Bossa nova was all the rage in 1962, and following the release of the Stan Getz/Charlie Byrd album Jazz Samba, jazz record producers were eager to encourage the artists they'd signed to jump on the "bossa nova jazz" bandwagon. Another record titled BigBand Bossa Nova was also recorded in 1962, with Stan Getz leading an orchestra conducted by Gary McFarland. As Mercury's musical director at the time, Quincy Jones was his own producer and decided to take advantage of the opportunity with his Big Band Bossa Nova, which features some Jobim classics of the genre and some original compositions, all wonderfully arranged by Jones.