During a long and uncommonly productive career, Brazilian guitarist Laurindo Almeida achieved a ubiquity in popular music that has yet to be fully recognized. Largely responsible for the Brazilian/North American "samba jazz" that would eventually catch on in the form of a musical trend known as bossa nova, he played behind dozens of well-known pop vocalists and improved the overall texture of many a studio production ensemble. One credible estimate states that Almeida contributed to no less than 800 film soundtracks (among them The Old Man and the Sea, How the West Was Won, and Breakfast at Tiffany's), as well as countless TV scores. He also authored a series of guitar instruction books that are still in use worldwide…

Laurindo Almeida, a brilliant Brazilian guitarist who was equally skilled at both classical music and bossa novas, gained famed originally for his work with Bud Shank in the mid-1950s. However, in the 1960s, his string of LPs for Capitol were generally quite commercial and overly brief. This album is fairly typical in that the material contains a few songs used widely in jazz (such as "Secret Love" and "Here's that Rainy Day"), current pop tunes ("Call Me" and "Goin' Out of My Head") and a few lesser-known numbers. All 11 performances clock in between two and four minutes, as Almeida is joined by an anonymous string section, background horns and rhythm players, all arranged unimaginatively by Lex de Azevedo. The playing is pleasing but very predictable, and at best these soothing sounds work well as background music.

Altoist Bud Shank (who doubles on flute) and acoustic guitarist Laurindo Almeida first teamed up in 1954 to make a couple of albums called Brazilliance that hinted at but greatly predated bossa nova. Shank and Almeida came together 20 years later to form the L.A. Four, a quartet also including bassist Ray Brown and drummer Shelly Manne. Their debut recording as a unit was made at the 1974 Concord Jazz Festival, and it finds the appealing musicians blending together well on bossa nova tunes (including "Manha de Carnaval"), Almeida's classical-oriented originals, and some swing. This was a particularly inventive chamber jazz band.

A fluent and skilled musician, famous in his native country as a classical Spanish guitar player, Almeida went to the USA in the 40s to work in film and television studios. His jazz work was first widely exposed during a spell with Stan Kenton in the late 40s. Although continuing his film and television work, Almeida also took many opportunities to play jazz, joining forces with bass player Harry Babasin, altoist Bud Shank and drummer Roy Harte in 1953. The work of this group anticipated many of the hallmarks of the bossa nova craze that came a few years later. During his career Almeida won Grammy awards in 1959 for his performance on Danzas, and the following year for The Spanish Guitars Of Laurindo Almeida and Conversations With The Guitar. In 1961, he gained two more with Discantos and Reverie For Spanish Guitars, and in 1962 further honours with nominations for Viva Bossa Nova! in the Best Performance…

For their third recording, the L.A. Four had drummer Jeff Hamilton permanently taking Shelly Manne's place but otherwise utilized their original players (altoist-flutist Bud Shank, guitarist Laurindo Almeida, and bassist Ray Brown). Most unusual in their repertoire on this set is Chuck Mangione's "Land of Make Believe," which was a current pop hit. Otherwise, the tunes are the usual mixtures of bossas, classical numbers, and standards, including "Summertime," "Mona Lisa," and "Nuages." Tasteful and lightly swinging music.

On this rewarding set, the L.A. Four (altoist Bud Shank, acoustic guitarist Laurindo Almeida, bassist Ray Brown, and drummer Jeff Hamilton) perform a Bach melody, "Carinhoso" (originally recorded by Shank and Almeida back in 1954), "Just Friends," a "Love" medley ("Love for Sale" and "Love Walked In"), and Chick Corea's "Spain." Shank sticks exclusively to alto for the date, leaving his flute in its case, and the result is a more high-powered program than usual.