "stealing" Hall away from his group.
Though his early singles with Brasil '66 (most notably "Mas Que Nada") met with some success, Mendes really burst into mainstream prominence when he performed the Oscar-nominated Burt Bacharach and Hal David song The Look of Love on the Academy Awards telecast in April 1968. Brasil '66's version of the song quickly shot into the top 10, peaking at #4, and eclipsing Dusty Springfield's version from the soundtrack of the movie, Casino Royale. Mendes spent the rest of 1968 enjoying consecutive top 10 and top 20 hits with his follow-up singles, "The Fool on the Hill" and "Scarborough Fair". From 1968 on, Mendes was arguably the biggest Brazilian star in the world, enjoying immense popularity worldwide and performing in venues as varied as stadium arenas and the White House, where he gave concerts for both Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon.
Middle career
Mendes' career in the U.S. stalled in the mid-1970s, but he remained very popular in South America and Japan. His two albums with Bell Records in 1973 and 1974, followed by several for Elektra from 1975 on, found Mendes continuing to mine the best in American pop music and post-bossa writers of his native Brazil, while forging new directions in soul with collaborators like Stevie Wonder, who wrote Mendes' R&B-inflected minor hit, "The Real Thing".
In 1983, he rejoined Alpert's A&M records and enjoyed huge success with a self-titled album and several follow-up albums, all of which received considerable adult contemporary airplay with charting singles. "Never Gonna Let You Go", featuring vocals by Joe Pizzulo and Leza Miller, equalled the success of his 1968 single "The Look of Love" by reaching #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart; it also spent four weeks atop the Billboard adult contemporary chart. In 1984, Mendes worked with singer Lani Hall again.
By the time Mendes released his Grammy-winning Elektra album Brasileiro in 1992, he was the undisputed master of pop-inflected Brazilian jazz. The late-1990s lounge music revival brought retrospection and respect to Mendes' oeuvre, particularly the classic Brasil '66 albums. His stature in his native Brazil is reflected by "Cantor de Mambo", a song by fellow Brazilians Os Mutantes, which they regularly dedicate to Mendes in concert.
Later career
Timeless features a wide array of neo-soul and alternative hip hop guest artists, most prominently will.i.am and the Black Eyed Peas. It was released February 14, 2006 by Concord Records.
The album features the Black Eyed Peas, Erykah Badu, Black Thought, Chali 2na of Jurassic 5, India.Arie, John Legend, Justin Timberlake, Q-Tip, Stevie Wonder and Pharoahe Monch.
The 2006 re-recorded version of "Mas que Nada" with the Black Eyed Peas had additional vocals by Gracinha Leporace (Mendes' wife); a version that is included on his album Timeless. In Brazil, the song is pretty well-known for being the theme song for the local television channel Globo's Estrelas.
The Black Eyed Peas' version also contains a sample of their 2004 hit "Hey Mama". The re-recorded song became popular on many European charts. On the UK Singles Chart, the song entered at #29 and rose to and peaked at #6 on its second week on the chart.
Official website of Sérgio Mendes: http://www.sergiomendesmusic.com
Let's Give A Little More This Time
Sérgio Mendes Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Now you're back where you belong
But baby i still recall those crazy days
We found new ways of hurting each other
The magic was gone
now it's come back just as strong
But now that we found ourselves a second chance
Please let's give a little more this time
let's try to keep in mind our love is on the line
Darling please, let's give it all we got
This could be our last shot
It's so no matter what
Let's remember to be kind
Give a little more (give a little more)
We had is a dream
And we let it get away
Somebody up there look at us and knew
That me and you should still be together
Know what love means
and Im learning day by day
No matter how good the feelings feels improves
We gotta work and make it better
Please let's give a little more this time
let's try to keep in mind our love is on the line
Darling please, let's give it all we got
This could be our last shot
It's so no matter what
Let's remember to be kind
Give a little more, give a little more this time
Let's try this time to be the best that we could be
Let's try to make same old moments stays that we make
and make it work
baby let's give a little more, give a little more this
time
==Credits==
* Composer: Barry Mann
* Lyrics by: Cynthia Weil
* Lead vocal - Joe Pizzulo
The lyrics of Sérgio Mendes's song Let's Give A Little More This Time speak of a couple who got back together, but the experience of being apart from one another has taught them to value their relationship more. The two have hurt each other in the past, which caused them to separate, but the love they shared remained. Now that they are given a second chance to be together, they are reminded that this might be their last shot at it, and they need to work harder to make things better. They must remember to be kind to each other, and most importantly, to give more to make their relationship work.
