Sérgio Santos Mendes (born Niteroi, 11 February 1… Read Full Bio ↴See Sérgio Mendes.
Sérgio Santos Mendes (born Niteroi, 11 February 1941) is a Brazilian musician. Born the son of a physician in Niteroi, 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 Antonio Carlos Jobim (regarded as a mentor), and many U.S. jazz musicians who toured Brazil.
Mendes formed the Sexteto Bossa Rio and recorded Dance Moderno in 1961. Touring Europe and the United States, Mendes recorded albums with Cannonball Adderly and Herbie Mann and played Carnegie Hall. Mendes moved to the U.S. in 1964 and cut two albums under the Brasil '65 group name with Capitol Records and Atlantic Records. When sales were tepid, he replaced his Brazilian born vocalist Wanda Sa with the distinctive voice of Chicago native Lani Hall (who learned Mendes' Portuguese material phonetically) and switched to Herb Alpert's A&M label and released Sergio Mendes and Brasil '66. (Hall would later marry Alpert). The album ultimately went platinum based largely upon the success of the single Mas Que Nada and the personal support of Alpert, with whom Mendes toured regularly. 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/Hal David song "The Look of Love" on the Academy Awards telecast in March 1968. Brasil '66's version of the song quickly shot into the top 10, eclipsing Dusty Springfield's version from the soundtrack of the movie, and 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." Though he continued to enjoy adult contemporary chart successes with Brasil '66 through 1971, he would not experience the mainstream chart hits he enjoyed in 1968 until his comeback album in 1983 generated the biggest single of his career, "Never Gonna Let You Go." However, 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 President Johnson and President Nixon.
Mendes' career in the U.S. stalled in the mid-70s, but he remained very popular in South America and Japan. (This disparity became a Seinfeld in-joke.) 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. 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. He has released over thirty-five albums, and still plays his bossa nova heavily crossed with jazz and funk. His newest album, Timeless released in 2006, featured Chali 2na of Jurassic 5, will.i.am of Black Eyed Peas, Q-Tip, Justin Timberlake, and Pharoahe Monch.
(Text taken in whole from the Wikipedia article at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sergio_Mendes on March 30, 2006)
So Many Stars
Sergio Mendes Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
So many dreams which one is mine
One must be right for me
Which dream of all the dreams
When there's a dream for every star
And there are oh so many stars
So many stars
So many songs which one is mine
One must be right for me
Which song of all the songs
When there's a song for every star
And there are oh so many stars, so many stars
Along the countless days, the endless nights
That I have searched so many eyes
So many hearts, so many smiles
Which one to choose, which way to go, how can I tell
How will I know, out of, oh
So many stars, so many stars
Yes, the wind is filled with songs, so many songs
Which one is mine, one must be right for me
Which song of all the songs
When there's a song for every star
And there are, oh, so many stars, so many stars
Yes, the wind is filled with songs, so many songs
Which one is mine, one must be right for me
Which song of all the songs
When there's a song for every star
And there are, oh, so many stars, so many stars
Along the countless days, the endless nights
That I have searched so many eyes
So many hearts, so many smiles
Which one to choose, which way to go, how can I tell
How will I know, out of, oh, so many stars
So many stars...so many stars... oh, so many stars
The lyrics of Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66's song So Many Stars are a reflection on the existential crisis of the human experience. It begins with the dawn, which symbolizes the beginning of a new day and also represents the beginning of a new journey in life. The dream that comes with the dawn is a symbol for the multitude of opportunities that one has in life, but the question arises: which one is meant for me? There is a dream for every star, and when there are so many stars, one can't help but wonder which dream is the right one.
The wind brings in the sounds of songs, and again the question arises, which one is meant for me? The song represents the journey of life, and each person has their own song - the one that resonates with them and represents their journey. The search for one's song is akin to the search for one's purpose in life. The never-ending search for answers is what makes life a journey and not just a destination.
The lyrics also touch on the importance of choices, and how difficult it can be to make the right choice. The countless days and endless nights spent searching for answers, the many hearts, eyes, and smiles encountered along the way make the decision-making process even more difficult. The song concludes with the realization that there are indeed so many stars and so many songs, but ultimately, the choice is ours to make.
