"Meditation" ("Meditação" in Portuguese) is a bossa nova and

jazz standard Jazz standards are musical compositions that are an important part of the musical repertoire of jazz musicians, in that they are widely known, performed, and recorded by jazz musicians, and widely known by listeners. There is no definitive List ...

song composed by

Antônio Carlos Jobim Antônio Carlos Brasileiro de Almeida Jobim (25 January 1927 – 8 December 1994), also known as Tom Jobim (), was a Brazilian composer, pianist, guitarist, songwriter, arranger, and singer. Considered as one of the great exponents of Brazilian ...

and

Newton Mendonça Newton Ferreira de Mendonça (February 14, 1921 – November 22, 1960) was a musician, composer, and lyricist. He began as a pianist in 1950. Mendonça was born in Rio de Janeiro. In 1953 he started working with Antônio Carlos Jobim, somethi ...

. The English version has lyrics by

Norman Gimbel Norman Gimbel (November 16, 1927 – December 19, 2018) was an American lyricist and songwriter of popular songs and themes to television shows and films. He wrote the lyrics for songs including " Ready to Take a Chance Again" (with composer Cha ...

. In Finland, the song was recorded in 1963 by Olavi Virta with lyrics by Saukki under the title "Hymy, kukka ja rakkaus". Erkki Liikanen recorded the song in 1967 with lyrics by Aarno Raninen under the title "Taas on hiljaisuus".

Recordings

Maysa Maysa Figueira Monjardim (June 6, 1936 – January 22, 1977), better known as Maysa Matarazzo, was a Brazilian singer-songwriter, performer and actress. She is also associated with Bossa nova music but is widely known as a torch song (''fossa ...

on '' Maysa é Maysa... é Maysa, é Maysa!'' (1959) *

João Gilberto João Gilberto (born João Gilberto do Prado Pereira de Oliveira – ; 10 June 1931 – 6 July 2019) was a Brazilian guitarist, singer, and composer who was a pioneer of the musical genre of bossa nova in the late 1950s. Around the world, he w ...

on '' O Amor, o Sorriso e a Flor'' (1960) *

Cal Tjader Callen Radcliffe Tjader Jr. ( ; July 16, 1925 – May 5, 1982) was an American Latin Jazz musician, often described as the most successful non-Latino Latin music (genre), Latin musician. He explored other jazz idioms, especially small group mod ...

on '' Cal Tjader Plays the Contemporary Music of Mexico and Brazil'' (1962) *

Herbie Mann Herbert Jay Solomon (April 16, 1930 – July 1, 2003), known by his stage name Herbie Mann, was an American jazz Flute, flute player and important early practitioner of world music. Early in his career, he also played tenor saxophone and clarinet ...

on '' Right Now!'' (Atlantic 1962) *

Charlie Byrd Charlie Lee Byrd (September 16, 1925 – December 2, 1999) was an American jazz guitarist. Byrd was best known for his association with Brazilian music, especially bossa nova. In 1962, he collaborated with Stan Getz on the album '' Jazz Samba' ...

on '' Bossa Nova Pelos Passaros'' (Riverside 1962) *

on '' The Composer of Desafinado, Plays'' (1963) *

Pat Boone Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, author, television personality, radio host and philanthropist. He sold nearly 50 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and has acted in many films. Boone ...

released this song as a single in 1963, reaching number 91 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. *

Cliff Richard Sir Cliff Richard (born Harry Rodger Webb; 14 October 1940) is a British singer and actor. He has total sales of over 21.5 million singles in the United Kingdom and, as of 2012, was the third-top-selling artist in UK Singles Chart histo ...

on '' Kinda Latin'' (Columbia EMI, 1965) *

Doris Day Doris Day (born Doris Mary Kappelhoff; April 3, 1922 – May 13, 2019) was an American actress and singer. She began her career as a big band singer in 1937, achieving commercial success in 1945 with two No. 1 recordings, "Sentimental Journey ...

atin for Lovers album1965 *

Astrud Gilberto Astrud Gilberto (; born Astrud Evangelina Weinert; March 29, 1940 – June 5, 2023) was a Brazilian samba and bossa nova singer and songwriter. She gained international attention in the mid-1960s following her recording of the song " The Girl f ...

on ''

The Astrud Gilberto Album ''The Astrud Gilberto Album (with Antonio Carlos Jobim)'' is the debut studio album by Astrud Gilberto. With Antonio Carlos Jobim on guitar and the arrangements by Marty Paich, it was released via Verve Records in 1965. It peaked at number 41 on ...

