I was thinking recently that I might not play Brasilian music were it not for the music of Joao Gilberto. It's hard from our present vantage point to fully appreciate the extent to which Joao's approach to playing the guitar was epoch-making; Bossa Nova and Samba guitar as we currently understand them simply didn't exist prior to Joao Gilberto. And think of the disadvantage at which he was operating: he didn't have Joao Gilberto to copy!
I had heard some of Joao's early recordings with Stan Getz and Astrud Gilberto, but the recording that turned me into a Joao idolator was his "Live at Montreaux" album from '82 or '83, on Elektra Musician. Recorded live at the Montreaux Jazz Festival, it features Joao alone, singing and accompanying himself, and I think it is one of the most remarkable recordings ever by a solo singer/guitarist. (Because of the transparency of the sound, it's a great recording from which to figure things out by ear.) The beauty of the guitar playing combined with the fact that it is completely at the service of the singing and the songs is remarkable, as is the degree of rhythmic independence that Joao was able to utilize in his vocal phrasing relative to his guitar playing. He's so quiet, but the enraptured audience erupts at the conclusion of each song. What's really scary is that he may be a better singer than a guitarist. Thank you, Joao Gilberto, for what you have contributed to music and to our lives.
John Miller