Storytelling (Naná Vasconcelos album)

Recorded in 1992 and 1993, the album was produced in part by Vasconcelos.^[6][7] Many of the songs are about the Amazon rainforest; others are semi-autobiographical.^[8][9] Vasconcelos added found sounds to the music.^[10] He employed more electronic effects than on previous albums, although he still made use of the berimbau.^[11][12] "Curtain" was cowritten by the Ambitious Lovers' Peter Scherer.^[13]

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Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[14]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[15]
MusicHound World: The Essential Album Guide	[11]
Orange County Register	[13]

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The Guardian wrote: "There are string quartets, choirs, children's voices, the berimbau, gongs, accordions, talking drums, the works. The atmosphere he evokes is of the street-corner, the forest, cattle in fields. It isn't jazz, but Vasconcelos is an improviser to the tips of his fingers, and understands the impulses of improvisers from whatever roots they spring."^[6] The Orange County Register deemed the album "a mesmerizing blend of Afro-Brazilian-jazz-global grooves"; it later named it one of the best albums of 1995.^[13][16] The Omaha World-Herald opined that "some samba rhythms provide brief interest, but mostly the music wanders somewhat aimlessly."^[17]

AllMusic called the music "often sweet and charming, and just as often thoughtful and engaging—never boring, annoying, or mediocre; it's also impossible to pigeonhole."^[14] The Miami Herald labeled Storytelling "beautiful," writing that "Vasconcelos takes listeners on an ambient journey deep into the Amazon."^[18]