Why "The Girl from Ipanema" ' Is a Richer & Weirder Song Than You Realized
Briefly

Adam Neely, a jazz musician with a deep background in music education, utilizes YouTube to share extensive insights into music theory. His notable video on bossa nova's 'The Girl from Ipanema' delves into its historical and cultural significance, showcasing its journey through various mediums like film and comedy. The piece emphasizes Neely's technique of providing value through a lengthy yet engaging examination of the song, something traditional media often overlooks. Through this, he highlights the intricate connections between music and broader cultural themes.
If not for Neely's talent and YouTube's platform, we wouldn't have the above: a 30 minute exploration of the bossa nova standard, 'The Girl from Ipanema.'
Neely gives us the 'tl;dw' ('too long, didn't watch') summary up front: the song's history concerns blues music, American cultural hegemony, and the influence of Berklee College's 'The Real Book.'
Read at Open Culture
[
|
]