Mas que nada is a Brazilian song written by Jorge Ben Jor. It was first recorded in 1962 by Carioca bossa nova musician Zé Maria on the album Tudo Azul - Bossa E Balanco, with Jorge Ben singing lead on the record. Ben then recorded his own version in 1963 for his debut album Samba esquema novo, released as a single. The tune was soon covered by Brazilian artists including Tamba Trio in 1963 and Luis Carlos Vinhas in 1964. In 1966 Sérgio Mendes and Brasil ’66 brought Mas que nada to an international audience with an arrangement that borrowed from Vinhas’ version. Mendes re-recorded it in 2006 with the Black Eyed Peas for the album Timeless, and the track topped charts in Hungary and the Netherlands and reached the UK top 10. The song is widely honored, being voted the fifth greatest Brazilian song by Rolling Stone Brasil and inducted into the Latin Grammy Hall of Fame in 2013. The melody also traces back to José Prates’ 1958 track Nanã Imborô, which Mendes highlighted in his arrangement. Genres include samba, samba rock, and bossa nova.
