Jorge Ben Jor: Acustico MTV : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

Shot for Brazilian MTV's version of Unplugged, this in-studio performance serves as a lush look back at the career of Ben Jor, one of the subtle geniuses of Brazilian pop. Most of the songwriter's well-known tunes are here -- "Mas Que Nada" and "Taj Mahal," the inspiration for Rod Stewart's "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?" -- done with help from an orchestra and a spirited percussion section. Despite the many musicians, there's a shortage of compelling visuals: Ben Jor might be a great songwriter, as adept as Caetano Veloso at integrating rock orchestration into his music, but he's not exactly a riveting performer.