by Jason BirchmeierBrazilian MPB star Maria Rita changed direction for her third album, Samba Meu, which, as its title ("My Samba") makes clear, is a samba collection. As on her previous albums, the warmly received Maria Rita (2003) and Segundo (2005), the musical arrangements are acoustic and jazzy, with first-rate production quality. Also like her previous albums, Samba Meu is comprised of excellent songs all around -- just cue up the album and press play, it's that easy; no need to skip even a single track. The highlights are sequenced early: the opening stretch -- from the album-opening title track to the sixth track, "Tá Perdoado" -- is fantastic and lively. The album begins to slow down in pace with "Pra Declarar Minha Saudade" (the seventh track), and this second half of the album is enjoyable in its own way, a nice come-down from the exhilarating opening stretch. Samba Meu is another great album by Rita, even if, like Segundo, it falls short of Maria Rita, which had been close to perfect.