Summer Samba (also known as So Nice or its original Portuguese title, "Samba de Verão") is a 1966 bossa nova song by Brazilian composer Marcos Valle, with English-language lyrics by Norman Gimbel; the original Portuguese lyrics came from Paulo Sérgio Valle, brother to the composer.

The song was first popularized by the Walter Wanderley Trio in 1966 — the album Rain Forest on which it was issued reached platinum status in 1970 — also reaching the U.S."Easy Listening" chart in versions by Johnny Mathis, Vikki Carr, and Connie Francis during that same year. In fact, at least one source claims that three different versions were on the Billboard charts at the same time in 1966.Allmusic has said of Wanderley's version, "His recording ... is regarded as perhaps a more definitive bossa tune than "Girl From Ipanema." Wanderley's version was the biggest seller in the U.S., reaching #26 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1966, (#3 on the Easy Listening chart) , and is still a favourite on Adult Standards radio stations.

Walter Wanderley (born Walter Jose Wanderley Mendoza, 12 May 1932 – 4 September 1986), pronounced "VON-DER-LAY", was an organist and pianist, born in Recife, Brazil and best known for his lounge and bossa nova music.

Already famous in his native country by the late 1950s, he became an internationally renowned star in the mid 1960's through his collaboration with the singer Astrud Gilberto. He recorded six albums on the Verve label between 1966 and 1968. Three of these albums, Rainforest, Cheganca and Astrud Gilberto's A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness were with a trio consisting of Walter, Claudio Slon (drums) and Jose Marino (bass) and were produced in the United States by Creed Taylor, who initially brought the Trio to the U.S. to record at the persuasion of Tony Bennett. Wanderley's U.S. recording of Summer Samba reached #26 on the Billboard charts in the summer of 1966.. Another album recorded during this period was "Popcorn", in collaboration with the Brazilian singer-guitatrist Luiz Henrique Rosa.

Bebel Gilberto (born Isabel Gilberto de Oliveira on May 12, 1966 in New York City) is an American-born Brazilian popular singer often associated with bossa nova. She is the daughter of João Gilberto and singer Miúcha. Her uncle is singer/composer Chico Buarque. Gilberto has been performing since her youth in Rio de Janeiro.

Bebel was born in New York City, New York to Brazilian parents Miúcha and João Gilberto, who raised her in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Music was an integral part of her childhood; she began singing with her mother at a young age and participated in professional musicals such as Saltimbancos and Pirlimpimpim. At the age of seven, she made her recording debut on her mother's first solo album, The Best of Two Worlds. Two years later, she performed at Carnegie Hall with her mother and Stan Getz.

Her professional solo debut came in 1986 with a self-titled EP released by WEA which included "Preciso dizer que te amo," a partnership with Cazuza, Dé, when both were in the Barão Vermelho band. In 1991, she moved to Manhattan, where she was born. Bebel continues to live in New York City, but shares her time between the U.S. and Brazil.

Oscar Emmanuel Peterson CC CQ OOnt (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian jazz pianist and composer. He was called the "Maharaja of the keyboard" by Duke Ellington, "O.P." by his friends. He released over 200 recordings, won eight Grammy Awards, and received other numerous awards and honours over the course of his career. He is considered to have been one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, having played thousands of live concerts to audiences worldwide in a career lasting more than 60 years.

Peterson was born to immigrants from the West Indies; his father worked as a porter for Canadian Pacific Railway. Peterson grew up in the neighbourhood of Little Burgundy in Montreal, Quebec. It was in this predominantly black neighbourhood that he found himself surrounded by the jazz culture that flourished in the early 20th century. At the age of five, Peterson began honing his skills with the trumpet and piano. However, a bout of tuberculosis at age seven prevented him from playing the trumpet again, and so he directed all his attention to the piano. His father, Daniel Peterson, an amateur trumpeter and pianist, was one of his first music teachers, and his sister Daisy taught young Oscar classical piano. Young Oscar was persistent at practising scales and classical etudes daily, and thanks to such arduous practice he developed his astonishing virtuosity.

Astrud Gilberto (born March 30, 1940) is a Brazilian samba and bossa nova singer. She is well known for her performance of the Grammy Award-winning song "The Girl from Ipanema".

Astrud Gilberto was born as Astrud Weinert, the daughter of a Brazilian mother and a German father, in the state of Bahia, Brazil. She was raised in Rio de Janeiro. She married João Gilberto in 1959 and emigrated to the United States in 1963, continuing to reside in the US from that time. Astrud and João divorced in the mid-1960s and she began a relationship with her musical partner, Stan Getz.

She sang on the influential album Getz/Gilberto featuring João Gilberto, Stan Getz, and Antonio Carlos Jobim. She had never performed professionally, and sang on the recordings at the suggestion of her (then) husband, João Gilberto.

Gilberto's recording of "The Girl from Ipanema" established her as a jazz and pop singer. It sold over one million copies and was awarded a gold disc. 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 (1964). 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. Her repertoire includes "The Shadow of Your Smile", "It Might as Well Be Spring", "Love Story", "Fly Me to the Moon", "Day by Day", "Here's That Rainy Day", and "Look to the Rainbow". She has recorded songs in Portuguese, English, Spanish, Italian, French, German, and Japanese.