The song sends a message of forgiveness and perseverance, that when love is tested, and mistakes have been made, we can always do better if we learn from our faults and try harder. It emphasizes the importance of cherishing our relationships and not taking them for granted. With its catchy tune and meaningful lyrics, Let's Give A Little More This Time became one of Sérgio Mendes's best-known hits.
Line by Line Meaning
You're back in my arms
You have returned to my life and we are together again
Now you're back where you belong
You have come back to me, your rightful place
But baby I still recall those crazy days
Although we are reunited, I still remember the difficult times we went through
We found new ways of hurting each other
During those times, we discovered ways to cause each other pain and strife
The magic was gone
Our relationship had lost its spark and special feeling
Now it's come back just as strong
But now that we are back together, that love has returned with just as much strength
But now that we found ourselves a second chance
We have been given another opportunity to make things right between us
It doesn't mean that we'll have another
However, we may not have another chance after this
Please let's give a little more this time
Let's try harder this time and put in more effort
Let's try to keep in mind our love is on the line
We must remember that our love is in jeopardy and we need to work to save it
Darling please, let's give it all we got
My dear, let's put all our energy and effort into this relationship
This could be our last shot
This might be our final chance to make things work between us
It's so no matter what
We have to try our best, no matter what obstacles may come our way
Let's remember to be kind
We must treat each other with kindness and understanding
Give a little more (give a little more)
We should give a little extra effort and energy towards our love and relationship
We had a dream
We had a vision of what our relationship could be
And we let it get away
But we allowed that dream to slip away and fade
Somebody up there look at us and knew
Perhaps a higher power saw what we could be and brought us back together
That me and you should still be together
That we were meant to be together, despite our past struggles
Know what love means
I have learned the true definition of love
And I'm learning day by day
Every day I continue to grow and gain a better understanding of love
No matter how good the feelings feels improves
No matter how strong our emotions may feel, we still need to work at our relationship
We gotta work and make it better
We have to put in the effort to improve our relationship and make it better
Let's try this time to be the best that we could be
Let's strive to be the best version of ourselves and have the best relationship possible
Let's try to make same old moments stays that we make
Let's try to make every moment we spend together special and memorable
And make it work
Let's put in the effort necessary to make our relationship succeed
Baby let's give a little more, give a little more this time
Let's go above and beyond to give our relationship the extra push it needs to thrive
Contributed by Ryan D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@christophertan488
I think this is one of the 80s song Sergio Mendez created for the modern era, love it!❤❤❤
@ryk1265
Joe Pizzulo, What a voice!
@roldanmacabata7334
Finally, now i know the title of this song, so relaxing to ears😍
@marjoriejorillo3008
I feel you... 🥰
@ysadesouza7232
Nossa que maravilha to extasiada com essa linda voz e música 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
@marvinreyes1803
Timeless. This song will be play until forever
@maryrosesabile544
one of my favorite compositions of Sergio Mendes.
@keithybalang2718
I super love this song! Sergio Mendes!
@ronaldmadriaga1994
one of my fav songs by sergio mendes
@thehydronator3021
loved the flavour of gradually building desperation in the music especially the synthetic harp with the wailing guitar towards the finish, that coupled with the passion of the singer and the backup singers really makes the song a memorable power balad.