Astrud Gilberto was a Brazilian samba and bossa nova singer and songwriter. She was raised in Rio de Janeiro. Her father was a language professor, and she became fluent in several languages. She immigrated to the United States in 1963 and settled there permanently. Astrud sang on two tracks on the 1963 album Getz/Gilberto with Stan Getz. While it was her first professional recording, Astrud Gilberto was not entirely a novice. She grew up immersed in music; her mother played multiple instruments. Her whispery voice and steadfast approach to singing played a significant role in popularizing “The Girl from Ipanema”, earning a Grammy Award for Record of the Year and a nomination for Best Vocal by a Female.
The 1964 edited single of “The Girl from Ipanema” omitted the Portuguese lyrics sung by João Gilberto, and established Astrud Gilberto as a bossa nova singer. It sold over one million copies and was awarded a gold disc. For the recording, Astrud Gilberto only received the standard session fee, US$120. According to writer Gene Lees in Singers and the Song II, Getz asked producer Creed Taylor to ensure she was paid no royalties on the single, which went on to sell more than five million copies. It became one of the most covered songs in the history of pop music.
In 1964, Gilberto appeared in the films Get Yourself a College Girl and The Hanged Man. Her first solo album was “The Astrud Gilberto Album” (1965). Upon moving to the United States, she went on tour with Getz. Beginning as a singer of bossa nova and American jazz standards, Gilberto started to record her own compositions in the 1970s. She recorded songs in Portuguese, English, Spanish, Italian, French, German, and Japanese.
In 1982, Gilberto’s son Marcelo joined her group, touring with her for more than a decade as a bassist. He also served as her road manager, sound technician and personal assistant. Her son Gregory Lasorsa played guitar on the Temperance album on the song “Beautiful You”. In 1990 Gilberto and her two sons, João Marcelo and Gregory Lasorsa, together established Gregmar Productions, Inc., a production company aimed at promoting Gilberto’s music and developing new material.
Gilberto received the Latin Jazz USA Award for Lifetime Achievement in 1992 and was inducted into the International Latin Music Hall of Fame in 2002. In 1996, she contributed to the AIDS benefit album Red Hot & Rio produced by the Red Hot Organization, performing the song “Desafinado” (Portuguese for “slightly out of tune”, or “off-key”) along with George Michael at his invitation. Although she did not officially retire, Gilberto announced in 2002 that she was taking “indefinite time off” from public performances. Gilberto died at home in Philadelphia, on June 5, 2023, aged 83.
