One of the best of the early bossa nova songwriters, Carlos Lyra also revealed a pleasantly intimate voice that made him a parallel to João Gilberto (he also wrote many songs for Gilberto’s early recordings). The Verve collection Pure Bossa Nova is rather brief, including only 14 songs (and only ten performed by Lyra himself), but it does include some of his best work of the ’60s: “Você e Eu,” “Maria Ninguém,” and “Tem Dó de Mim.” Aside from Carlos Lyra’s performances, the collection also includes versions of Lyra songs by Caetano Veloso, Nara Leão, Sylvia Telles, and Wilson Simonal. – John Bush