By Bodine V. Johnson, For the Guardian

I am clueless as to why this album is listed as Easy Listening. Sergio Mendes' "Timeless" is the first album of newly recorded music in eight years. A surprising twist from the ordinary, its opening sequence deceives one into believing that it will be a Latin/Samba/Bossa-Nova album, but the jig is up as the Black Eyed Peas add their trademark funk to the opening track 'Mas Que Nada.'

It is the music of cosmopolitan lounges, and top notch coffee houses. By all indications, it is a masterpiece of hip-hop flows, and freestyle funk, which blends seamlessly into the Latin styles of Samba and Bossa Nova. None of the styles are overpowering; they are balanced and blended to perfection. Featuring a number of artists including Q-Tip, Chali 2Na of Jurassic 5, Mr Vegas, Erykah Badu, India Arie, Stevie Wonder, Pharoahe Monch, Justin Timberlake, Jill Scott, John Legend, The Black-Eyed Peas and Black Thought of The Roots, one would expect this album to be a mess, with conflicting sounds and concepts, but it is not.

While it incorporates a number of styles including, Reggae, Jazz, Hip Hop, Samba, and Pop, it does not lose its musical integrity. Perhaps this is because Sergio Mendes has a legacy like that of a top notch musician. Mendes was initially trained as classical musician, but after being inspired by the Bossa Nova wave of the 1950's, he went in another direction. He has worked extensively with Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Getz and Antonia Carlos Jobim among many others. He later formed the group Brasil '65, which was later named Brasil '66. The group released such hits songs as "Night and Day" and "The Girl from Ipanema."

Sergio Mendes' works include December 1999's "Mas Que Nada" Sergio Mendes & Brasil 66, May 2002's Equinox and October 2002's songs selected by Shinichi.

I first heard various tracks from "Timeless," while relaxing and sipping a cup of Espresso in Starbucks. Since such time, I have been fascinated by such album ever since. "Timeless" definitely has some of the best music I have heard in a long time. I've figured out why it is classified as easy listening; it's easy to listen to over and over again. Each track gives you something new to hear.