Jorge Ben is the sixth studio album by Brazilian singer-songwriter and guitarist Jorge Ben. It was released in November 1969 by Philips Records. The album was his first recording for a major label since 1965 when his first stint with Philips ended due to creative differences. Ben recorded the album alongside producer Manoel Barenbein, the vocal/percussion band Trio Mocotó, and an orchestral section arranged by José Briamonte and Rogério Duprat. It was written by Ben during his previous few years performing independently and developing his unique samba-based style. He incorporated psychedelic and soul music for this lively recording, while his quirky lyrics dealt with everyday life, romances with women, Afro-Brazilian identity, and self-awareness. Guido Alberi's iconic cover for the album also drew on psychedelic influences in its pop-art illustration of Ben and symbols of contemporary Brazilian culture. Jorge Ben was a commercial comeback for Ben and featured several hit songs, including two of his most famous recordings "Que Pena" and "País Tropical". Critics have since associated the album with Brazil's samba rock and Tropicália musical movements. In 2008, it was released for the first time in the United States by Dusty Groove America. Background Jorge Ben began his professional recording career with Philips Records in 1963, when they released his debut album Samba Esquema Novo to immediate fan frenzy. In an effort to capitalize on the success, the label pressured Ben to hastily record follow-up albums of music in the same vein and cover songs as filler. The result was three albums within the span of 18 months and a strain on his relationship with Philips, which ended after the last of these albums (1965's Big Ben) was finished. For the next few years, Ben performed as an independent artist. His only album during this period, O Bidú: Silêncio no Brooklin, was released in 1967 on the São Paulo-based, small-market label Artistas Unidos and sold poorly. While continuing to refine his idiosyncratic samba-based style, he occasionally recorded singles for Artistas Unidos and wrote songs, some of which were recorded by mainstream acts such as Os Mutantes, Wilson Simonal, and Elis Regina. This caught the interest of Philips, which was under the new leadership of former Odeon Records executive André Midani. In early 1969, Midani re-signed Ben after musicians Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso promised to promote him whenever possible. Recording and production Jorge Ben was recorded at C.B.D. in Rio