'' (1965) *

Vic Damone Vic Damone (born Vito Rocco Farinola; June 12, 1928 – February 11, 2018) was an American traditional pop music, pop and big band singer and actor. He was best known for his performances of songs such as the number one hit "You're Breaking My ...

on '' Stay with Me'' (1966) *

Andy Williams Howard Andrew Williams (December 3, 1927 – September 25, 2012) was an American singer. He recorded 43 albums in his career, of which 15 have been gold certified and three platinum certified. He was also nominated for six Grammy Awards. He hos ...

on ''

The Shadow of Your Smile "The Shadow of Your Smile", also known as "Love Theme from ''The Sandpiper''", is a popular song. The music was written by Johnny Mandel with the lyrics written by Paul Francis Webster. The song was introduced in the 1965 film ''The Sandpiper' ...

'' (1966) *

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

on the album ''

Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim ''Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim'' is a 1967 album by Frank Sinatra and Antônio Carlos Jobim. The tracks were arranged and conducted by Claus Ogerman, accompanied by a studio orchestra. Along with Jobim's original compositions, t ...

'' (1967) *

Claudine Longet Claudine Longet (born January 29, 1942) is a Franco-American singer, actress, dancer, and recording artist popular during the 1960s and 1970s. Born in Paris, France, Longet was married to American singer and television entertainer Andy Williams ...

recorded the song for her A&M debut album '' Claudine'' (1967) and was her first single for the label. This recording reached #98 on the

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), o ...

. *

Blossom Dearie Margrethe Blossom Dearie (April 28, 1924 – February 7, 2009) was an American jazz singer and pianist. She had a recognizably light and girlish voice. Profile at AllMusic/ref> Dearie performed regular engagements in London and New York City ov ...

recorded the song for her 1967 album '' Soon It's Gonna Rain'' * Jack Jones; featured as the B-side of Kapp 45 ''Far Away'' (1968) *

Dexter Gordon Dexter Gordon (February 27, 1923 – April 25, 1990) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, and bandleader. He was among the most influential early bebop musicians. Gordon's height was , so he was also known as "Long Tall Dexter" an ...

on '' More Power!'' (Prestige 1969) *Jazz Guitarist

Joe Pass Joe Pass (born Joseph Anthony Jacobi Passalacqua; January 13, 1929 – May 23, 1994) was an American jazz guitarist. Although Pass recorded and performed live with pianist Oscar Peterson, composer Duke Ellington, and vocalist Ella Fitzgerald, he ...

on '' Intercontinental (album)'' (1970) and on '' Meditation: Solo Guitar'' (Pablo 2002) *

Johnny Hartman John Maurice Hartman (July 3, 1923 – September 15, 1983) was an American jazz singer, known for his rich baritone voice and recordings of ballads. He sang and recorded with Earl Hines' and Dizzy Gillespie's big bands and with Erroll Garner. ...

on '' I've Been There'' (1973) *

Ana Caram Ana Lucia Ribeiro Caram (born 1 October 1958) is a Brazilian singer, guitarist, and flautist who sings jazz, samba, and bossa nova music. Caram was born in São Paulo to a family versed in musical expression. She graduated from São Paulo Univers ...

on '' Rio After Dark'' (Chesky Records 1989) * Adalberto Bravo on '' Smooth Passions'' (2004) *

Nellie McKay Eleanora Marie McKay (born April 13, 1982) is an English–American singer and songwriter. She made her Broadway debut in ''The Threepenny Opera#United States 2, The Threepenny Opera'' (2006). Early life and education McKay was born in London ...

recorded the song for her 2009 album ''

Normal as Blueberry Pie – A Tribute to Doris Day ''Normal as Blueberry Pie – A Tribute to Doris Day'' is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter, Nellie McKay. Released in 2009 by Verve Records, it is McKay's first cover album, composed of songs previously recorded by American ...

'' *Jazz pianist

Gene Harris Gene Harris (born Eugene Haire, September 1, 1933 – January 16, 2000) was an American jazz pianist known for his warm sound and blues and gospel infused style that is known as soul jazz. From 1956 to 1970, he played in The Three Sounds tri ...

on '' Another Night in London'' (2010)

Charts

Pat Boone version

References

Songs with music by Antônio Carlos Jobim Songs with lyrics by Norman Gimbel Songs with lyrics by Newton Mendonça Frank Sinatra songs Andy Williams songs Pat Boone songs Bossa nova songs Brazilian songs Compositions in the Real Book Songs in Portuguese {{Pop-song-stub

Recordings

Charts

See also

References