Brazilian singer Seu Jorge showcases exotic finesse

Any mention of Brazilian popular music makes me think of two musical teams from the 1960s: Astrud and Joao Gilberto with Stan Getz ("The Girl From Ipanema") and Sergio Mendes with Brazil 66 ("Mas Que Nada," the up-tempo song that is usually part of any commercial featuring the Brazil soccer team during the World Cup).But those artists and songs are the McDonald's of Brazilian music, with billions of American ears served. Much less known and much more contemporary is Seu Jorge ("Mr. George"), a 36-year-old Brazilian musician and actor whose second full-length album "Cru" ("Raw"), released stateside late in the summer of 2005, helped bring Brazilian samba-pop and bossa nova back to the fringes of the overall pop music scene.Before he released "Cru," Jorge had a small audience in the states because of his acting roles in the moves "City of God" and "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou." For the latter film he also contributed to the soundtrack with his mostly acoustic versions of David Bowie songs like "Rebel, Rebel," "Life on Mars?" and "Rock and Roll Suicide," all of which he sang in Portuguese.The project helped introduce Jorge's musical style, which features his deep voice alternating between gruff and smooth, accompanied occasionally by little more than his acoustic guitar. That mix can sometimes come dangerously close to sounding like elevator music, but it never goes over the edge.In fact, it's on laid-back "Cru" songs like "Fiore de la Citta," "Sao Gonca" and especially "Una Mujer" ("A Woman") where Jorge creates music that would fit easily on an Astrud Gilberto greatest hits album. It's when working with these slowed down, samba-tinged rhythms Jorge is at his best, though more up-tempo "Cru" singles "Mania de Peitao" and "Tive Razao (I Was Right)" are not without a certain charm.Ironically, the CD's best up-tempo track, "Bem Querer" ("My Dear"), is also the song that comes closest to breaking the mold of what you would think a Brazilian pop musician sounds like. It's here that he scraps his acoustic guitar for something a bit more electric, and adds percussion that's less samba than contemporary R&B. In the end, he creates music to drive to Monterey by, something slightly exotic yet immediate all at once.Several of the tracks on "Cru" are covers, including "Don't," a song written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, and recorded by Elvis Presley (it's on his 1959, "50,000,000 Elvis Presley Fans Can't Be Wrong" album). "Don't" is the only song among the 12 in this set, including two remixes, that is sung in English, so if you need subtitles with your music you might want to avoid "Cru."But one listen to "Don't," which is by far the dullest thing on the album, reminds you Jorge's Portuguese lyrics add to the record's exotic feel. I know, exotic is the same vibe disgraced lip-synch duo Milli Vanilli was going for back in the late '80s. But don't fear, Seu Jorge is no phony. He's the real deal.