Ana Caram

• Genre: Bossa Nova

About

Brazil keeps putting out great singers the way that the United States used to. Ana Caram keeps the slightly off-kilter yet low-key sexiness of Astrud Gilberto, but replaces her frozen, zombified tone with the rich emotional pallet of Gal Costa and Elis Regina. Like these two great singers, she uses the sophisticated sway of Bossa Nova as her foundation, but she isn't afraid to experiment with other forms of Latin styles, and has a keen appreciation of American jazz. Caram has released a string of underexposed albums on the Chesky label, and her 1992 release The Other Side of Jobim is a must. It strikes the bulls-eye by avoiding the great songwriter's standards in favor of rediscovering his buried treasures.

- Nick Dedina