Tamba 4 began as a trio in the late fifties in Brazil. Luiz Eça at the piano and arrangements, Bebeto on flute and Hélcio Milito on drums are the key members who made Tamba one of the most important models of Bossa Nova.
Gorgeous sound, contagious rhythm. Beautiful music with substance and a lot of heart. There are subtle qualities waiting to be discovered by careful listening.
Too bad they were not better known in the U.S. I first heard of them when I lived in Denver in the early-mid 1970s for a number of months in a house owned by a cousin of Joan Baez. This friend of mine James Monley (a student of the flute) turned me onto all kinds of esoteric music. Thx Jim wherever you are. Hope you had/are having a great time.
Here's a slower more hypnotic, somnambulant piece:
Tamba 4 - Lemanjá (We And The Sea / 1968)
And: a much more fast-paced derriere-shimmying classic, Samba Blim:
From Samba Blim A&M lp 1969
Must've been the high octane coffee...