Even for the man described as "the most successful Brazilian artist of all time", this was something of a milestone. Sergio Mendes last performed in Britain back in 1980, when he opened for Frank Sinatra at the Royal Albert Hall. Now he's in fashion once again, thanks to his new followers, the Black Eyed Peas (who appear on his latest album, Timeless, but not at this show), and the enthusiasm of DJs such as Gilles Peterson, who welcomed him to the packed-out Barbican.

Mendes may have started out as a distinguished jazz pianist, but his commercial career is based on his skill of matching Brazilian songs and rhythms with easy-going western pop. The turning point was his decision in 1966 to invite two female singers to join his band, Brasil 66, who then became a sensation in the US. Their version of Jorge Ben's Mas Que Nada was the first Portuguese-language hit in the US, and was followed by a string of best-sellers.

In the 1990s, when it seemed his career might be dipping, he became a hero for the easy-listening lounge set. Now, he has added hip-hop to the mix, and the result was a curiously uneven show. There were songs from the new album, with the conga player and bassist managing remarkably well as rappers on The Frog, or the more subtle Samba Da Bencao.

Then there was the breezy easy listening, dominated by his current duo of girl singers, Gracinha Leporace and Dawn Bishop. They swapped solos or sang in unison while Mendes sat behind the keyboards in a Hawaiian shirt, effortlessly adding his distinctive Latin jazz colouring to transform The Look of Love or The Fool on the Hill. The crowd were eventually brought to their feet with a finale that included Pais Tropical and the hip-hop version of Mas Que Nada, sounding more lively than the new album recording. Sergio Mendes was so pleased that he performed it twice.