Sergio enthralls!

It is easy to surprise the venerable Sergio Mendes.

First, enthusiastically inform him that you had seen his performances in Blue Note Tokyo, Japan’s premier jazz venue where his former members like Diane Reeves and a host of world’s preeminent jazz artists perform. It seems that he has a soft spot for Japan, a country where he has been performing since 1966.

Second, show him that you possess a compact disc of his very first album released in vinyl in Brazil sometime in 1960. Dance Moderno, which was marketed internationally in 1961, is an all-instrumental jazz collection with majestic Brazilian percussion and rhythms in every number. It can be argued that the moving percussion and rhythms in Dance Moderno appeared – to an extent – to have inspired Mendes in his last Friday’s concert at Aliw Theater.

After the concert, a bunch of seasoned theatergoers used to seeking autographs in their summers in Europe and winters in North America waited for Mendes to request him to sign the covers of his albums they have collected during their travels.

Upon seeing the cover of Dance Moderno, Mendes shouted: "How come you have this? It is amazing to find that a Filipino in Manila has a copy of my first album!"

"You’re great, you’re great!" Mendes told lawyer Romulo Quimbo Jr., vice president for legal and regulatory affairs of the Manila North Tollways Corp. Quimbo then offered Mendes the CD covers of the albums Sergio Mendes and Brasil ‘66 (Original version) and Oceano (1996).

By this time, Mendes has been completely charmed by this group of men and women in their early 40s behaving like rambunctious teenagers hungry for autographs. He gamely bantered with Quimbo’s wife, Victoria, a director of the National Economic Development Authority; Quimbo’s younger brother who is also a lawyer, Romero, the president and CEO of the Home Development Mutual Fund, and his wife; The STAR’s copy editor Francis Lagniton; and this writer.

The 62-year-old artist even briefly recalled his stints at Blue Note Tokyo, where in different intervals the Quimbo couple and I had watched Tito Puente, Diana Krall, Boz Scaggs, Natalie Cole, and Janet Kay.

Mendes was so exhilarated that he invited our group to watch the Saturday night show as his special guests. We humbly honored the rare invitation.

Our after-show encounter with Mendes last Friday night was enough to compensate for the 45-minute delay before the show began and also the apparent inadequacy of the Aliw Theater sound system. The sound system has not been fine-tuned despite its so-so delivery during the Dionne Warwick concert and other events.

The Mendes and the Brasil 2003 sound was so unabashedly sexy as the group blended music from the piano, organ, percussion, drums, and plugged and unplugged guitars. As if a hint of the upcoming Mendes sounds, there were strains of rap-hip-hop in some of the songs. It is interesting to know that Mendes in the early 1990s, when he was founding the Brasil ‘99, was also experimenting with Bahian hip-hop. A major segment on the percussion suggested a return to Mendes’ roots in the 1950s where he dabbled in percussion.

Essentially on Friday evening, Mendes and the Brasil 2003 lived up to the spirit of the sound of Brasil ‘66 which, as one critic has described, was "a delicate mixed blend of pianistic jazz, subtle Latin nuances, John Lennon/Paul McCartney style, some Henry Mancini, here and there a touch of Burt Bacharach, cool minor chords, danceable upbeat, gentle laughter, and a little sex."

The audience expected and was amply rewarded with samba, pop and bossa nova. Members of the crowd stood up and danced when the more familiar tunes were belted out.

Back-up singers Jessica Taylor Purse and Dawn Bishop Woullard opened the show with Pretty World, a song from Brasil ‘66. From the first song until the end, the band was so arresting. Kevin Winard was the drummer; the enthralling percussionist was Nailton Bispo dos Santos; guitarist was Kleber Jorge Pimenta; bass player was Mohammed Hussain Jiffry; Carlos del Rosario was on the keyboard; and sound engineering was handled by Craig Doubet.

Sounding like Pope John Paul II, Mendes entered, took his seat in front of the piano, and greeted the audience in Filipino. He elicited roaring applause.Percussion then took center stage with Holografico.

Among the songs rendered were Lua Soberana, Roda, Chove Chuva, Upa Neguinho, Vamp/The Girl from Ipanema, Desafinado, and Waters of March.

Suddenly, it was time for Lani Misalucha to render Bridges and Going Out of My Head. Misalucha was okay but looked overdressed in a spaghetti-strapped gown in pink. Unfortunately, her voice quality did not match that of back- up singers Taylor and Woullard. But this did not prevent a member of the audience to shout: "Walang ganyan sa States!"

As the strains of One Note Samba were heard, the audience was being primed up for the danceable Ela E Carioca, Like A Lover, and Casa Forte/Zanzibar/A Felicidade.

During his Thursday press conference, Mendes said his group will sing new songs and play sounds, a lot of them in Portuguese. Despite the language barrier, the audience appreciated them.

The Look of Love, Fool on the Hill, Voce Abusou, Viramundo/Magalenha and Mais Que Nada were a fitting ending to a great show.

To Sergio and to the members of the Brasil 2003, Molto Obrigado!