Line by Line Meaning
The dawn is filled with dreams
When the new day begins there are so many possibilities and potential outcomes
So many dreams which one is mine
There are many dreams to choose from but I need to figure out which one belongs to me
One must be right for me
Out of all the dreams available, there has to be one that is meant for me
Which dream of all the dreams
I'm trying to figure out which dream to pursue from all the options
When there's a dream for every star
There are infinite possibilities and choices, like stars in the sky
And there are oh so many stars
Just like there are countless stars in the sky, there are numerous choices to choose from
The wind is filled with songs
The world is filled with endless possibilities and choices just like the wind is filled with songs
So many songs which one is mine
There are many options when it comes to finding one's own path, but it's hard to know which one to choose
Along the countless days, the endless nights
I have been searching for a long time, putting in a lot of effort and time, but haven't found my way yet
That I have searched so many eyes
I have looked deeply into many people's eyes, trying to find a sign or direction of what is meant for me
So many hearts, so many smiles
I have interacted with so many people and their hearts and smiles made it all the more difficult to decide between the choices
Which one to choose, which way to go, how can I tell
I'm stuck in the decision-making process, unsure of which choice to make and how to make it
How will I know, out of, oh
It's tough to predict the future and the consequences of the choices that I make, which makes it all the more difficult to decide
So many stars, so many stars
There are so many choices available just like there are numerous stars visible in the sky
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: ALAN BERGMAN, MARILYN BERGMAN, SERGIO MENDES
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
brenda vit
The dawn is filled with dreams
So many dreams
Which one is mine?
One must be right for me
Which dream of all the dreams?
When there's a dream for every star
And there are oh so many stars so many stars
The wind... is filled with songs so many songs
Which one is mine?
One must be right for me
Which song of all the songs?
When there's a song for every star
And there are oh so many stars so many stars
Along... the countless days...
The endless nights that I have searched
So many eyes...
So many hearts...
So many smiles...
Which one to choose?
Which way to go?
How can I tell?
How will I know?
Out of oh so many stars... so many stars...
The wind... is filled with songs so many songs
Which one is mine?
One must be right for me
Which song of all the songs?
When there's a song for every star
And there are oh so many stars so many stars
Along... the countless days
The endless nights that I have searched
So many eyes...
So many hearts...
So many smiles...
Which one to choose?
Which way to go?
How can I tell?
How will I know?
Out of oh so many stars so many stars
So many stars
So many stars...
brenda vit
The dawn is filled with dreams
So many dreams
Which one is mine?
One must be right for me
Which dream of all the dreams?
When there's a dream for every star
And there are oh so many stars so many stars
The wind... is filled with songs so many songs
Which one is mine?
One must be right for me
Which song of all the songs?
When there's a song for every star
And there are oh so many stars so many stars
Along... the countless days...
The endless nights that I have searched
So many eyes...
So many hearts...
So many smiles...
Which one to choose?
Which way to go?
How can I tell?
How will I know?
Out of oh so many stars... so many stars...
The wind... is filled with songs so many songs
Which one is mine?
One must be right for me
Which song of all the songs?
When there's a song for every star
And there are oh so many stars so many stars
Along... the countless days
The endless nights that I have searched
So many eyes...
So many hearts...
So many smiles...
Which one to choose?
Which way to go?
How can I tell?
How will I know?
Out of oh so many stars so many stars
So many stars
So many stars...
David Murphy
Many thanks for the lyrics!
Dee Donner Ramone
Marilyn Bergman passed away yesterday and I am looking into her compositions, I know I will find some hidden treasures. Yesterday's music reveals so much forgotten talent and memories.
Humbled I Am
@deedonnerramone4757 - the discovery of music long before your time... part of the beauty of life, my friend.
Jorge Mario Rodas
Sorry to hear about that, as she composed very great songs like "like a lover". RIP Marylin Bergman, you shall be missed, regards.
dennis wong
This is the definitive version of this classic with Lani Hall's voice and Dave Grusin's arrangement.
Ataque Paroxístico
I prefer Sarah Vaughan's, adds drama to the nth degree
John Herrmann
Did Gruisin have a hand in this one big selling arrangement ?
RayG
@Ataque Paroxístico IMO the ultimate version. Such a lush arrangement that complements Ms Vaughn’s beautiful, raspy-ish voice sounds knowing and yet with an undeniable innocence. It really sends me to a different world.
Robert Page
As a former singer, and even now many years later still a singer, it's important for people to understand how Mendes operated. Someone mentioned Streisand here, a monster talent and inarguably one of the greatest pop singers who's ever lived. But Sergio wasn't looking for that. He auditioned his singers for perfect blend and perfect pitch. If you listen to the group's unison singing, for instance, it's almost astounding. He was looking for two female leads and two or three males who would blend together in perfect harmony. I never saw them live, sad to say, but on all his recordings, some of which I still have from 50+ years ago, he achieved that.