by Alvaro NederThe Bossa Três was the first instrumental group of the bossa nova. In 1961, Luís Carlos Vinhas (piano), Tião Neto (bass), and Edison Machado (drums) teamed up to form the trio. They went to the U.S. to accompany the dancers Lennie Dale, Martha Botelho, and Joe Benett on The Ed Sullivan Show. They remained in the U.S. and recorded three albums in New York, which were released by Audio Fidelity in 1962 (one of them accompanying Jo Basile). The group continued to perform in jazz nightclubs until its dissolution. Returning alone to Brazil, Vinhas regrouped the trio with other musicians and continued to work, recording and performing throughout Latin America. The Bossa Três recorded with Pery Ribeiro in 1966 and, in 2000, with Wanda Sá.