Dave Brubeck Quartet - Bossa Nova U.S.A.

With the popularisation of bossa nova in the early '60s, practically every recording artist had to have at least one bossa nova album, this effort by the Dave Brubeck Quartet is better than most due to the high quality of the compositions, of which the title cut is best-known.

The date's two standards (This Can't Be Love and Trolley Song) also fare well on this upbeat session.

Since 1955, Brubeck had composed and performed pieces originating from

influences outside of the European musical tradition, in which this album, released during the bossa nova craze in the United States of the late 1950s and early 1960s, can be best categorized as impressionistic of the cool wave from Brazil. Recorded through most of 1962, and released early in 1963, the album was designed to be effective on the pop charts.