Astrud Gilberto died at the age of 83, according to the Associated Press.
The story of her career as a singer is one of the most fascinating tales, if not the most unexpected.
She was married then to Brazilian singer-songwriter Joao Gilberto, a legendary figure in bossa nova. When he recorded the seminal Getz/Gilberto, the album that would take the 1960s bossa nova craze in the United States to new heights, she was invited to sing The Girl From Ipanema in English.
She wasn’t a professional singer then. But that record launched a career that spanned decades.
Let’s look back at some of her best songs, in no particular order, but we have to start with the biggest hit: