Bossa Nova has never been one of my favorite styles of music. I prefer something with some bite to it. When I read the notes in the booklet accompanying Pure Love and saw that the disc included vocals in four languages - English, French, Italian and primarily Portuguese - I was close to calling it a day. But this one grew on me. First I had to get past the opening tune, which suffers from a vocal in English that was too busy for my tastes. There is a second version later in the disc in Portuguese that sounds great and should have been the opening cut. Vocalist Sophie Wegener has a voice that is made for the subtle rhythms of bossa nova. She selected the songs, mainly from the legendary Brazilian composer Antonio Carlos Jobim. She is ably supported by the rest of Zona Sul, particularly pianist Tizian Jost, who consistently finds inventive ways to fill the spaces in the arrangements. Zona Sul has crafted a strong release that held my attention and is recommended to fans of the genre.
