The sultry and exotic ruminations of Eliane Elias continue to stir the ear and heart on her new recording Kissed by Nature. With a tried and true blend of Brazilian vocals and exquisite jazz, Elias plays, sings, moves and grooves the music into energetic and relaxed moods that will entice and entertain discriminate listeners who just simply want to chill and have a good time. With a history that is varied in many jazz styles from straight-ahead to modern classicism, her musical forte has always been the roots of her homeland Brazil. Kissed by Nature blends bossa-nova, club mixes, and jazz into a satisfying meld that will appeal to music lovers from the club scene to the jazz lounge.

An equally accomplished pianist as well, she swings with grace and style on selections such as “A Volte” and “September” which features nice horn arrangements. Her talent is also revealed in her choice of musicians with Randy Brecker and Rick Margitza on horns, Marc Johnson on bass, Joey Baron on drums, and percussionist Paola Braga. The sound is rich and the rhythms exotic and memorable. Elias pours out enticing vocal and piano lines on the groove oriented “Balance” and the ultra cool title selection “Kissed by Nature” which sounds like a Sade throwback. The recording concludes with two funky bonus track remixes produced by the popular Brazilian DJ team BossaCucaNova.

Recommended.

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