enlarge (142k)

Verve Records V6-8658

If you want to know who's who in Bossa Nova, ask a Brazilian. And chances
are he'll tell you—Walter Wanderley.

Although a new name to America Bossa buffs, Wanderley has long been a
household word in Brazil, where the whole Bossa Nova business started.

The young Saġ Paulo organist first caught the public ear with his brilliant
arrangements for his good friend and compatriot, Joao Gilberto. The year was
1961. By '62, Wanderley was a head-liner in his own right, launching a string
of hits that included The Girl from Ipanema, Desafinado and the high-flying
Song of the Jet  (which you'll hear in this album).

All told, he's piled up more record-breaking records, more TV appearances
and more frankly flattering imitators than any other exponent of Brazil's
"New Swing."

Small wonder, then, that Wanderley soon became a prime tourist attraction
for traveling Americans—Tony Bennett among them. The Yankees came,
they heard, and they were conquered. And when they returned to the States,
they brought with them news of Brazil's greatest star.

Obviously, it would be just a matter of time until Wanderley would follow his
reputation Northwards and be discovered by America-at-large.

Well, now is the time. And RAIN FOREST is the album—Walter Wanderley's
first recording for American audiences, with American musicians.